"A big gray rat," replied Uncle Daniel, and everybody had a good laugh.
"I thought it might be that," said Mrs. Bobbsey.
"So did I," declared Nan. "But I wasn't sure."
"I thought it was a big black burglar," Flossie said, her voice still shaking from the fright.
"I thought it was a policeman," faltered Sandy. "'Cause they always bang things like that."
"And I thought, sure's yo' life, it was a real ghost," laughed Dinah. "'Cause de clock jest struck fer de ghost hour. Ha! ha! dat was suah a musicanious rat."
"He must have come in from the fields where John has been plowing. Like a cat in a strange garret, he didn't know what to do in a parlor," said Uncle Daniel.
Harry took the candle and looked carefully over the keys.
"Why, there's something like seeds on the keys!" he said.
"Oh, I have it!" exclaimed Bert. "Nan left her hat on the piano last night, and it has those funny straw flowers on it. See, the rat got some of them off and they dropped on the keys."