When they came to the stone wall they saw Sammy Red Squirrel.
"Good-morning," they called. "We are moving to-day. We are looking for a new home.
"Do you know where we can find one large enough for all of us?"
"No," answered Sammy. "I know where the house is that Mrs. Robin left, but that is too small for you."
"Come, come," called Mother Rabbit, "we cannot stop to talk. We must find a new home soon. It is dinner time this very minute."
So the family of rabbits hopped off along the path.
Then Sammy heard a little squeaking noise and he looked to see where it came from.
"Squeak, squeak!" said Mrs. Field Mouse. "I was not ready to move.
"I did not want to leave my home in the field this week."
"We can soon find another home," said Mr. Field Mouse.
"Here is one right here. This is the very place we are looking for."
Mr. Mouse set his bag down beside a hole that he had found near the stone wall.
Mrs. Mouse looked at the hole and so did all the little mice.
"Perhaps that will do until we can go back to our home in the sunny field," said Mrs. Mouse.
Then she shook her head and wiped a tear from her eye.
"Oh, dear!" she said. "I know I shall be very lonely here."
"But we could not stay in the field," said Mr. Mouse. "A man was cutting the gra.s.s, and I am afraid of that big cutter."
"That is so," said Mrs. Mouse, as she wiped another tear out of her eye. "But I shall be glad when we can move back."
"I think this hole will do," said Mr. Mouse. "I will go in and see."
II
Sammy sat on the wall and watched the mice.
He saw them stop in front of the hole and peep into it.
Then he saw Mr. Mouse go in--head, tail and all.
"That house belongs to some one else," said Sammy.
But Mr. Mouse was in the hole and did not hear what he said.
Mrs. Mouse and the little mice were peeping into the hole and they did not hear what he said.
In a minute Sammy heard Mr. Mouse call to his family to follow him.
Mrs. Mouse picked up the bag and started into the hole.
All the little mice followed her.
Sammy sat on the wall watching them.
All at once he heard a noise.
Mrs. Mouse heard the noise and jumped back.
She dropped the bag, and it flew open. Everything spilled out on the ground.
The next minute Mr. Mouse came scrambling out of the hole.
He had lost off his gla.s.ses, and his cap was gone.
"Oh, oh, oh! That is no home for us. Some one lives there, now," he said.
"Who, who, who?" asked all the little mice at once.
Mr. Toad came out to the edge of the hole, winking and blinking.
"I do," he said. "This is my home. Who came to visit me?"
"I told you that some one lived there," chattered Sammy Red Squirrel.
"I told you, but you would not listen to me."
"Well, there is no harm done," said Mr. Mouse. "I just paid Mr. Toad a visit."
"We must find a home any way," said Mrs. Mouse. "If we stay here the cat will catch us."
"There comes the cat now," said Sammy. "She heard Mr. Mouse squeal when he came out of the hole."
When the mice heard that the cat was coming, what a scampering there was.
It did not take the whole family of mice long to find a home under a big stone.
Sammy jumped off the wall and ran up into the pine tree.
The cat came along the path very slowly.
"Meow, meow!" she said to herself. "I must find something for breakfast."