A Mouse on the Tight-rope. 193 
end with a piece of wood and at the other by its own 
natural growth. Now the mice (which are every- 
where on farm premises) are so outrageously fond of 
grease that they will spend any length of time gnaw- 
gnaw-gnawing till they do get at it. Right through 
the solid stopper of wood they eat their way, and even 
through the horn ; so that the carpenter is puzzled to 
know how to preserve it out of their reach. It is of 
no use putting it on a shelf, because they either rush 
up the wall or drop from above. At last, however, he 
has hit upon a dodge. 
He has suspended the horn high above the ground 
by a loop of copper wire, which projects six or eight 
inches from the wall, like a lamp on a bracket. The 
mice may get on the bench, and may run up the wall, 
but when they: get to the wire they cannot walk out 
on it—like tight-rope walking—the more especially 
as the wire, being thin and flexible, bends and sways 
if they attempt it. This answers the purpose as a 
rule ; but even here the carpenter declares that once 
now and then his horn is pilfered, and can only account 
for it by supposing that a bolder mouse than common 
makes a desperate leap for it, and succeeds in landing 
on the flat surface of the wooden stopper. 
The shed has one small window only, which has 
no glass, but is secured by an iron bar (he needs no 
larger window, for all carpenters work with the door 
open) ; and through this window a robin has entered 
and built a nest in a quiet corner behind some timber. 
oO 
