The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Tale of Two Bad Mice, by Beatrix Potter

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Title: The Tale of Two Bad Mice

Author: Beatrix Potter

Release Date: March 31, 2014 [EBook #45264]

Language: English

Produced by David Edwards, Emmy and the Online Distributed
Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was
produced from images generously made available by The
Internet Archive)

THE TALE
OF
TWO BAD MICE

FOR
W. M. L. W.
THE LITTLE GIRL
WHO HAD THE DOLL'S HOUSE

THE TALE OF TWO BAD MICE

BY
BEATRIX POTTER
Author of
'The Tale of Peter Rabbit,' &c.

little mouse looking up over its shoulder

LONDON
FREDERICK WARNE AND CO.
AND NEW YORK
1904
[All rights reserved]

ONCE upon a time there was a very beautiful doll's-house; it was red brick with white windows, and it had real muslin curtains and a front door and a chimney.

IT belonged to two Dolls called Lucinda and Jane; at least it belonged to Lucinda, but she never ordered meals.

Jane was the Cook; but she never did any cooking, because the dinner had been bought ready-made, in a box full of shavings.

[10]
[11]
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THERE were two red lobsters and a ham, a fish, a pudding, and some pears and oranges.

They would not come off the plates, but they were extremely beautiful.

[16]
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[19]

ONE morning Lucinda and Jane had gone out for a drive in the doll's perambulator. There was no one in the nursery, and it was very quiet. Presently there was a little scuffling, scratching noise in a corner near the fire-place, where there was a hole under the skirting-board.

Tom Thumb put out his head for a moment, and then popped it in again.

Tom Thumb was a mouse.

A MINUTE afterwards, Hunca Munca, his wife, put her head out, too; and when she saw that there was no one in the nursery, she ventured out on the oilcloth under the coal-box.

THE doll's-house stood at the other side of the fire-place. Tom Thumb and Hunca Munca went cautiously across the hearthrug. They pushed the front door—it was not fast.

[24]
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TOM THUMB and Hunca Munca went upstairs and peeped into the dining-room. Then they squeaked with joy!

Such a lovely dinner was laid out upon the table! There were tin spoons, and lead knives and forks, and two dolly-chairs—all so convenient!

TOM THUMB set to work at once to carve the ham. It was a beautiful shiny yellow, streaked with red.

The knife crumpled up and hurt him; he put his finger in his mouth.

"It is not boiled enough; it is hard. You have a try, Hunca Munca."

sitting at table starting to slice the ham

[30]
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HUNCA MUNCA stood up in her chair, and chopped at the ham with another lead knife.

"It's as hard as the hams at the cheesemonger's," said Hunca Munca.

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The Tale of Two Bad Mice

THE TALE OF TWO BAD MICE