ENS.]

The three little kittens
Washed their mittens,
And hung them up to dry.
"Oh, mammy dear,
Look here, look here,
Our mittens we have washed!"
"What! washed your mittens,
You good little kittens!
But I smell a rat close by!
Hush! hush!" Miew, miew,
Miew, miew, miew, miew.

These kittens so gay
Were invited one day
To feast by a running stream,
Where they had as much meat
As they wanted to eat,
And plenty of nice ice-cream;
And each went to sleep
Curled up in a heap
And had a most lovely dream.
Purr, purr, purr, purr.
Purr, purr, purr, purr.

One night in the Fall
They went to a ball,
And danced to a lively tune,
With a leap and a bound
And a merry-go-round,
And the sound of a big bassoon;
And with holes in their mittens
These careless kittens
Came home by the light of the moon.
Miew, miew, miew, miew,
Miew, miew, miew, miew.

These kittens 'twas said
Were soon to be wed;
The cards had been out some days;
And cat-birds, no doubt,
Spread the news about
As they flew o'er the great high-ways;
And cats, one and all,
The great and the small,
Were loud in the kittens' praise.
Miew, miew, miew, miew,
Miew, miew, miew, miew.

[Illustration: SIR MOUSER'S ARRIVAL.]

[Illustration: AFTER THE MARRIAGE.]

At last came the day,
And in splendid array
The guests soon began to arrive,
The aunts and the cousins
By sixes and dozens,
All buzzing like bees in a hive;
And among them Sir Rouser,
A famous old mouser,
And the handsomest Maltese alive.
Purr, purr, purr, purr,
Purr, purr, purr, purr.

Then after the marriage
Each groom called his carriage,
And, oh, they rode off in fine style;
The brides beaming brightly,
And bowing politely,
To friends every once in a while,
Who kept up a squalling
And great caterwauling
That might have been heard for a mile.
Miew, miew, miew, miew,
Miew, miew, miew, miew.

The guests kept on dancing,
Now leaping and prancing;
The band still continued to play;
And "Puss-in-the-corner,"