The House Mouse
Reading edition
(Mother, or teacher sings:)
1. A child comes lightly about the room with hippity-hop step.
2. Several children come out and hippity-hop about swiftly and gaily.
Sometimes a child at night Awakes from slumber sweet, And seems to hear the step Of fleeing elfin feet.
(Child sings:)
’Tis I, the merry Mouse, The little bright-eyed Mouse That dwells within the house! Tis I! ’tis I! ’tis I!
(Mother sings:)
A rush as of a troop! A scamper in the walls! A scurry in the floors! Then perfect silence falls.
(Children, pausing, sing:)
’Tis we, the merry Mice! ’Tis we, the frolic Mice All scudding in a trice! ’Tis we! ’tis we! ’tis we!
(Mother sings:)
A merry sprite it is! Yet children fear the Mouse, The Mouse that joys like them To dwell within the house!
(Children sing, joining hands, dancing in a round:)
We do! each merry Mouse, Each little tricksy Mouse; We like the cosey house, We do! we do! we do!
3. Children hippity-hop around in pairs, joyously.
4. Children hippity-hop about gently.
(Mother sings:)
And dainty is the Mouse! What children like, it eats! It chooses grains and fruits, And has a tooth for sweets.
(Children sing, dancing in a round:)
Then do not fear the Mouse, The dainty merry Mouse That shares your cosey house; O, no! no, no! no, no!