he said aloud to nobody in particular, "why most
birds don't know how a house should be built. Of all the birds in
Pleasant Valley the only good nest-builder I know is Long Bill Wren. He
must be a very sensible fellow, because he puts a roof on his house."

Now, Dickie Deer Mouse may--or may not--have known that some of his bird
neighbors were near at hand, watching him. Certainly they must have
heard what he said, for they began to scold at the top of their voices.
And one rude listener named Jasper Jay screamed with fine scorn:

"What do you know about building a nest?" And then he laughed harshly.

But Dickie Deer Mouse only looked very wise and said nothing.

[Illustration]

[Illustration]

V

DICKIE'S SUMMER HOME

Dickie Deer Mouse was busier than ever. When he wasn't looking for
food--and eating it when he had found it--he gathered cat-tail down in
Cedar Swamp.

If there was one thing that he liked in a house it was a soft bed. And
he knew that if the weather happened to be chilly now and then, he could
snuggle into the cat-tail down and sleep as comfortably as he pleased.

The swamp was none too near his new home; and he might have found moss
or shreds of bark near-by that would have served his purpose. But he
would rather have cat-tail down, even though he had to make a good many
trips back and forth before he finally lined the old bird's nest to his
liking.

Then, having finished his bed, he had to make a roof over it. So he
covered the top of his house with moss, leaving a hole right under the
eaves, for a doorway.

When Dickie's home was done he was so pleased with it that he asked all
his neighbors if they didn't like his "improvements," as he called the
additions he had made. And all his Deer Mouse relations told him that he
certainly had a fine place.

But none of the birds cared for it at all, except Long Bill Wren; and
even he remarked that the house would be better "if it was rounder."

As for Jasper Jay, he told Dickie Deer Mouse that, in his opinion, the
house was ruined.

"It's nothing but a trap," he declared. "And I'd hate to go to sleep
inside it."

His views, however, did not trouble Dickie Deer Mouse in the least. The
place suited him. And he was so happy in it that sometimes when the
weather was bad and he wasn't whisking about in the trees, or scurrying
around on the ground, he would stay inside his cozy home, with only his
head sticking out through the doorway, wh