d
never catch him.

There was also a cunning little mouse, who lived
near by. He was called Cooky, because he was once
seen lugging off a whole cooky, to give to his lame
sister. Now, the wicked old rat tried nearly as hard
to catch poor Cooky as Grandmother Puss did to get
the old rat; and Cooky was more afraid of the grim
old rat, than he was of the cat herself. One night
Cooky saw the rat at one end of the cellar, very
busy, eating a piece of cheese that he had stolen.
So Cooky betook himself to the other end, where he
had seen some fine apples, and he was very fond of
apples, indeed.

So he crept softly up to the heap, and was just
about to taste a fine, juicy one, when the cat saw
him. "I said, I would not touch, or taste a mouse,"
she said, "but I did _not_ say I would not scare
one, and I cannot see these nice apples spoiled--so
here goes." With these words, she made a rush for
the mouse, making all the noise she could; which is
not usual with cats, you know, which go very softly,
in order not to scare the mice before they can catch
them.

Cooky, of course, darted away to his hole in a hury,
and there peeped out carefully. "Now," said he to
himself, "that cat has a kind look; I've a good mind
to try, and make a bargain with her, so that I can
get something to eat once in a while. Perhaps I can
make her promise not to eat me, but it will do no
harm to try, and everybody knows that Grandmother
Puss is a cat of her word." So just as Puss was
about to start for the other end of the cellar,
for a tussle with the old rat, she heard a small
squeaking voice, which said, "Please, Grandmother
Puss, I want to make a bargain with you." "A bargain
with _me!_" said Puss, looking about in surprise for
the small voice. "What do you mean?"

"Why, I want to come into the cellar whenever I
like, and eat whatever scraps I can find, besides
taking away a little for my poor, lame sister. Now,
if you will let me do so, and promise not to hurt
me, I will do anything in the world that you ask me
to do--that is _right_--and that I am able to do."

[Illustration: The Old Rat Stealing Cheese.]

This was a big speech for a little mouse, but
Grandmother Puss only thought how Cooky could help
her in the matter of catching the old gray rat. She
turned it over in her mind for some time, keeping
one eye on Cooky, who, in his eagerness, had come
outside his hole, and at last said: "Do you know Mr.
Gray Rat, Cooky?" "Yes, Mada