The Mice Hold a Council

The mice call a council meeting.

       They all whispered together. The spiders whispered, too, for they were just as troubled about the little doll as anyone else, only they didn't talk so much. So, while the mice were still chattering, they scrambled very fast on their eight legs to their cousins, the field spiders. 

       Now it happened that the field spiders had a splendid lot of linen just laid out to bleach, for the Queen's daughter was going to be married next day, and all the meadow was spread with gossamer for her bridal clothes. The field spiders were tired, for they had been spinning day and night to get everything ready, but when they heard about the little doll they felt so sorry for her that they set to work at once and wove her a beautiful frock of the very finest gossamer they could make that which is called SSS and never sold in the shops - and they brought the frock and slipped it over her shoulders, and it fitted perfectly. 

       When she saw that dress the little doll left off crying at once. It resembled the most delicate lace, pure white, and it had stick-out skirts, just as a doll's frock should. 

The doll was given yellow hair.

       "Now she must have yellow hair," cried the little mice; and they fetched the softest corn silk they could find from the barnyard stack, and made two plaits of golden hair, to hang down her back. And they woke up the flowers, who were sleeping, to borrow their paints, and they painted the little doll's cheeks, and made her eyes forget-me-not blue, for the mouse who knew about dolls said that was the right color. It was quite exciting, and now every one wanted to help. The moths lent some velvet off their wings to make her a cloak, and the foxglove and the lady-slipper sent her gloves and shoes. Even the big rats came to look on. 

       "We know a house," the rats said, "where an old man lives all alone. He has a box full of round, yellow things that shine. He hides them away so that no one else shall find them, but we know where they are hidden. One of those yellow things would look nice round her neck." 

       And they fetched one, very round and yellow and shiny it was; and they bit a hole through it with their strong teeth, and hung it on a grass chain round the little doll's neck. 

       "Now she looks splendid!" they said. 

  And indeed the little doll looked beautiful! 

There had never been a doll so wonderfully dressed. There was nothing more that could possibly be thought of, and they all stood round to admire her.

       "Now there can be no one more beautiful than you are," they said. The little doll smiled on them, sitting up very straight so as not to crush the fine clothes they had made her, and in her eyes two tears sparkled, but they were tears of joy because all the little friends had been so kind to her. 

Back                                                                      Next