Page:Christmas stories (IA christmasstories00faul).pdf/53

 Then they found another candy mouse, a nice pink one, and they were so busy eating it that they forgot to watch and listen, until bang! suddenly the door was thrown open and the electric lights were turned on. With a squeak of warning, the Velvet family, scrambling and tumbling down through the branches of the tree, scampered pell-mell across the hall, through the pantry and back to their home and safety.

There was the father-mouse, and the mother-mouse, and Sharpeyes, and Sniffy, but where was Squeaky? What had become of poor Squeaky?

Now, as Squeaky tried to climb down the tree, he fell heels over head down, down, down until he was caught in a funny, square box. An ugly looking man with black hair and a black beard seemed to be hopping