The dumpling had been peeled off Tom Kitten, and made separately into a bag pudding, with currants in it to hide the smuts.

They had been obliged to put Tom Kitten into a hot bath to get the butter off.

John Joiner smelt the pudding; but he regretted that he had not time to stay to dinner, because he had just finished making a wheel-barrow for Miss Potter, and she had ordered two hen-coops.

And when I was going to the post late in the afternoon—­I looked up the lane from the corner, and I saw Mr. Samuel Whiskers and his wife on the run, with big bundles on a little wheel-barrow, which looked very like mine.

They were just turning in at the gate to the barn of Farmer Potatoes.

Samuel Whiskers was puffing and out of breath.  Anna Maria was still arguing in shrill tones.

She seemed to know her way, and she seemed to have a quantity of luggage.

I am sure I never gave her leave to borrow my wheel-barrow!

[Illustration]

[Illustration]

They went into the barn, and hauled their parcels with a bit of string to the top of the hay mow.

[Illustration]

After that, there were no more rats for a long time at Tabitha
Twitchit’s.

[Illustration]

As for Farmer Potatoes, he has been driven nearly distracted.  There are rats, and rats, and rats in his barn!  They eat up the chicken food, and steal the oats and bran, and make holes in the meal bags.

And they are all descended from Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Whiskers—­children and grand-children and great great grand-children.

There is no end to them!

Moppet and Mittens have grown up into very good rat-catchers.

They go out rat-catching in the village, and they find plenty of employment.  They charge so much a dozen, and earn their living very comfortably.

[Illustration]

[Illustration]

They hang up the rats’ tails in a row on the barn door, to show how many they have caught—­dozens and dozens of them.

[Illustration]

But Tom Kitten has always been afraid of a rat; he never durst face anything that is bigger than—­

[Illustration]

A Mouse.

***End of the project gutenberg EBOOK the tale of Samuel whiskers***

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