GROWING OLD 



237 



' stick-break ' was his special complaint. She took 

 him up tenderly in her strong teeth, and had 

 covered half of the return journey in safety with 

 her lifeless burden when she was observed, and her 

 maternal love was rewarded with a speedy death. 

 Perhaps it was all for the best ; she would have 

 wasted a lot of valuable time in trying to lick the 

 kid back to life, but I think that you will allow 

 her a word of praise. She knew what she was 

 risking well enough — I feel sure that she did not 

 waste any money on a return ticket when she 

 started on that journey, as you would say — but she 

 meant to bring back little Johnny at all costs, and 

 so she did — half-way. 



Did you ever try the experiment of keeping us 

 as pets? I cannot guarantee that it would be 

 altogether a success ; you might see the worse side 

 of us, or you might see the best. A good deal 

 would depend upon yourself, and a certain amount 

 upon the class of rat which you happened to get. We 

 vary, of course, in character, just as you differ from 

 one another. It is quite possible that, if you put 

 four or five rats into a big, comfortable cage, you 

 would only find one or two left in the morning, 

 with a few fragments of animal wreckage strewed 

 about to show you what had become of the others, 



