Henry and the Mouse

It's a strange thing, but almost everything odd that ever happens, seems to happen after dark when everyone is asleep and before the cock-a-doodle-do wakes everyone up again.

Some people blame the moon, but that is only because the moon only shows his beaming face at night. This annoys the moon because the moon isn't really to blame at all.
One night when all was dark and the moon wasn't shining because it wasn't the moon's night shift that particular night, well that's when something odd happened.

Henry was woken up because something had tickled his nose. It was the whiskers of a mouse investigating the inside of Henry's organ. Henry was most annoyed. "Mice indeed, How dare they!" Then just as he sneezed, (because the mouse tickling his nose made him sneeze), the mouse scurried off in fright around the back of the bellows.

Panic set in and the reservoir went tight shut and froze with fear. Both bellows tried to do the same, but couldn't because they are joined and take turns at closing. Even the holes were annoyed. They hated mouse holes because they always spoilt their tunes. Mice holes never seem to be in the right place. "They're scoundrel holes made by scoundrel mice!" said the holes. As the mouse was about as big as Henry and about six times heavier, he wondered what to do.

He went off and had a chat with the crank and gears. "Do you think we can catch him before he makes any holes?", he asked in a whisper. Between them they made a plan and Henry went off to begin it. He went off to the corner of the bellows where the mouse was hiding and even though it was very dark with the moon being off duty he could just see the mouse's tail sticking out. So he stamped on the tail and the mouse let out a big squeak. All the pipes began to snigger because it was so funny.

Off ran the mouse who didn't really know where to run. It ran up the con-rod and across the gear wheels. Then just at the right moment the crank moved the gears and the mouse fell off and the gears trapped him upside down hanging by the tip of his tail, which was already hurting because Henry had stamped on it.
The mouse squeaked and squeaked and woke up the cat who tried to see the mouse through the gaps in the organ pipes. The cat couldn't get to the mouse at all and started to meow loudly.

Then the dog woke up and tried to find out what the cat was meowing about. When the dog started barking too, everyone in the house was awake.

The grey-haired old man looked into the room to see what on earth was going on. Eventually he looked inside the organ by opening the panel.
The mouse shot off as quick as his little legs would carry him, leaving the little bit of tail behind and the cat shot off after the mouse and the dog ran after the cat, but he didn't really know why.

The bellows and the pipes and the reservoir all sighed with relief. They all agreed that it was a good plan by Henry.
When Henry went back to his place by the frame he thought to himself, "Well the Moon isn't to blame for everything and that proves it"

Click here if you would like to read about "Henry's Birthday"

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