Twinkle Toes and His Magic Mittens

<h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_III">CHAPTER III.<br/> <span class="smaller">UNCLE MOUSER’S STORY</span></h2> <p>The next day passed very quickly, for the Three Little Kittens went to town to buy yarn for mittens for Twinkle Toes.</p> <p>When evening came, they all sat round the fire and the Three Little Kittens danced up and down before Uncle Mouser, and Twinkle Toes danced round and round.</p> <p>They all said, “Please tell us a story.”</p> <p>Uncle Mouser answered,</p> <div class="poetry-container"> <div class="poetry"> <div class="stanza"> <div class="verse indent0">“I will tell you a story in prose and rhyme,</div> <div class="verse indent0">For I make up stories just half my time.”</div> </div></div> </div> <p>The Three Little Kittens danced up and<span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_40"></SPAN>[40]</span> down and cried, “Tell us a true story, tell us something that really, truly happened.”</p> <p>Uncle Mouser rocked to and fro, to and fro, in the little rocking chair and said,</p> <div class="poetry-container"> <div class="poetry"> <div class="stanza"> <div class="verse indent0">“I would not like to see you in tears,</div> <div class="verse indent0">So I’ll think back for several years.”</div> </div></div> </div> <p>“Oh Uncle Mouser, oh Uncle Mouser,” cried the Three Little Kittens, “we cannot wait years and years for a story.”</p> <p>Twinkle Toes waltzed round and round.</p> <p>Old Mother Kit-Cat’s needles went “click, click, click.”</p> <p>By and by Old Uncle Mouser said, “By my whiskers, I do know one true story about a little kitten, who liked to wash dishes, and do kitchen work.”</p> <p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_41"></SPAN>[41]</span></p> <p>Old Mother Kit-Cat stopped knitting suddenly, and leaned forward and her eyes grew as big as saucers.</p> <p>She said, “Did you say, liked to wash dishes and do kitchen work?”</p> <p>Old Uncle Mouser answered, “I will tell you the story as it was told me by my old Aunt Tabby.” Then he began.</p> <p>Once upon a time the Old Man of the Fire said to the King, “I wonder if any kitten in the world likes to wash dishes and do kitchen work?”</p> <p>The King said, it could not be possible that any kitten liked to do these things, so the Little Old Man of the Fire said, “I travel everywhere over hill and dale, and wherever a fire is, there am I. What will you give me if I find a kitten who likes to do kitchen work?”</p> <p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_42"></SPAN>[42]</span></p> <div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/illus7.jpg" width-obs="550" height-obs="700" alt="" /> <p class="caption">ONCE UPON A TIME THE OLD MAN OF THE FIRE SAID TO THE KING</p> </div> <p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_43"></SPAN>[43]</span></p> <p>The King replied, “I will give you a thousand miles of sun to burn morning and evening.”</p> <p>The Little Old Man of the Fire ran over hill and dale singing,</p> <div class="poetry-container"> <div class="poetry"> <div class="stanza"> <div class="verse indent0">“I am the Little Old Man of the Fire,</div> <div class="verse indent0">Ha, ha, I am happy, I never tire.”</div> </div></div> </div> <p>My! what a long search he had.</p> <p>He found plenty of kittens who hated to do kitchen work, and he was afraid they all hated to wash dishes.</p> <p>He was about to give up the search, when one night he saw a light on a far hill, twinkle, twinkle.</p> <p>He followed the light and soon came to a little wee house on the hill.</p> <p>A little Kitten was singing,</p> <p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_44"></SPAN>[44]</span></p> <div class="poetry-container"> <div class="poetry"> <div class="stanza"> <div class="verse indent0">“Pile the dishes up higher, higher,</div> <div class="verse indent0">Bring in the wood and make more fire,</div> <div class="verse indent0">Of kitchen work I never tire,</div> <div class="verse indent0">Pile the dishes up higher, higher.”</div> </div></div> </div> <p>Dishes were piled up to the ceiling.</p> <p>The Little Old Man of the Fire was so happy, he danced with glee.</p> <p>The Little Old Man of the Fire rapped on the door and the kitten called, “Come in.”</p> <p>The Little Old Man stepped inside, and for the first time in four and twenty hours, the little Kitten stopped work.</p> <p>Her gingham apron changed to an apron of gold.</p> <p>Her white cap changed to a gold crown.</p> <p>She became a real Princess.</p> <p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_45"></SPAN>[45]</span></p> <p>She had been under a spell until the Little Old Man of the Fire came in.</p> <p>They joined hands and ran merrily over hill and dale singing all the way.</p> <p>When the King saw the Princess he ordered a great wedding, and made her Queen, and he gave the Little Old Man of the Fire miles and miles of sky to burn every night.</p> <p>One day, long after that, the King asked the Queen “How did you happen to like to work?” and she answered, “I said to myself,</p> <div class="poetry-container"> <div class="poetry"> <div class="stanza"> <div class="verse indent0">“I try to like the work I do,</div> <div class="verse indent0">Some day my wishes will come true.”</div> </div></div> </div> <p>The King said,</p> <div class="poetry-container"> <div class="poetry"> <div class="stanza"> <div class="verse indent0">“If we try to like our work,</div> <div class="verse indent0">Then I’m sure we’ll never shirk.”</div> </div></div> </div> <p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_46"></SPAN>[46]</span></p> <p>The King and Queen looked out at the evening sky, and they knew the Little Old Man of the Fire was at work, for they saw a very beautiful sunset.</p> <p>The story was ended.</p> <p>Uncle Mouser rocked to and fro.</p> <p>Old Mother Kit-Cat said, as her needles flew to and fro, “That does not sound like a true story to me, it sounds to my old ears like a Fairy Tale.”</p> <p>Uncle Mouser replied, “I can only tell the story as Aunt Tabby told it to me.”</p> <p>If you guessed yesterday, and to-day, and to-morrow, you could not guess what happened next.</p> <p>The Three Little Kittens slipped out of their three little rocking-chairs and went “pit-a-pat,” into the kitchen.</p> <p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_47"></SPAN>[47]</span></p> <div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/illus8.jpg" width-obs="550" height-obs="700" alt="" /> <p class="caption">PUT THE DISHES IN NEAT PILES UPON THE TABLE</p> </div> <p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_48"></SPAN>[48]</span></p> <p>Twinkle Toes followed them waltzing every step of the way.</p> <p>They began to wash dishes.</p> <p>Splash, splash, went the water.</p> <p>Clatter, clatter went the supper dishes as Twinkle Toes put them in neat piles on the table.</p> <p>The Three Little Kittens sang as they worked,</p> <div class="poetry-container"> <div class="poetry"> <div class="stanza"> <div class="verse indent0">“We like the suds and water sweet,</div> <div class="verse indent0">To wash the dishes is a treat.”</div> </div></div> </div> <p>Once more Old Mother Kit-Cat’s eyes grew as big as saucers, and she said in a whisper, “I guess that was a true story after all.”</p> <hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop" /> <p><span class="pagenum"><SPAN name="Page_49"></SPAN>[49]</span></p> <div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/header2.jpg" width-obs="500" height-obs="60" alt="" 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