The King said he would like to go and see the mouse’s home, which so much flattered Perez that he at once offered him a cup of tea and agreed
to take him to see little Giles. Perez the Mouse lived underneath a grocer’s shop, near a big pile of Gruyere cheeses which supplied the whole family with breakfast, dinner and tea. Overjoyed, King Bubi jumped out of bed and began to dress himself, when all at once Perez the Mouse sprang on his shoulder and put the tip of his tail into His Majesty’s nose. *Then a wonderful thing happened, the King sneezed very hard and turned into the most darling little mouse you ever saw.
He was all soft and shiny, and had wee green eyes like emeralds. *Perez the Mouse took him by the paw and disappeared
with him down a tiny hole under the bed, which had been hidden by the carpet.
The King sneezed very hard and turned into
the most darling little mouse you ever saw
The way was dark and sticky, but they scampered along. Sometimes Perez the Mouse stopped at some crossway and looked about before going on, which rather frightened the King and made him feel little shivers right down to the tip of his tail, and he knew that he was afraid, but he remembered that:
‘Fear is natural to the prudent,