Who Lost Their Mittens

and she handed Dot a pair of red mittens, and Tot a pair of blue mittens, and Trot a pair of brown mittens, and the Three Little Kittens went merrily off to skate.

“I don’t like to wear mittens,” said Dot.

“I don’t like to either,” said Tot.

Trot said, “Oh meow, they squeeze my paws.”

Now, what do you suppose those naughty little kittens did?

They took off their mittens and left them on the bank by the ice pond.

They put on their cunning little skates and began to skate to and fro, to and fro, and the wind whistled and called,

“I may freeze your paws and toes,
Nobody knows—nobody knows.”

“My long whiskers,” cried Dot, “How cold it is skating on the ice.”

“By my long tail,” said Tot, “How cold my paws are.”

Trot said, “We will go back at once to the bank and get our mittens.”

The Three Little Kittens did not know that Three Little Foxes had crept up on the bank.

They did not know that the little Foxes said,

“See the nice little mittens,
Left here by the kittens.”

They did not know that the Three Little Foxes had put on their mittens and had run away, waving their beautiful tails behind them.

When the Three Little Kittens got to the bank and saw that their mittens were gone, Dot and Tot cried together,

“We are sad little Kittens,
We have lost our new mittens.”

Brave little Trot said,

“We are smart little Kittens,
We’ll go find our mittens.”

Then Dot and Tot dried their eyes on their little wee pocket handkerchiefs and said, “You are so cheerful brother Trot we will follow where you lead.”

The Three Little Kittens looked one hour and thirty-six minutes for their mittens, but they could not find them and so they went sadly homeward.


SHE SENT THEM, WITHOUT SUPPER, TO BED


Old Mother Kit-Cat stood in the doorway looking for them.

She cried,

“Go back, go back you naughty Kittens,
Go back and pick up your nice new mittens.”

The Three Little Kittens hung their heads and said,

“We put them on the bank to dry,
We hope to find them by and by.”

“You naughty Kittens” Old Kit-Cat said.

She sent them, without supper, to bed.

The Three Little Kittens cried, “Meow, meow, meow. Can’t we have a dish of milk? Can’t we have a chicken bone?”

Old Mother Kit-Cat shook her head, so the Three Little Kittens went pit-a-pat pit-a-pat, up stairs to bed.

They were so hungry they kept talking about good things to eat and that made them want their supper more and more.

“Fish and bones” said Dot, “Milk and cream,” said Tot, “Meat and gravy” said Trot.

Old Mother Kit-Cat called,

“Hush, be still, for over the hill,
The Sandman comes his bag to fill.”

At this, the Three Little Kittens pulled the covers high up over their heads, for they did not want the Sandman to tuck them in his bag.

ALL THIS TIME THREE LITTLE FOXES WEARING THREE PAIRS OF MITTENS WERE DANCING MERRILY IN THE MOONLIGHT.

The Sandman came up over the hill and peeped in at the window.

He saw the beds where the Three Little Kittens lay with the covers pulled up over their heads. He sang softly,

“Oh ho, Little Kittens,
I saw your lost mittens.”

“Where? Where? Where?” cried the Three Little Kittens in one breath uncovering their heads.


THREE LITTLE FOXES WEARING THREE PAIRS OF MITTENS


The Sandman answered in a sing-song-lazy kind of way,

“Come jump in the sack,
I have on my back.”

The Three Little Kittens were thinking so hard about their mittens that they forgot to be afraid and they went whisk! bound! into the Sandman’s sack and rode merrily far away over hill and dale, away, away, away.

Suddenly the Sandman’s sack broke and out fell the Three Little Kittens.

The Sandman did not notice what had happened, and he ran on leaving the Three Little Kittens behind him.

They saw a little wee house in the woods and ran and knocked on the door.

Old Mother Catastrophe, the oldest Cat in the world stuck her head out of the window and called,

“Did you happen to have a mishap?
You sadly disturbed me from my nap.”

The Three Little Kittens answered,

“Old Mother Catastrophe, kind and good,
We are Three Little Kittens lost in the wood.”

Old Mother Catastrophe always knew what to do, she opened her door and hugged and kissed the Three Little Kittens and said to the delight of all, “NOW FOR THE COOKIE JAR.”

She put a cookie jar on the floor and the Three Little Kittens put in their three little paws without saying “By your leave, or thank you, or if you please.”

Then what do you suppose happened?

The cookie jar rose in the air and settled down out of reach, on the highest shelf in the pantry.

The Three Little Kittens cried “Oh” and “Ah” and “What happened to the cookie jar?”

Old Mother Catastrophe said,

“I do not really mean to tease,
But learn some little words like these,
THANK YOU—say, and—IF YOU PLEASE.”

The Three Little Kittens said, “Thank you, thank you, please give us a cookie, please do.”


OLD MOTHER CATASTROPHE STUCK HER HEAD OUT OF THE WINDOW


At that, the cookie-jar floated down again and they ate cookies to their hearts’ content.

They told Old Mother Catastrophe about their lost mittens but she only shook her wise old head and said,

“Enough said, enough said,
Night time is the time for bed.”

She tucked the Three Little Kittens up in her own bed.

Dot and Tot and Trot fell asleep wondering about their lost mittens.

ALL THIS TIME THREE LITTLE FOXES WEARING THREE PAIRS OF MITTENS WERE DANCING MERRILY IN THE MOONLIGHT.