story of a
kitty's wanderings and before she started to tell it, she whispered to
each child the name of something which was to appear in the story. For
instance, she gave out "haymow," "milk dish," "mouse hole," "catnip."

Every time she mentioned any such name in the process of telling the
story, the child who had it was expected to rise from his chair,
turn around three times and sit down again. When the words "pussy's
prowlings" were mentioned, all the players jumped up and exchanged
seats. The story teller also tried to get a seat, and if she succeeded
the child who was finally left without one had to continue the story.

PUSSY'S PROWLINGS

Once there was a PUSSYCAT named BLINKY who said to herself one day,
"I'm tired of MILK to drink and I'm oh, so hungry for MOUSE. I must go
on a MOUSE hunt."

So BLINKY stole out of the red BRICK HOUSE where she lived very
happily with the JONES FAMILY. She pattered down the back DOORSTEPS
where her MILK SAUCER was set and she scampered along the winding PATH
to the BARN.

(That's the way PUSSY'S PROWLINGS began.)

Up the LADDER to the HAYMOW she crept and through the heaps of sweet
clover HAY to a HOLE IN THE WALL. There BLINKY knew lived a MOUSE. So
she crouched close to the MOUSE HOLE, as still as still could be and
watched, and she watched and she watched and she watched.

But that MOUSE must have been away from home or else very busy down in
its HOLE, for it never once stuck its little NOSE out. And when BLINKY
had watched there in the HAYMOW for three long, long hours, she was so
hungry that she couldn't watch for that MOUSE a single minute more.

She thought of the MILK SAUCER by the back DOORSTEPS and she said to
herself, "If I can't have MOUSE, MILK won't taste so bad after all."

So BLINKY made her way back through the heaps of HAY and scrambled
down the LADDER to the HAYMOW and ran along the winding PATH to the
back DOORSTEPS. And there, sure enough, was a SAUCER full of MILK all
ready for her to drink. So BLINKY lapped it up very hungrily and was
perfectly happy!

(And that's the way PUSSY'S PROWLINGS ended.)

The next game was called "Hunt the Mouse." Billy had hidden a
chocolate mouse somewhere in the room and the children were asked to
be kitties and try to find it. Whenever anyone came very near the
hiding place, Billy miaowed loudly, or if everyone was very far from
it, Billy would mew only faintly. The "kitty" who found the mouse kept
it for a