STUART LITTLE

Chapter 1: THE STRANGE BABY

Mr Little and his family lived in New York City. Mr Little worked in an office. His wife, Mrs Little, took care of the house. She was a kind woman and liked animals. She kept a white cat called Snowball. She also liked to play the piano. Mr and Mrs Little had a son called George, who went to school and liked to play ping-pong. In every way it was quite a usual family. But one day something very unusual happened to them, and that was when Mrs Little's second son was born.
When he was born, everybody saw that he was not bigger than a mouse. The baby looked very much like a mouse in every way. He was only two inches high, he had a sharp nose, a long tail and whiskers. Before he was many days old he began to walk, just like a mouse. Mr and Mrs Little called him Stuart, and made him a bed out of a cigarette box.
Mrs Little saw at once that baby clothes were not good for Stuart. So she made him a fine blue suit with a pocket in which he could keep his handkerchief. She also gave him a grey hat and a small stick.
Very soon Stuart could not only walk, but also run, jump and climb lamps by the cord. And that even before he was a month old!
When Stuart was a month old he was still so small and light that his mother sent for the doctor. The doctor liked Stuart very much and said that it was very unusual for an American family to have a mouse. He took Stuart's temperature and found that it was normal for a mouse. He listened to his heart and looked into his ears. Everything was all right, and Mrs Little was very glad to hear it.
"Feed him up!" said the doctor and went away.

Chapter 2: IN THE DRAIN

The house where the family lived stood near a park in New City. In the mornings the sun looked into the house through the east windows and all the family got up very early. Stuart was a great help to his parents and to his brother George. He was so small that he could do many useful things and was always ready to help. One day Mrs Little went to wash the bathtub and fest a ring from her finger. It rolled into the bath-tub and fell down the drain.
"Oh, my brave little son," she said proudly.
"How was it down there?" asked Mr Little. He always liked to know about places to which he could not go himself.
"It was all right," said Stuart.
But everybody thought it was not very pleasant down there, because Stuart came back very dirty and had to wash himself quickly.

Chapter 3: HOME PROBLEMS

The Littles liked to play ping-pong, but when they played it, the little balls always rolled under chairs, sofas, and radiators. So the players had to stop playing and begin to look for the balls. Very soon Stuart learned to find them quicker than anybody else in the family. He found them under chairs and hot radiators and pushed them with all his might. It was hard work, because the ball was almost as high as he was, and it was difficult for Stuart to roll it along. But he liked it.
The Littles had a piano in their dining-room, and Mrs Little liked to play it in the evenings. It was a good piano, but one of the keys stuck sometimes, and did not work properly. That was very unpleasant. Mrs Little said: "It's all because of the bad weather." But we must say that this key didn't work even on bright days.
George always got very angry when he played the piano and the key stuck. (To tell the truth, he did not play the piano very well even on the days when the key worked properly, but still he got angry.) One day George said: "Let us put Stuart inside the piano."
You know that inside every piano there is a lot of soft hammers, and when you play the piano each hammer strikes a different cord, and you hear music. So George said:
"You must stay inside, Stuart, and push up the key every time it sticks."
And he put Stuart inside the piano. It was hard work, because the noise inside the piano was terrible, and Stuart was quite deaf after half an hour. Besides, he was afraid that a hammer might hit him on the head. But he liked this work just the same, because he liked music.
Mr and Mrs Little often spoke about Stuart when he was not around. To have a mouse in the family was a very unusual thing. Stuart was so small that sometimes his parents did not know what to do with him.
"He must not know that he is a mouse," they decided.
Mr Little said that they must not mention the word mice in their conversation. He made Mrs Little tear out a page from a songbook with the song about the "Three Blind Mice".
"He must not know too much about mice," said Mr Little. "He will be afraid that somebody will cut off his tail with a knife. Such things make children dream bad dreams when they go to bed at night."
"Yes," said Mrs Little, "and we must also think about the poem "Twas the night before Christmas...' Do you remember it?" And she showed her husband the book:

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.'

"That's right," said Mr Little, "but what shall we say when we come to that line in the poem? We shall have to say something. We can't simply say "Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house not a creature was stirring.' There is no rhyme here!"
"What about louse?" said George.
They decided that louse was the best word. So Mrs Little rubbed out the word mouse from the poem and wrote the word louse instead. And Stuart always thought that the poem went this way:

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a louse.'

But there was one more thing that worried Mr and Mrs Little. There was a mousehole in the kitchen. Mr Little did not know where this hole led to. He was afraid that one day Stuart might get into it.
"After all, he looks like a mouse and all mice like to go into holes," he said to his wife.

Chapter 4: STUART'S MORNINGS

Stuart was an early riser. He always was the first person up in the morning. He liked the quiet rooms with books on the shelves, the morning light. In winter it was dark when he climbed out of bed. It was very cold as he stood in his night-shirt and did his exercises. Every morning he touched his toes ten times. His brother George always said it kept the stomach muscles firm.
After his exercises Stuart took a towel and started for the bath-room. He had to go through the long dark hall, past his mother's and father's and George's rooms.
Of course, the bath-room was dark too. But there was a long string tied to the switch. If Stuart pulled it with all his might he was able to turn on the light.'
There was also a tiny rope ladder tied to the wash-basin, and Stuart could climb it in order to wash his hands and face and brush his teeth. One day George promised to build Stuart a special small wash-basin, only one inch high, but George always promised to build something and then forgot about it.
So every morning Stuart climbed the rope ladder to the big wash-basin. He had a doll's tooth-brush, a doll's cake of soap, a doll's towel, and a doll's comb with which he could comb his whiskers. He carried these things in his pocket and when he reached the wash-basin he took them out and put them near him. Then he turned the water on. For such a small fellow it was a difficult problem. One day he discussed it with his father.
"I can't turn the faucet on properly," he said, "because when I am doing it, my feet are in the air."
"Yes, I know," his father answered. "That's the whole trouble. We must do something about it." George, who liked to listen to other people's conversations, said that they must build a special board for Stuart. He took a wooden board, a hammer and some nails and started to make a terrible noise in the bath-room. But he soon became interested in something else and disappeared leaving the tools all over the floor.
"Maybe I can hit the faucet with something and in this way turn it on," said Stuart.
Mr Little gave him a very small wooden hammer, and Stuart started for the bath-room to try. He swung his hammer three times around his head and hit the faucet. When a thin stream of water began to flow Stuart brushed his teeth and washed his face and hands. He liked it very much.
And now every morning his parents and brother George, who were still asleep in their beds, could hear the loud plink, plink, plink of Stuart's hammer. It told them that it was time to get up.

Chapter 5: STUART DISAPPEARS

One fine morning in May when Stuart was three years old, he got up early, as usual, washed and dressed himself, took his hat and stick, and went downstairs. Nobody was there but Snowball, the white cat. Snowball was also an early riser. In the mornings he liked to lie on the window-sill and think about the days when he was a kitten.
"Good morning," said Stuart.
"Hello," answered Snowball drily. "You're up early, aren't you?"
Stuart looked at his watch. "Yes," he said, "it's only five minutes past six, but I want to do some exercises."
"Haven't you done all your exercises in the bath-room when you made such a terrible noise? You woke up all the house in order to brush your teeth. I think that your teeth are so small that there is no need to brush them. Do you want to see some good teeth? Look at mine!"
Here Snowball opened his mouth and showed his white teeth, sharp as needles.
"Yours are very nice," said Stuart. "But mine are all right, too. As for exercise, I try to do it every day. I bet my stomach muscles are firmer than yours."
"I bet they are not," said the cat.
"I bet they are," said Stuart. "They are like iron."
"I bet they are not," said the cat.
Stuart wanted to show Snowball that (he had very good stomach muscles, but he did not know how to do that. So he looked around the room. There were window shades on the windows which could roll up, each shade with a cord and a ring. This gave Stuart an idea. He climbed to the window-sill, took off his hat and put down his stick.
"You can't do this," he said to the cat. And he ran and jumped onto the ring like an acrobat.
A strange thing happened. When Stuart pulled the ring, the window shade flew up to the top of the window rolling Stuart up inside.
"Oh, dear!" said Snowball. He was almost as surprised as Stuart himself. "That will be a lesson to him."
"Help! Let me out!" cried Stuart. He was frightened, and it was very difficult to breathe inside the shade. But his voice was too weak and nobody heard him.
Snowball laughed. He did not like Stuart and did not want to let him out. He did not run upstairs and did not tell Mr and Mrs Little about the accident. He did a strange thing instead. He quickly looked around, then ran to the window-sill, took Stuart's hat and stick in his mouth, carried them to the kitchen and put them down near the mousehole.
When Mrs Little came into the kitchen and found Stuart's things on the floor, she screamed loudly.
"It has happened!" she cried.
"What has happened?" asked her husband.
"Stuart went down the mousehole!"

Chapter 6: RESCUED

George thought that the first thing to do was to break the kitchen floor. He ran and got his hammer and his screw-driver. "I'll have this old floor up in a moment," said George.
He put the screw-driver under the first board and tried to raise it.
"No, we must not break the floor. Let us have a good search first," said Mr Little. "You can put that hammer away where you got it."
"Oh, all right," said George. "I see that no-body in this house thinks about Stuart but me."
Mrs Little began to cry.
"My poor dear little son!" she said. "I know that we shall never find him!"
"If you yourself cannot go down a mousehole it does not mean that Stuart cannot," said Mr Little. "Please don't cry."
"Maybe we must put some food down into the hole," said George. "The police did it when a man got stuck in a cave. I read about it myself."
George ran to the dining-room and came back with a cup of apple-sauce.
"We can pour some apple-sauce into the hole, and it will run down to Stuart," he said.
"Stop that!" cried Mr Little. "George, will you kindly let me handle this situation? Put the apple-sauce away immediately!" And he looked angrily at George.
"I only tried to help my own brother," said George and carried the apple-sauce back.
"Let us all call Stuart," said Mrs Little. "It is quite possible that he has lost his way."
"Very well," said Mr Little. "I will count three, we shall call Stuart, then we shall all keep quiet for three seconds and wait for the answer." He took out his watch.
Mr and Mrs Little and George went down on their hands and knees and put their mouths close to the mousehole. Then they all called: "Stu-ooooo-art!" And then they all kept quiet for three seconds.
Stuart heard them from the rolled-up shade and called back, "Here I am!" But his voice was too weak, and nobody heard him.
"Again!" said Mr Little. "One, two, three - Stu-ooooo-art!" But there was no answer.
Mrs Little went up to her bedroom, lay down and began to cry. Mr Little went to the telephone and rang up the Bureau of Missing Persons. But when the man from the Bureau asked for a description of Stuart and Mr Little told him that he was only two inches high, the man angrily hung up.
George went down the cellar in order to find another entrance to the mousehole. He moved and pushed trunks, boxes, baskets, flower pots and broken chairs, but he did not find any hole. Instead he found an old rowing machine; he became interested in it, carried it upstairs and rowed the whole morning.
When lunch time came, all three sat down to lunch. But it was a sad meal. They tried not to look at the small empty chair near Mrs Little's glass of water. Stuart's parents could not eat, and even George ate nothing but some apple-sauce.
After lunch Mrs Little began to cry again.
"I'm sure that Stuart is dead," she said.
"Nonsense, nonsense!" answered Mr Little.
"If he is dead," said George, "we must pull down all the shades in the house." And he ran to one of the windows and began to pull down the shade.
"George!" shouted Mr Little. "Stop it! This is idiotic!"
But the shade rolled down, and Stuart dropped out of the shade on the window-sill.
"Mum, look who is here!" cried George.
"You pulled down that shade in time," said Stuart. "That's all I can say." He was weak and hungry.
Mrs Little was so glad to see him that she began to cry again. Of course, everybody wanted to know what had happened. And Stuart told them the whole story while he had his lunch.
"So you see, it was simply an accident," he said. "As to my hat and stick which you found near the mousehole, you can draw your own conclusions."

Chapter 7: STUART GOES OUT FOR A WALK

One morning when the wind was from the west, Stuart put on his sailor suit and his sailor hat and decided to go out for a walk. But before he went out he took his spyglass from the shelf. This spyglass was a special glass, like a sailor's; through this glass Stuart could see the things that were far away. He always took his spyglass with him when he went out for a walk because he was afraid of dogs. Every time he saw a dog through his spyglass, he ran to the nearest doorman, climbed his leg and hid in the pocket of his coat. Once, when there was no doorman in the street, Stuart had to crawl into a yesterday's paper and sit there till danger was past. So that morning, full of the joy of life and the fear of dogs, Stuart went out for a walk in his sailor suit and his sailor hat.
At the corner of Fifth Avenue several people waited for the bus, and Stuart joined them. Nobody noticed him, because he was very small.
"I am so small that nobody notices me," thought Stuart, "but I am big enough to go on a bus."
When the bus came into view, all the people waved their sticks and handbags, and Stuart waved his spyglass, and the driver stopped the bus. The step of the bus was too high for Stuart, so he took hold of a gentleman's shoe and got into the bus without any trouble.
Stuart could not buy tickets on buses because he was not big enough to carry money in his pocket. Once, when somebody gave him a dime, he had to roll it along like a hoop. But as he grew older, he understood that it was not good to ride on a bus without a ticket, so he asked his father to help him, and Mr Little made him special tiny dimes out of tin foil. They were so tiny that it was difficult to see them without spectacles.
When the conductor came up to him, Stuart took one of his dimes out of his purse. It was not bigger than the eye of a grasshopper.
"What is this?" asked the conductor.
"It's one of my dimes," said Stuart.
"Is it?" said the conductor. "I'm afraid it will be difficult to explain it to the bus company. Why, you are not bigger than a dime yourself."
"Yes, I am!" said Stuart angrily. "I'm twice as big as a dime. Besides, I did not come on this bus to be insulted."
"I beg your pardon," said the conductor, and gave him a ticket. "You must forgive me, I had no idea that in all the world there was such a small sailor."
"Live and learn," said Stuart drily and put his purse back in his pocket.

Chapter 8: A FAIR BREEZE

When the bus stopped at Seventy-second Street, Stuart jumped out and hurried to the sailboat pond in Central Park. The west wind blew over the pond, and there were many toy boats and schooners. They sailed with the wind. Their wet decks gleamed in the sun.
The owners of these boats, boys and grown men, watched their ships and all the time ran around the pond. They tried to keep the boats from bumping. Some of the toy boats were not so small: their mainmast was taller than a man's head. They were very beautiful and ready for sea. To Stuart they seemed very big and he wished to get on board one of them and sail away to the far corners of the pond. (He was a brave little fellow and loved the breeze, the waves and the cries of the seagulls.)
He sat on the shore and looked at the ships through his spyglass. He noticed one boat which seemed to him finer and prouder than all the others. Her name was Wasp. She was a big black schooner with the American flag on the mainmast and a cannon on the deck.
"She's the ship for me," thought Stuart.
When the Wasp sailed in, he ran up to the man who stood on the shore near the schooner.
"Excuse me, sir," said Stuart, "are you the owner of the schooner Wasp?"
"I am," answered the man. He was surprised to see a mouse in a sailor suit.
"I'm looking for a job on a good ship," said Stuart. "Perhaps you will take me. I'm strong and I'm quick."
"Are you sober?" asked the owner of the Wasp.
"I never drink," answered Stuart drily.
The man looked sharply at him. He liked the trim appearance and bold manner of this little sailor.
"Well," he said at last and turned the Wasp toward the centre of the pond, "I'll tell you what I'll do with you. Do you see that big racing boat there?"
"I do," said Stuart.
"That's the Lillian," said the man, "and I hate her with all my heart."
"Then so do I," cried Stuart.
"I hate her because she always bumps into my boat," said the man, "and because her owner is a lazy boy who does not understand sailing. He cannot tell a mast from a mist."
"Or a deck from a dock," cried Stuart.
"I'll tell you what we'll do," said the man. "The Lillian is faster than my boat, and it usually beats the Wasp. But if somebody is on deck and handles the boat, it will be quite a different story. Nobody knows how I suffer when I stand here on shore, helpless, and watch the Wasp. She needs a steady hand on her wheel. So, my young friend, you will sail the Wasp across the pond and back, and if you can beat that Lillian, I'll give you a regular job."
"Aye, aye, sir," said Stuart. He jumped on board the schooner and took his place at the wheel.
"Ready!" he cried.
"One moment," said the man. "How are you going to beat the other boat?"
"I am going to set more sail," said Stuart.
"Not in my boat, thank you," said the man quickly. "You may upset the Wasp."
"Well, then," said Stuart, "I shall fire off the cannon!"
"But it must be a boat race and not a sea battle."
"Well, then," said Stuart cheerfully, "I'll sail straight to the opposite shore with all my might and we shall see who goes faster!"
"Bravo!" cried the man, "and good luck to you!"
The wind filled the sails of the schooner and she sailed off. Stuart turned the wheel.
"By the by," cried the man on shore, "you haven't told me your name."
"My name is Stuart Little," cried Stuart at the top of his lungs.
"Good luck, Stuart!" cried his friend. "Take care of yourself and of the ship."
"Aye, aye, sir," shouted Stuart. He was so proud and happy that he began to dance on the deck. He even did not notice a steamer which almost bumped into the schooner.

Chapter 9: THE SAILBOAT RACE

When the people in Central Park learnt that a mouse in a sailor suit was on one of the toy boats, they ran to the pond. Soon there were so many people on the shores that somebody had to ring up the police. A policeman came and told the people to stop pushing. But nobody listened to him. People in New York City like to push each other.
The most excited person of all was the owner of the Lillian. He was a fat, sulky boy of twelve. His name was Roy. He wore a blue suit and a dirty white tie.
"Come back here!" he cried to Stuart. "Come back here and get on my boat! I shall pay you five dollars a week. You can have every Thurs-day off and a radio in your room."
"I thank you for your kind offer," answered Stuart, "but I am happy on board the Wasp - happier than I have ever been in all my life." And he turned the wheel and sailed toward the starting line. The Lillian was already there and waited for the start of the race.
"I'll be the referee," said a man in a bright green suit. "Is the Wasp ready?"
"Ready, sir!" shouted Stuart, touching his hat.
"Is the Lillian ready?" asked the referee.
"Of course I'm ready," said Roy. In his hand he held a long stick with the help of which he could turn his boat.
"To the north end of the pond and back again," shouted the referee. "On your mark, get set, go!"
"Go!" cried the people from the shore.
"Go!" cried the owner of the Wasp.
"Go!" shouted the policeman.
And the two boats went to the north end of the pond, and the sea-gulls cried above them, and the taxis tooted from Seventy-second Street, and the west wind sang and whistled in the sails.
"This is the life for me!" Stuart said to himself. "What a ship! What a day! What a race!"
But at that time an accident happened on shore. The people still pushed each other in order to see the race better, and suddenly they pushed the policeman into the pond. He fell into the water and got wet up to the third button of his coat. How angry he was!
This policeman was a big, fat man who always ate very much. When he fell into the water he made a great wave which upset all the small boats on the pond. The owners of these boats screamed with delight and fear. When Stuart saw the great wave he climbed the mainmast, but it was too late. The wave covered the deck and swept Stuart over the side of the boat and into the water.
Everybody thought that it was the end of him. But Stuart did not want to die. He beat the water with his feet and his tail, and in a minute or two he climbed back on board the schooner. He was cold and wet but alive!
When he took his place at the wheel, he heard shouts from the shore: "Bravo, Stuart! Bravo!" He looked around and saw the Lillian quite close to the Wasp. The two boats reached the north end of the pond almost at the same time. Here Stuart put the Wasp about and Roy turned the Lillian around with his stick and the two boats went toward the finish line.
"This race is not over yet," thought Stuart.
He looked into the cabin and saw that the barometer had fallen sharply. That can mean only one thing at sea - bad weather. Suddenly a big cloud covered the sun. It became dark. Stuart trembled with cold in his wet sailor suit. When he saw the Wasp's owner among the people on shore he waved his hat and cried: "Storm ahead, sir! Barometer falling!"
"Never mind the weather!" cried the man. "Look out, Stuart!"
Stuart looked ahead into the gathering storm, but saw nothing except big grey waves with white crests. The world around was cold and dark. Stuart looked behind him and saw the Lillian quite close to the Wasp.
"Look out, Stuart! Look where you are going!"
Stuart looked again and suddenly, right ahead, he saw a big paper bag. It floated along the surface of the pond. The bag was empty and its open end was like the mouth of a cave. Stuart turned the wheel but it was too late. The nose of the Wasp drove straight into the bag and the ship stopped. Stuart heard a terrible crash and saw that the nose of the Lillian drove straight into the Wasp! The whole schooner trembled.
In a second the two boats were in a terrible tangle. The crowd on shore shouted at the top of their lungs. Little boys screamed and danced. At that time the paper bag began to leak and fill with water.
The Wasp could not move because of the bag. The Lillian could not move because her nose stuck in the sails of the Wasp.
Stuart ran forward and fired off the cannon. Then he heard, among the other voices on shore, the voice of the owner of the Wasp.
"Stuart! Stuart! Cut the paper bag!"
Stuart took out his pocket-knife and began to cut the wet bag. Soon he cleared the deck.
"Now give her a full!" screamed the owner of the Wasp.
Stuart pulled the sail with all his might. Slowly the schooner started and began to gather speed. Now the Wasp was free! Loud shouts came from the shore. Stuart ran to the wheel and waved his hat. Then he looked back and to his great joy he saw that the Lillian was far behind him.
The Wasp sailed straight to the finish line. At last she crossed it, came up to the shore, and Stuart jumped down. All the people praised him for his daring. The owner of the Wasp said that it was the happiest day of his life. He said that his name was Dr. Paul Carey, that he was a dentist and that toy boats were his hobby. He offered Stuart to take command of his ship at any time. Everybody shook hands with Stuart - everybody except the policeman. He was too wet and angry, and did not want to shake hands with a mouse.
When Stuart came home that night, his brother George asked him:
"Where have you been all day?"
"Oh, I walked around town," said Stuart.

Chapter 10: MARGALO

Stuart was so small that it was often difficult to find him in the house. When his father, his mother or his brother George could not find him, they had to call him. You could often hear somebody's cry: "Stuart! Stu-ooo-art!" Very often you entered the dining-room, and he was in an arm-chair, and you couldn't see him. Mr Little was always afraid to lose him. He even made him a tiny red cap, such as hunters wear, and this cap helped all the family to find Stuart.
One day when he was seven years old, his mother said: "Today I shall make a pudding for dinner!" And Stuart went to the kitchen after her. He was very hungry and when Mrs Little opened the door of the electric refrigerator, he slipped inside it. He hoped to find a piece of cheese. He did not say a word to his mother, but he was greatly surprised when she closed the door and left him inside the refrigerator. "Hasn't Mother seen me?" he thought. "Why has she closed the door? That must be a joke!" But then he was frightened.
"Help!" he shouted. "It's dark here! It's cold here! Help! Let me out! I'm cold!"
But his voice was weak and his mother did not hear him. In the darkness he fell into a saucer of apple-sauce. It was cold as ice. Stuart trembled, and his teeth chattered. Only half an hour later Mrs Little opened the door again and found Stuart on a piece of butter hopping up and down and blowing on his hands.
"Stuart!" she cried, "my poor little boy!"
"How about a glass of brandy?" said Stuart. "I'm chilled to the bone."
But his mother made him some hot broth instead and put him to bed in his cigarette box and placed a small hot-water bottle against his feet. However, Stuart caught a bad cold. He had to stay in bed for almost two weeks.
During his illness the other members of the family were very kind to Stuart. Mrs Little played with him. George made him a soap bubble pipe and a bow and arrow. Mr Little made him a pair of skates out of two paper clips.
One cold afternoon Mrs Little looked out of the window and saw a small bird on the window-sill. At first she thought it was dead, but then she decided to bring the bird into the warm room and put it near the radiator. She did so, and what do you think? Soon the bird opened her eyes. It was a pretty little brown bird with a yellow breast. Mrs Little found a place for her in the dining-room, and fed her, and gave her a cup of water. Soon the bird felt much better and began to hop around the house and look at everything with great interest. At last she hopped upstairs and into Stuart's room. Stuart was still in bed.
"Hello," he said. "Who are you? Where did you come from?"
"My name is Margalo," said the bird in a musical voice. "I come from fields once tall with wheat, from pastures deep in fern and thistle; I come from vales of meadow-sweet, and I love to whistle."
Stuart sat up in bed. "Say that again!" he said.
"I can't," said Margalo. "I have a sore throat."
"So have I," said Stuart. "Don't come near me, you may catch it,"
"I'll stay here, near the door," said Margalo.
"You can take my medicine if you want," said Stuart. "And my nose drops too."
"Thank you very much, you are very kind," said the bird.
"Did they take your temperature?" asked Stuart.
"No," said Margalo, "but I don't think it is necessary."
"Well, we must be sure," said Stuart, and he gave her the thermometer. Margalo put it under her tongue, and she and Stuart sat very still for three minutes. Then she took it out and looked at it.
"Normal," she said. Stuart was very glad to hear it. He liked this bird very much, she was so beautiful.
"I hope," he said, "that my parents have prepared you a nice bed?"
"Oh, yes," Margalo said. "I am going to sleep in the fern on the bookshelf in the dining-room. You have a nice house. And now, if you'll excuse me, I shall go to bed. It is getting dark outside. I always go to bed at sundown. Good night, sir!"
"Please don't call me 'sir'," cried Stuart. "Call me Stuart."
"Very well," said the bird. "Good night, Stuart!" And she hopped off.
"Good night, Margalo," cried Stuart. "See you in the morning!"
Stuart lay down again.
"This is a very nice bird," he whispered and sighed.

Chapter 11: A DIRECT HIT

When Mrs Little came to Stuart's room to say good night, he asked her:
"Is the bird quite safe downstairs?"
"Quite safe, my dear," answered Mrs Little.
"What about that cat Snowball?" asked Stuart.
"Snowball will not touch the bird," his mother said. "Please go to sleep and forget all about it."
Mrs Little opened the window, turned out the light, said good night and went away.
Stuart closed his eyes and lay there in the dark, but he could not sleep. He thought about the bird downstairs. He thought about Snowball and his gleaming eyes. At last he turned on the light.
"I can't trust that cat," he whispered. "I can't sleep when Margalo is in danger."
Stuart climbed out of bed and put on his slippers. He took his bow and arrow and his flash-light and went out into the corridor. Everybody was asleep and the house was dark. Stuart went slowly downstairs and came into the dining-room noiselessly. He was still weak after his illness and he felt dizzy.
"I must do it," he said to himself.
Noiselessly he went across the room to the lamp which stood near the bookshelf and climbed it up. There, on the bookshelf, he saw Margalo who was asleep in the fern, with her head under her wing.
"Sleep, Margalo," Stuart whispered. Then he hid behind a book and began to wait. At first he saw nothing and heard nothing. The clock struck ten, and just at that moment Stuart saw two gleaming yellow eyes under the sofa.
"So I was right," thought Stuart. He took his bow and arrow.
The eyes came nearer. Stuart was frightened, but he was a brave mouse. He put the arrow against the cord of the bow and waited. Snowball came softly to the bookshelf and climbed noiselessly up into the chair quite close to it.
There he lay down, ready to spring. His tail waved back and forth. His eyes gleamed bright. Stuart decided that the time had come. He went down on his knees, bent his bow, took aim at Snowball's left ear and shot the arrow.
Snowball screamed with pain, jumped down and ran off to the kitchen.
"A direct hit!" said Stuart. "It was good work."
He was very tired when he climbed into his bed. He closed his eyes and fell asleep at once.

Chapter 12: ON A GARBAGE TRUCK

Margalo liked the Littles' house so much that she decided to stay for a while. She and Stuart became great friends. It seemed to Stuart that Margalo grew more and more beautiful every day.
"I hope she will never fly away from me," he thought.
One day when Stuart was already quite well he took his new skates and went out to look for an ice pond. He didn't get far. In the street he saw a big dog. Very quickly he climbed up an iron gate, jumped into a garbage can and hid there. Just at this time a garbage truck drove up to the gate and two men picked up the can and raised it high in the air. Stuart looked out and saw the big truck.
"If I jump now I shall kill myself," thought Stuart. So he decided to wait. The men threw the can into the truck, where another man turned it upside down and shook everything out. Stuart fell on his head and sank deep into wet garbage. Its smell was very strong. Garbage was under him, over him, on all four sides of him. Stuart had egg on his trousers, butter on his coat, orange peel on his cap, and banana peel round his waist.
With the skates in his hand, Stuart tried to get to the surface of the garbage. He was almost near the top when he slipped and fell into a pool of yesterday's rice pudding.
"I am afraid that I shall be sick'' said Stuart, and he tried again to work his way up to the top. At last he got to the surface and looked around. "Why, we are going somewhere!" he said. "And very fast, too!"
He looked up at the sun. "We are going east," he said to himself. "What does it mean?"
There was no way to get out of the truck, the sides were too high. So Stuart had to wait.
Half an hour later the truck reached the East River, which is on the east of New York City. It is a dirty but useful river. The driver drove close to the river and shook out all the garbage onto a special boat. Stuart fell down along with everything else and hit his head. He fainted and for an hour lay still as though dead.

Chapter 13: A NARROW ESCAPE

While he lay there the time came for the boat to take away the garbage. And when Stuart opened his eyes he saw nothing but water. He was already far from the shore!
"Well," thought Stuart, "this is the end. That will be my last trip in this world! I can do nothing. I have to sit here bravely and die like a man. But I don't want to die with egg on my trousers, butter on my coat, orange peel on my cap and banana peel round my waist!"
Stuart became sad and began to think about his home and his father and mother and brother and about Margalo and Snowball. He loved them all except Snowball. "I shall never see them again," he thought, and tears came into his eyes. He began to cry, but suddenly he heard a whisper behind him:
"Stuart!"
He looked around, through his tears, and there, on a big potato, was Margalo!
"Margalo!" cried Stuart. "How did you get here?"
"Well," said the bird, "this morning I sat on the window-sill. I saw how you went out and then hid in the can, and everything that happened after that. I flew out of the window and followed the truck in order to help you."
"Oh, I am so glad to see you," said Stuart. "But how can you help me?"
"If you take hold of my feet," said Margalo, "I can fly home with you. How much do you weigh?"
"Three ounces and a half," said Stuart.
"With your clothes on?" asked Margalo.
"Of course," said Stuart.
"Then I can carry you easily."
"And what if I get dizzy?" asked Stuart.
"Don't look down," said Margalo. "Then you will not get dizzy. Anything is better than death."
"Yes, that is true," said Stuart.
"Let us start then. Hang on!" Stuart hid his skates under his coat and took hold of Margate's feet. "All ready!" he cried.
Margalo rose into the sky, and flew over the ocean, toward home.
"Ugh!" said Margalo, when they were high in the air, "you smell bad, Stuart."
"I know that," he said sadly. "It's because of the garbage. I hope that you will not get dizzy."
"I cannot breathe," Margalo answered. "And my heart is beating! You must drop something to make yourself lighter."
"Shall I drop my skates? They are under my coat," said Stuart.
"Oh, dear!" the bird cried. "I didn't know that you had skates under your coat. Throw these heavy skates away quickly or we shall both fall down in the ocean."
Stuart threw his skates away and they disappeared in the grey waves.
"That is better,'' said Margalo. "It is all right now. I can already see the sky-scrapers of New York City."
Fifteen minutes later, they flew in through the open window of the Littles' dining-room and landed on the bookshelf. When Mrs Little heard about their adventure she took Stuart in her hand, though he still smelled bad, and kissed him. Then she sent him upstairs to the bathroom and told George to take Stuart's clothes away.
"How was it there, in the Atlantic Ocean?" asked Mr Little who never went very far from home.
So Stuart and Margalo told him all about the ocean, and the grey waves with white crests, and the sea-gulls in the sky, and the ships and the strong wind. Mr Little sighed. He said that someday he hoped to get away from his office and see all those fine things.
Everybody thanked Margalo and at supper Mrs Little gave her a special cake.

Chapter 14: SPRING

Snowball, the cat, liked night-time more than day-time. Perhaps it was because he could see better in the dark. But perhaps it was because so many interesting things happened in New York at night.
Snowball had several friends among house cats and street cats. He knew a white Persian cat who lived next door, a tiger cat from the library, and a beautiful young Angora cat. This cat had run away from a cage in a pet shop and now lived a free life in the park near Stuart's house.
One spring evening Snowball went to see the Angora cat in the park. The weather was so fine that the Angora cat decided to walk with Snow-ball to his house to keep him company. When the two cats came up to Mr Little's house, they sat down near a tall tree which grew under George's window. Snowball usually climbed this tree at night and got into the house through George's open window. Snowball began to tell his friend about Margalo and Stuart.
"Oh, dear," said the Angora cat, "how can it be? You live in the same house with a mouse and a bird and don't do anything about it!"
"Yes, it is true," answered Snowball. "But what can I do about it? Please remember that Stuart is a member of the family, and the bird is a guest, like myself."
"Well," said Snowball's friend, "I must say that you have more self-control than I have."
"I think so," said Snowball. "Sometimes it seems to me that I have too much self-control. I am terribly nervous because I am always holding myself in."
The cats talked so loudly that they woke up a pigeon who was asleep in the tree above their heads. He opened his eyes and began to listen. "It is a very interesting conversation," he thought. "Perhaps I can learn something important."
"I know that cats have a duty toward their own people," said the Angora cat. "I understand quite well that you can't eat Margalo. But I am not a member of your family, and nothing can stop me from eating her."
"Nothing," said Snowball.
"Then I'll go," said the Angora cat and began to climb the tree.
The pigeon was ready to fly away when he heard Snowball's voice again.
"Wait a minute," said Snowball, "don't be in a hurry. Don't go tonight."
"Why not?" asked the Angora cat.
"Well, everybody is at home tonight and you might get into trouble."
"I shall be very careful," said the Angora cat.
"Please wait till tomorrow night," said Snowball. "Mr and Mrs Little will be out tomorrow night. It will not be so dangerous. I say it for your own good."
"All right," said the Angora cat. "I can wait. But tell me where I shall find the bird."
"That is simple," said Snowball. "Climb this tree, enter George's room through the open window, then go downstairs and you will find the bird in the fem on the bookshelf in the dining-room."
"It is not difficult," said the Angora cat and smiled. "I am obliged to you, sir."
"Well, well," whispered the pigeon to himself, and flew away. He wanted to find a piece of paper and a pencil. Snowball said good-night to his friend, climbed up the tree and went to bed.
Next morning Margalo found a note on the bookshelf:

Beware of a strange cat who will come at night.
A well-wisher.

Margalo took this note and put it under her wing. She was afraid to show it to anybody - even to Stuart. She could not eat all day long.
"What shall I do?" she thought.
At last, when evening came, she hopped up to an open window and flew away. She did not even say good-bye. It was spring, and she flew north, as fast as she could fly. She felt that north was a good place for a bird in spring.

Chapter 15: THE AUTOMOBILE

For three days all the family looked for Margalo.
"I think that she has flown away because of spring," said George. "Normal birds do not stay in houses when spring comes."
"Perhaps she has a husband somewhere and has gone to him," said Mr Little.
"She has no husband," cried Stuart.
"How do you know?" said George.
"Because I asked her once," said Stuart.
Everybody questioned Snowball about Margalo. But the cat said that he knew nothing.
"I don't know what you want. I have not touched that silly little bird," said Snowball angrily.
Stuart was heartbroken. He had no appetite, ate nothing, and lost weight. At last he decided to run away from home, and go out into the world to look for Margalo.
Early next morning he took his biggest hand-kerchief and put in it his tooth-brush, his money, his soap, his comb and brush and his pocket compass.
"I must also take something to remember my mother by," he said to himself.
So he went into his mother's bedroom where she was still asleep and pulled one hair from Mrs Little's comb. He rolled it up and put it in the handkerchief with the other things. Then he made a bundle and tied it to one end of a wooden match. He put on his grey hat, took his stick, put the bundle across his shoulder and went softly out of the house.
"Good-bye, dear home," he whispered. "Shall I ever see you again?"
For a moment Stuart stood in the street, in front of the house. The world was a big place, and it was difficult to find a little bird in it. Stuart could not decide which way to go - north, south, east or west. So he went to his new friend Dr. Carey, the dentist, owner of the schooner Wasp.
The doctor was glad to see Stuart. He took him into his office. There was a man there. This man's name was Edward Dale. He sat in the chair with his mouth wide open, and Dr. Carey was just going to pull out one of his teeth. It was difficult to pull out that big tooth, so Dr. Carey asked Stuart to sit down on his instrument tray. Now they could talk quietly during the operation.
"This is my friend, Stuart Little," the doctor said to the man with the open mouth.
"How 'oo'oo, Soo'rt," said the man.
"Very well, thank you," said Stuart.
"What are you going to do, Stuart?" asked Dr. Carey and began to pull the man's tooth with a pair of pincers.
"I ran away from home this morning," said Stuart. "I am going out into the world to look for a lost bird. Which way must I go?"
Dr. Carey turned the pincers a little. "What colour is the bird?" he asked.
"Brown," answered Stuart.
"Go north then," said Dr. Carey. "And what do you think, Mr Dale?"
"'ook in 'entral 'ark," said Mr Dale.
"What?" cried Stuart.
"'ook in 'entral 'ark," said Mr Dale.
"He says look in Central Park," explained Dr. Carey and took another pair of pincers from the tray. "It is a good idea. People with bad teeth sometimes have good ideas. Birds like Central Park in spring."
Mr Dale nodded his head and spoke again. "If 'oo 'on't 'ind 'e 'ird in 'entral 'ark, 'ook in 'onnecticut."
"What?" cried Stuart, who liked this new kind of talk very much. "What did you say, Mr Dale?"
"If 'oo 'on't 'ind 'e 'ird in 'entral 'ark, 'ook in 'onnecticut."
"He says if you don't find the bird in Central Park, look in Connecticut," explained Dr. Carey. Then he said to Mr Dale, "Rinse, please."
Mr Dale took a glass of water from the tray and rinsed his mouth.
"Tell me, Stuart," said Dr. Carey, "how will you travel? On foot?"
"Yes, sir," said Stuart.
"Well, I think you must have a car. As soon as I pull this tooth out we shall try to do something about it. Open your mouth, please, Mr Dale."
Dr. Carey took hold of the tooth with the pincers again, and pulled with all his might. This time the tooth came out. Mr Dale got up from the chair, said: "Thank you, doctor. Good-bye," and went away.
Then the doctor led Stuart into another room. From a shelf he took a tiny automobile, about six inches long. It was bright yellow and had black wheels.
"I made this car myself," said Dr. Carey. "When I am not pulling teeth I like to build model cars and boats and other things. This car has a real motor in it. Can you drive, Stuart?"
"Of course," said Stuart. "I have never tried, but I think it will not be very difficult. But I am afraid this car will attract too much attention. Everybody will stop and look at it."
"But nobody will see it," said Dr. Carey.
"Why not?" asked Stuart.
"Because this automobile is a modern car. It is not only noiseless, it is invisible. Nobody can see it."
"I can see it," said Stuart. "There it is!"
"Press that little button!" said Dr. Carey. Stuart pressed the button, and the car disappeared from sight.
"Now press it again," said the doctor.
"How can I press it?" said Stuart. "I can't see it."
"Try to find it. Touch it with your hand."
Stuart found a button. It seemed like the same button, so he pressed it with all his might. He heard a noise and something slipped out from his hand.
"Look out!" cried Dr. Carey. "You pressed the starter button. Now we shall never catch the car!" Dr. Carey took Stuart and put him on the table because he was afraid that the car might hit him.
"Oh, oh!" Stuart cried when he understood the situation. They could not see the little automobile and all the time it was running all over the room, bumping into things. First they heard a terrible crash near the fireplace, and the broom which stood there fell down. Dr. Carey rushed to the fireplace. But at this moment the car upset the waste-basket. Crash! Crash! The doctor was running all over the room, trying to catch the invisible car.
"Oh! Oh!" cried Stuart, jumping up and down on the table. "I am sorry, Dr. Carey, I am sorry!"
"Take a butterfly net!" shouted the doctor.
"I can't," said Stuart. "I can't carry a butterfly net. I am too small."
"That is true," said Dr. Carey. "I forgot. I beg your pardon, Stuart."
"The car must stop sooner or later," said Stuart. "It will run out of gas."
"That's true too," said the doctor. So he and Stuart sat down and waited. At last the noise stopped. Then the doctor got down on his hands and knees and began to crawl all over the room. At last he found the automobile. It was in the fireplace. The doctor pressed the right button and they saw the car. It looked awful. The wheels were broken, the radiator leaked, and on the whole it was a sad sight.
"Stuart!" said the doctor. "I hope that it will be a lesson to you: never press a button on an automobile if you don't know what you are doing."
"Yes, sir," answered Stuart, and tears came into his eyes. It was an unhappy morning, and Stuart already wanted to be at home again.

Chapter 16: STUART MEETS THE DIRECTOR

Dr. Carey began to repair the car, and Stuart went shopping. He decided to buy clothes for his long travel. He went to a doll's shop, and bought some new suits and shirts. He was very pleased with all his new things, and put his luggage in the automobile. That night he slept in the doctor's house.
The next morning Stuart got up early. He thanked Dr. Carey and decided to start at once. He wanted to get out of town before there were many people, cars and trucks in the streets. He drove through Central Park to One Hundred and Tenth Street, then north to the river. The car ran very fast. People sometimes stopped and looked at it, but Stuart did not mind. He did not want to press the button which made the car invisible. He could not forget how much trouble it had caused the day before.
Suddenly Stuart saw a man sitting by the side of the road. It was a tall, thin man, and he looked very sad. Stuart stopped his car and put his head out.
"Good morning, sir! Why are you so sad?" he asked.
"Because everything is bad," said the man,
"Can I help you?" asked Stuart in a friendly voice.
The man shook his head.
"Nobody can help me," he said. "I am the director of School Number Seven in this town, and I always have a lot of problems. Today one of my teachers is ill. Her name is Miss Gunderson. I must find a teacher who will take her place."
"What's the matter with her?" asked Stuart.
"I don't know. The doctor says that she has a bad cold," said the director.
"Can't you find another teacher?" asked Stuart.
"No, I can't. Nobody in this town knows anything. Nobody can teach at school. The lessons must begin in an hour."
"I shall be glad to take Miss Gunderson's place for a day," said Stuart.
The director looked at him.
"Can you do it?" he asked.
"Of course," said Stuart. "I shall be glad to help you."
He opened the door of his little car and stepped out.
"I must put on another suit," he said. "This motoring suit is not good for a classroom."
He took out his suitcase from the car and went into the bushes by the side of the road. When he came back he had on a grey coat, striped trousers, a black tie and spectacles. Then he took his motoring suit and put it in the suitcase.
"Do you think you can maintain discipline?" asked the director.
"Of course I can," said Stuart. "I shall make the lessons interesting and the discipline will take care of itself. Don't worry about me."
The man thanked him and they shook hands.

Chapter 17: IN THE CLASSROOM

At a quarter to nine the schoolchildren gathered in School Number Seven. When they learned that Miss Gunderson was ill and heard about a new teacher they began to whisper to each other: "A new teacher! We shall have a new teacher!"
The news travelled fast. The children were very glad to have a teacher whom nobody knew.
Stuart came at nine. He parked his car at the door of the school and boldly entered the classroom. He found a ruler near the teacher's desk, climbed to the top of it, and then to the desk. There he found a bottle of ink, a pointer, some pens and pencils, a piece of chalk, two hairpins, and three or four books in a pile. Stuart climbed up to the top of the pile of books and said: "Attention, please!"
The boys and girls gathered around the desk to look at the new teacher. Everybody talked at once. The girls giggled and the boys laughed. They were happy to see such a small teacher, so nicely dressed.
"Attention, please!" repeated Stuart. "As you know, Miss Gunderson is ill and I am taking her place."
"What's the matter with her?" asked a boy called Roy Hart.
"Vitamin trouble," said Stuart. "She took Vitamin D when she needed A, and Vitamin B when she needed C. Let it be a lesson for all of us!"
He looked angrily at the children and they did not ask about Miss Gunderson any more.
"Now everyone will take his or her seat," commanded Stuart. The pupils obediently sat down and in a moment there was silence in the classroom. Stuart got down from the pile of books, walked to the front of the desk, cleared his throat and asked:
"Anybody absent?"
The children shook their heads.
"Anybody late?"
They shook their heads again.
"Very well," said Stuart. "Now we begin. What is the first subject that you usually study in the morning?"
"Arithmetic!" shouted the children.
"Bother arithmetic!" said Stuart. "Let's skip it."
At these words the children shouted with joy. Everybody in the class was glad to skip arithmetic for one morning.
"What is the next subject?" asked Stuart.
"Spelling," cried the children.
"Well," said Stuart, "of course, people must spell correctly. It is dreadful when people make mistakes in spelling. I advise you to buy a Webster's Dictionary and consult it when you have doubts. So much for spelling. What is next?"
The children were very glad to skip spelling too, and again shouted with joy. They looked at each other and laughed and waved their hand-kerchiefs and rulers, and some of the boys threw paper balls at the girls. Stuart had to climb to the top of the pile of books again.
"Order, please!" he said. "What is next?"
"Drawing," cried the children.
"Oh, dear," said Stuart angrily, "don't you know how to draw yet?"
"Of course we do!" cried the children.
"So much for that, then," said Stuart.
"History comes next," cried a girl called Elizabeth Gardner.
"History? I don't like this subject," said Stuart. "I don't like to talk about the past. Let us talk about something interesting."
The children looked at each other.
"What shall we talk about?" they asked.
"Let us talk about snakes," said Arthur Green.
"I don't like snakes," said Stuart.
"Can we talk about Miss Gunderson?"
"No, we can't," said Stuart.
"Then maybe we can talk about the circus?" said Harry James.
"No," said Stuart. "Let us talk about the King of the World." He looked at the children.
"There is no King of the World," said Harry James. "Kings are out of fashion."
"All right," said Stuart. "Then let us talk about the Chairman of the World. The world often gets into trouble because it has no chairman. I would like to be Chairman of the World myself."
"You are too small," said Mary Smith.
"Nonsense!" said Stuart. "Size has nothing to do with it. The Chairman must be clever and he must know what is important. How many of you know what is important?"
All the children raised their hands.
"Very good," said Stuart. "Jimmy Rock, tell us what is important."
"Sunlight, blue sky, and a bird's song," answered Jimmy.
"Correct," said Stuart. "These things are very important. But you forgot one thing, Jimmy. Mary Smith, what did Jimmy forget?"
"He forgot ice cream with chocolate on it," said Mary quickly.
"You are right," said Stuart. "Ice cream is very important. Well, I shall be Chairman of the World this morning. But we need some laws if we are going to play this game. Can anybody think of any good laws for the world?"
The children began to think. Stuart wiped his face with his handkerchief, because he was very tired, and said:
"Let us have a break now, and after the break we shall continue our lesson."
And he sat down to have a little rest.

Chapter 18: GOOD LAWS FOR THE WORLD

When the bell rang all the children came back into the classroom and took their seats.
"Now, who wants to be the first?" asked Stuart.
Arthur Green raised his hand.
"Don't eat mushrooms, because there are many toadstools in the forest," he said.
"That's not a law," said Stuart. "It is a piece of friendly advice. Very good advice, Arthur, but advice and law are not the same. Law is much more important than advice. Who else?"
"Don't steal," said Roy Hart.
"Very good," said Stuart. "A good law."
"Never poison anything but rats," said Harry James.
"That is not good," said Stuart. "It is unfair to rats. A law must be fair to everybody."
"Why must we be fair to rats?" asked Harry. "Rats are very unpleasant."
"I know that they are," said Stuart. "But from a rat's point of view, poison is very unpleasant, and a Chairman has to see all sides of the problem."
"Have you a rat's point of view?" asked Harry, "You look like a little rat."
"No," said Stuart. "I have a mouse's point of view, but I think that everybody must have his rights in the world. Who else?"
Mary Smith raised her hand. "A law against fighting."
"It is impractical," said Stuart. "Boys like to fight, and they will fight all the same. Elizabeth Gardner, your law!"
"Not to be mean to one's comrades," said Elizabeth.
"A very fine law," said Stuart. "But I must say it will be difficult to keep this law. There are many mean people in the world. But if you, children, are not mean to each other, and teach all the other boys and girls not to be mean to anybody, perhaps we shall make the world a better place."
He wiped his face with his handkerchief again because he was very tired. It was not an easy job to be Chairman of the World.
"Now, children, I wish you all a good summer. Summer is wonderful and summer is very important."
"Like the sunlight!" said Roy Hart.
"Like the blue sky!" said Harry James.
"Like a bird's song!" said Mary Smith.
"That's right," said Stuart. "It has been a pleasure to know you all. The lesson is over."
Stuart got down from the teacher's desk, went quickly to the door, climbed into the car, waved his hand and drove off to the north. The children ran along the road after his car and shouted "Good-bye, good-bye! Good-bye!"

Chapter 19: IN THE GENERAL STORE

Stuart stopped to get a drink of lemonade in a very beautiful town. The houses in this town were white and high and the elm trees were green and higher than the houses. The streets ran down to the river, and the river flowed quietly under the bridge. The gardens ended in fields and the fields ended in green pastures and the pastures climbed the hills. Stuart parked his car in front of the general store and got out. The sun was bright and it was pleasant to be in a new place on such a fine day. Stuart sat down on the steps to have a little rest. He thought that he could spend all his life in this beautiful town. But then he remembered New York City and his family, Mr and Mrs Little, and his brother George, and the bird Margalo. "I must find Margalo first!" he thought.
After a while the storekeeper came out to smoke a cigarette and he sat down on the steps beside Stuart. He wanted to offer Stuart a cigarette, but when he noticed how small Stuart was he changed his mind.
"Have you lemonade in your store?" asked Stuart. "I want to have a drink."
"Of course," said the storekeeper. "Gallons of it. Lemonade, Coca Cola, Pepsi Cola, Dipsi Cola, Pipsi Cola, Popsi Cola. Anything you want."
"Give me a bottle of lemonade, please," said Stuart, "and a paper cup."
The storekeeper went back into the store and brought the bottle. He opened it, poured some lemonade into the cup and put the cup down on the step below Stuart. Stuart took off his cap, lay down on his stomach and dipped out the cool lemonade with his cap.
"That's very nice," said Stuart. "It is so pleasant to drink some cool lemonade in the heat of the day."
"Are you going far?" asked the storekeeper.
"Perhaps very far," said Stuart. "I am looking for a bird. Her name is Margalo. Haven't you seen her?"
"I don't know," said the storekeeper. "What does she look like?"
"She is very beautiful," answered Stuart and wiped his lips with his sleeve. "She is a wonderful bird. Anybody would notice her. She comes from a place where there are ferns and thistles."
The storekeeper looked sharply at Stuart.
"How tall are you?" he asked.
"Two inches and a quarter," answered Stuart. "Father measured me last week. But maybe I have grown a bit since."
"You know," said the storekeeper, "I advise you to meet Harriet Ames. She lives in this town."
"Who is she?" asked Stuart.
"She is a young girl, and she is just your size - maybe a little shorter."
"What is she like? I hope she is not fat?"
"No, Harriet is very pretty and she has the best dresses in this town. Her parents are very rich. They live in a fine big house. Harriet will be glad to meet you."
"That's very kind of you," answered Stuart. "But I never stay long anywhere. I travel from town to town and look for Margalo. Sometimes I feel that I am quite near to her, and sometimes I feel that I shall never find her and never hear her voice again. Now it is time to go."
Stuart paid for the lemonade, said goodbye to the storekeeper, and drove off to the north.
But in the afternoon the town was even more beautiful. Stuart reached the end of the main street, turned to the left and drove down to the bank of the river. He wanted to have a rest. He swam and lay on his back on the soft bank with his hands under his head. He thought about the conversation with the storekeeper. "Harriet Ames," he murmured.

Chapter 20: HARRIET AMES

When evening came, Stuart still sat by the river. He had a light supper: a cheese sandwich and a drink of water. He slept that night in the warm grass, and the sound of the river was in his ears.
In the morning the sun was warm and bright and Stuart went to swim again. After breakfast he left his car under a cabbage leaf and walked to the post-office. He wanted to fill his fountain-pen from the inkwell in the post-office. When he climbed to the table where the ink-well was, he saw that the door opened, and a girl came in. She was about two inches high. She wore a pretty dress and walked with her head held high.
"That must be Harriet Ames!" thought Stuart and hid behind the ink-well.
The girl went to the mail boxes, opened her mailbox and took out her letters. She was very pretty and it was the first time that Stuart saw a person who wasn't taller than himself. He wanted to get down to the floor and speak to her, but he was afraid to speak to a girl whom he didn't know. All his boldness left him, and he stayed behind the inkwell. Only when Harriet was out of sight Stuart went out of the post-office and ran to the store.
"Have you any letter paper?" he asked his friend, the storekeeper. "I must write a letter."
The storekeeper helped Stuart to climb up to the counter and found some nice letter paper for him. Stuart took out his fountain-pen, sat down on a box of matches and began a letter to Harriet.
"MY DEAR MISS AMES," he wrote. "I am a young person of modest proportions. I was born in New York City, but at the present moment I am travelling on business. My travels have brought me to your town. Yesterday the storekeeper in the general store told me about you."
At that moment Stuart's pen ran dry.
"Oh, dear! I have forgotten to fill my fountain-pen!" cried Stuart. "Please give me a bottle of ink," he said to the storekeeper. The storekeeper brought a bottle of ink, but it was so big that Stuart could not reach the top of it. So the storekeeper took Stuart by the tail and lowered him, head first, into the bottle. Stuart filled his pen and went back to his letter.
"Forgive me, Miss Ames, for my boldness, but there are very few people in the world who are only two inches high. I say 'two inches', but I am a little taller than that. My only drawback is that I look like a mouse. If you want to meet me, come to the river tomorrow about five o'clock. Don't tell anything to your parents about my letter. I am afraid that they won't like my letter and my mouselike appearance. But you know better your father and mother than I do and I need not give you advice.
"I am staying by the river in a beautiful place at the foot of the hill. Would you like to go for a row in my canoe tomorrow afternoon? At sundown the river flows quietly in the long shadows of the trees and these spring evenings are the best time for boatmen. I like the water, dear Miss Ames, and my canoe is like an old good friend."
Stuart forgot in his excitement that he had no canoe.

"So I shall wait for you at the river about five o'clock. And now I must finish my letter.
"Yours very truly,
"STUART LITTLE."

Stuart put the letter into the envelope and turned to the storekeeper.
"Where can I get a canoe?" he asked.
"Here," said the storekeeper. He went to the souvenir counter and took down a little birch-bark canoe, Stuart looked at it for a long time.
"Does it leak?" he asked.
"It is a nice boat," said the storekeeper. "It will cost you seventy-five cents."
Stuart took out his money and paid the man. Then he looked inside the boat, but did not see any paddles.
"What about paddles?" he asked.
The storekeeper searched among the souvenirs, but he could not find any paddles. So he went to the ice cream counter and came back with two little cardboard spoons for ice cream.
"You can use these spoons instead of paddles," he said.
Stuart took the spoons, but he did not like them.
"Of course, I can use them instead of paddles, but I don't want to meet an American Indian when I have one of these things in my hand," he said.
The storekeeper carried the canoe and the paddles out in front of the store and set them down in the street. Stuart took a piece of rope from his pocket, tied the paddles to the canoe, put the canoe up on his head and walked away. He was proud that he could handle boats so easily, and liked to show off.

Chapter 21: AN EVENING ON THE RIVER

When Stuart came back to his camp by the river, he was tired and hot. He put the canoe in the water and saw that it leaked. In a few seconds it was half full of water.
"Oh, dear," he said, "the canoe leaks! I paid seventy-five cents for it, and now I shall not be able to take Harriet out in this boat."
Then he pulled the canoe out on the bank for repairs. He found a hole in the bottom. Then he climbed a fir tree and found some gum. With this gum he stopped the leak. Stuart was a good seaman but he was afraid to get into trouble. He carried stones from the bank down to the water and put some into the boat for ballast. Then he decided to try the canoe.
It was all right, but Stuart was sorry that he did not have anything better than a cardboard spoon for a paddle.
All that afternoon Stuart worked on the canoe. In the evening he opened a can of ham, cut a dandelion and had a light supper of ham and dandelion milk. After supper he lay down under a flower, shut his eyes and dreamed about his trip with Harriet.
"I shall swim and get her a water-lily and she will see what a good swimmer I am," he thought.
Suddenly Stuart opened his eyes and sat up. He remembered his letter to Harriet.
"I dropped it into the letter-box but it was so small! Perhaps the postman did not see it!" he thought.
He lay for a while and listened to the sound of the river, then he fell asleep.
The next morning was cloudy. Stuart hid the canoe under a cabbage leaf, tied it to a stone and went to the town to buy some new shirts.
Stuart returned from the town with a headache. He was nervous. He spent the afternoon trying on different shirts and combing his whiskers. He put on a clean shirt at two o'clock, another at three o'clock, and another at a quarter past four. About five o'clock he began to look at his watch nervously. He combed his whiskers once more and looked at the sky. The sky was rainy.
Stuart was so tired that he decided to lie down for a moment and have a little rest. But as soon as he closed his eyes he heard a voice behind him.
"Hello," said the voice, "are you Mr Little?"
It was Harriet!
"Hello," said Stuart and got up quickly. "Yes, I am Stuart Little. It's nice of you to come."
"It was very good of you to ask me," said Harriet and smiled. She looked very nice. She wore a white sweater and a black skirt and carried a box of peppermints in her hand.
"Not at all," said Stuart. "I only wish we had better weather. I am afraid it is going to rain."
Harriet looked at the sky. "Oh, well," she said, "if it rains, it rains."
"Of course," repeated Stuart, "if it rains, it rains. My canoe is not far from here. May I help you?" And he offered her his arm. Stuart was a very polite mouse, but Harriet said that she did not need any help. She was a strong girl and was not afraid to fall.
"I'll show you my canoe," said Stuart. "It is there, under that cabbage leaf. I have hidden it in the morning. This way, please... But where is it?"
Stuart's heart sank.
"Somebody has stolen the canoe!" he said with tears in his eyes.
Then he began to run up and down the bank. He looked for the canoe everywhere. Harriet helped him in his search. At last they found the canoe. It looked awful.
"Some big boy took it and played with it!" thought Stuart.
Mud was all over the boat, one of the paddles was broken, and a long piece of rope was tied to one end. It looked just like a birchbark canoe looks when big boys play with it.
Stuart was heartbroken. He did not know what to do. He sat down on the bank and buried his head in his hands.
"What's the matter?" asked Harriet.
"Miss Ames," said Stuart in a trembling voice, "I prepared everything so beautifully. And now look!"
"Oh, we can repair this canoe and go out in it," said Harriet.
But Stuart did not like the idea.
"It's no use," he said. "Look at that rope! I shall never be able to get it off."
"Never mind the rope!" said Harriet. "We can pretend that we are fishing." She could not understand why Stuart was so heartbroken.
"I don't want to pretend that I am fishing," cried Stuart. "Besides, look at that mud! Look at it!"
Harriet sat down beside Stuart. She offered him a peppermint but he shook his head. He could not eat.
"Well," she said, "it is beginning to rain. If you are not going to take me out in your canoe, I shall go home. I don't understand why you are so heartbroken. Would you like to come up to my house? After dinner you may take me to the dance. It will cheer you up."
"No, thank you," said Stuart. "I don't know how to dance. Besides, I am going to get up early in the morning. I'll be on the road at daybreak."
"Are you going to sleep out in all this rain?" asked Harriet.
"Certainly," said Stuart. "I'll sleep under the canoe."
Harriet shrugged her shoulders.
"Well," she said, "good-bye, Mr Little."
"Good-bye, Miss Ames," said Stuart. "I am sorry that our evening on the river had to end like this."
"So am I," said Harriet. And she walked away, leaving Stuart alone with his broken dreams and his broken canoe.

Chapter 22: TO THE NORTH

Stuart slept under the canoe that night. He woke up at four o'clock. The rain had stopped. The birds began to sing in the trees. Stuart looked up. He always looked at all birds because he hoped to find Margalo among them. But Margalo was not there.
He got into his car and drove off. At the end of the town he found a filling station and stopped to buy some gas.
"Five, please," he said to the owner of the filling station.
The man looked at the tiny automobile in surprise.
"Five what?" he asked.
"Five drops," said Stuart. But the man shook his head and said that he could not sell five drops of gas.
"Why can't you?" asked Stuart. "You need the money and I need the gas."
The owner of the filling station thought a little, then he went inside and came back with a medicine dropper. Stuart opened the tank of his car and the man put in five drops of gas. "I have never done such a thing before," he said.
When everything was over, Stuart paid the money. Then he got in the car, pressed the starter button and drove off.
The sky was bright, and a cloud of morning mist hung over the river. The town was still asleep. Stuart's car went fast along the streets and Stuart was glad to be on the road again.
When he drove out of town he saw two roads. One road led to the west, the other road led to the north. Stuart decided to think the situation over. He stopped his car and got out.
Suddenly he saw a man sitting in a ditch by the side of the road. The man had a heavy leather belt on, and there were spurs on his legs. So Stuart understood that he was a repairman of the telephone lines.
"Good morning," said Stuart in a friendly voice. The repairman raised one hand to his head in a salute. Stuart sat down in the ditch beside him and took a deep breath of the fresh, sweet air. "It's going to be a fine day," he said.
"Yes," answered the repairman, "a fine day. It is nice to climb poles on such a fine day."
"I wish you good weather," said Stuart. "By the by, do you ever see birds at the tops of your poles?"
"Yes, I see a lot of birds," said the repairman.
"Well, if you meet a bird named Margalo," said Stuart, "please write to me. Here's my card."
"What does she look like? Describe her," said the repairman and took out a pencil and a note-book.
"She is brown," said Stuart. "Brown with a yellow breast."
"Where does she come from?"
"She comes from fields once tall with wheat, from pastures deep in fern and thistle; she comes from vales of meadow-sweet and she loves to whistle."
The repairman wrote it all down quickly: "Fields - wheat - pastures, fern and thistle. Vales, meadow-sweet. Likes to whistle." Then he put his note-book and Stuart's card back in his pocket.
"I'll keep my eyes open," he promised.
Stuart thanked him. They sat for a while in silence. Then the man spoke.
"Which way are you going?" he asked.
"North," said Stuart.
"North is nice," said the repairman. "I always like to go north. Of course, south-west is good, too."
"Yes, I think it is," said Stuart thoughtfully.
"And east is also good," continued the man. "But I think you are right if you go north. There is something about north, something unusual. I think that a person who is going north is not making a mistake."
"I think so, too," said Stuart. "From now on I shall travel north until I find my friend Margalo."
"You are a brave fellow," said the repairman. "By the by, when I am repairing a broken telephone line, I sometimes find wonderful places," continued the repairman. "Swamps where cedars grow and turtles lie in the sun. I go across fields, and I eat my lunch in pastures covered with fern and thistle, under blue sky. I have spent winter nights in thick woods, where the snow was deep and soft. I know lakes in the north where there is nothing but fish and birds and, of course, the telephone lines. I know all these places well. They are a long way from here, don't forget that. And a person who is looking for something does not travel very fast."
"That is true," said Stuart. "Well, it is time to go. Thank you for your friendly talk."
"Not at all," said the repairman. "I hope that you will find that bird."
Stuart got out of the ditch, climbed into his car, and drove along the road that led toward the north. He saw the rising sun above the hills on his right. As he looked ahead into the great land that lay before him, the way seemed very long. But the sky was bright, and Stuart felt that it was the right way to go.