"Are you ready?" asked his mother. "Well, let us count. One, two, three!"
The lid flew open, and out jumped the man with the black hair and black whiskers. And with a squeak of joy, out jumped the mouse.
"Ee-ee-ee!" he cried, as he ran away.
"Ee!" said the Jack-in-the-box.
"Whee-ee-ee!" cried the boy with delight.
"Oh,—a mouse! a mouse!" cried the mother. Then she threw the box on the floor and jumped up on her chair.
"Where? where?" cried all the children.
But they saw only the tip of Squeaky's tail as he ran across the hall to the pantry. Another moment and he was safe in the hole in the pantry wall.
The children's father laughed as he helped their mother climb down from the chair.
"Well," he said, "how did you enjoy Teddy's scare box?"