The meeting is open
to all."
"Let us all run at him suddenly when he is not looking for us, and
each give him a bite. That would surely kill him," said one brave
mouse.
"But how many of us do you think he would kill?" said another
mouse. "I will not risk my life nor that of my family." "Nor I";
"nor I"; "nor I," said many other mice.
"Let us steal his food and starve him to death," suggested
another.
"That will only make him hungrier for mice," they replied. "That
will never do."
"I wish we might drown him," said another; "but I don't know how
we could get him into the water."
At last a little gray mouse with a squeaky voice went up to the
front and spoke:
"I have a plan that will surely work. If we could know when the
cat is coming, we could get out of his way. He steals in upon us
so quietly, that we can not escape. Let us find a little bell and
a string. Let us put the bell on the string and tie the string
around the cat's neck. As soon as we hear the bell, we can run and
get out of the cat's way."
"A very good plan," said Mr. Longtail. "We will ask our leader to
say which mouse shall put the bell on the cat's neck."
At this there was a great outcry. One said, "I am so little that I
can not reach high enough to bell the cat.
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