you to the black Ox." Next day they had pods
full of ripe peas on them.

So every day he used to eat lots of peas, and in this manner he got very
fat. One day a pretty young lady Mouse came to see him.

"Good morning, Sleekie," said she; "how are you?"

"Good morning, Squeakie," said he; "I'm quite well, thank you."

"Why, Sleekie," said she, "how fat you are."

"Am I?" said he. "I suppose that's because I have plenty to eat."

"What do you eat, Sleekie?" asked the pretty young lady Mouse.

"Peas, Squeakie," said the other.

"Where do you get them, Sleekie?"

"They grow all of themselves in my garden, Squeakie."

"Will you give me some, please?" asked the lady Mouse.

"Oh yes, if you will stay in my garden, you may have as many as you
like."

So Squeakie stayed in Sleekie's garden, and they both ate so many peas
that they got fatter and fatter every day.

One day Squeakie said to Sleekie, "Let's try which can get into the hole
quickest." Squeakie was slim, and she had not been at the peas so long
as Sleekie, so she got into the hole easily enough; but Sleekie was so
fat that he could not get in at all.

He was very much frightened, and went off in hot haste to the
Carpenter, and said to him, "Carpenter, please pare off a little flesh
from my ribs, so that I can get into my hole."

"Do you think I have nothing better to do than paring down your ribs?"
said the Carpenter angrily, and went on with his work.

The Mouse went to the King, and said, "O King, I can't get into my hole,
and the Carpenter will not pare down my ribs; will you make him do it?"

"Get out," said the King; "do you think I have nothing better to do than
look after your ribs?"

So the Mouse went to the Queen. Said he, "Queen, I can't get into my
hole, and the King won't tell the Carpenter to pare down my ribs. Please
divorce him."

"Bother you and your ribs," said the Queen; "I am not going to divorce
my husband because you have made yourself fat by eating too much."

The Mouse went to the Snake. "Snake, bite the Queen, and tell her to
divorce the King, because he will not tell the Carpenter to pare my ribs
down and let me get into my hole."

"Get away," said the Snake; "or I'll swallow you up, ribs and all; the
fatter you are, the better I shall be pleased."

He went to the Stick, and said, "Stick, beat the Snake, because she
won't bite the Queen, who won't divorce the King and make him tell the
Carpenter to pare down my ribs,