Mousie did not like the Drum so well as her Kid; but needs must, and she picked out a drum, and went away with it on her shoulder. By-and-by she came to a place where women were beating rice, to get the grains away from the husk. She hung up her Drum on a peg, while she watched the women husking the rice. Bang! flap! a woman drove her pestle right through the Drum.
Poor Mousie. It seemed as if her misfortunes would never end. When she asked the woman for her Drum again, there it was, burst. The tears ran down her cheeks.
"We are very sorry," the women all said, "that we cannot give you back your Drum; but you can have a Girl instead, if you like."
This brought smiles to Miss Mousie's sad face, and
she dried her tears. The women gave her a nice Girl,
and Mousie took the Girl home. They set up house
together, and planted a crop of corn. The corn ripened,
and they went out to cut it. Miss Mouse was a
wee mousie, and was quite hidden among the
stalks of the corn. While the Girl was
cutting the corn with a sickle, she did
not see poor little Mousie, so she
cut her in two, and that
was the end
of her.
The Jackal that Lost his Tail
