A Collection of Beatrix Potter Stories Part 14

Sally Henny Penny gets rather fl.u.s.tered when she tries to count out change, and she insists on being paid cash; but she is quite harmless.

And she has laid in a remarkable a.s.sortment of bargains.

There is something to please everybody.

THE END

THE STORY OF MISS MOPPET

THIS is a p.u.s.s.y called Miss Moppet, she thinks she has heard a mouse!

THIS is the Mouse peeping out behind the cupboard, and making fun of Miss Moppet. He is not afraid of a kitten.

THIS is Miss Moppet jumping just too late; she misses the Mouse and hits her own head.

SHE thinks it is a very hard cupboard!

THE Mouse watches Miss Moppet from the top of the cupboard.

MISS MOPPET ties up her head in a duster, and sits before the fire.

THE Mouse thinks she is looking very ill. He comes sliding down the bell- pull.

MISS MOPPET looks worse and worse. The Mouse comes a little nearer.

MISS MOPPET holds her poor head in her paws, and looks at him through a hole in the duster.

The Mouse comes VERY close.

AND then all of a sudden --Miss Moppet jumps upon the Mouse!

AND because the Mouse has teased Miss Moppet --Miss Moppet thinks she will tease the Mouse; which is not at all nice of Miss Moppet.

SHE ties him up in the duster, and tosses it about like a ball.

BUT she forgot about that hole in the duster; and when she untied it--there was no Mouse!

HE has wriggled out and run away; and he is dancing a jig on the top of the cupboard!

THE END

THE TALE OF MR. JEREMY FISHER

FOR STEPHANIE FROM COUSIN B.

ONCE upon a time there was a frog called Mr.

Jeremy Fisher; he lived in a little damp house amongst the b.u.t.tercups at the edge of a pond.

THE water was all slippy- sloppy in the larder and in the back pa.s.sage.

But Mr. Jeremy liked getting his feet wet; n.o.body ever scolded him, and he never caught a cold!

HE was quite pleased when he looked out and saw large drops of rain, splas.h.i.+ng in the pond--

"I WILL get some worms and go fis.h.i.+ng and catch a dish of minnows for my dinner," said Mr. Jeremy Fisher. "If I catch more than five fish, I will invite my friends Mr. Alderman Ptolemy Tortoise and Sir Isaac Newton.

The Alderman, however, eats salad."

MR. JEREMY put on a macintosh, and a pair of s.h.i.+ny goloshes; he took his rod and basket, and set off with enormous hops to the place where he kept his boat.

THE boat was round and green, and very like the other lily-leaves. It was tied to a water-plant in the middle of the pond.

MR. JEREMY took a reed pole, and pushed the boat out into open water. "I know a good place for minnows,"

said Mr. Jeremy Fisher.

MR. JEREMY stuck his pole into the mud and fastened his boat to it.

Then he settled himself cross-legged and arranged his fis.h.i.+ng tackle. He had the dearest little red float. His rod was a tough stalk of gra.s.s, his line was a fine long white horse-hair, and he tied a little wriggling worm at the end.

THE rain trickled down his back, and for nearly an hour he stared at the float.

"This is getting tiresome, I think I should like some lunch," said Mr. Jeremy Fisher.

HE punted back again amongst the water- plants, and took some lunch out of his basket.

"I will eat a b.u.t.terfly sandwich, and wait till the shower is over," said Mr.

Jeremy Fisher.

A GREAT big water-beetle came up underneath the lily leaf and tweaked the toe of one of his goloshes.

Mr. Jeremy crossed his legs up shorter, out of reach, and went on eating his sandwich.

ONCE or twice something moved about with a rustle and a splash amongst the rushes at the side of the pond.

"I trust that is not a rat,"

said Mr. Jeremy Fisher; "I think I had better get away from here."