In a comfortable corner of the barn lived a mother-cat with a large family of kittens. All the little kittens were gray and furry like their mother.
From morning ‘till night, they romped and played in the barnyard, for they had been told never to go far from home.
Very good kittens would have been satisfied to stay where they were safe. But these naughty kittens were not satisfied. They had often scampered along the path and looked out at the world beyond. Every leaf and plant seemed to beckon to them. Surely, there could be no danger there!
“Now pussies,” said the mother one day, “I am going out to get a bunch of catnip. Stay here and play until I come back.”
The kittens watched her until she had disappeared.
“If it safe for our mother to go away from home, why isn’t it safe for us?” asked on naughty kitten.
“What fun it would be to find the catnip and have a good roll in it!” said another.
“Don’t you hear voices calling from the wood?” asked a third. “I wonder if there are other kittens there.”
“Let’s go and see,” said the boldest of them all. “If we follow our mother, we shall be safe.”
Feeling very guilty, they all crept under the gate and across the road.
“Perhaps,” said a very timid little kitten, “it would be well for us to wait here for a while and see if anything happens.”
All agreed to this, so they sat down to watch and wait.
Fortunately, the neighbor’s dog had gone to town that day with his master. Then too, the bad boys who threw stones at kittens, were at school. Nothing came to harm them, so they ran through the field and into the wood.
There, a strange creature with long ears and a short, fluffy tail, hopped across their path. It sat upright and looked at the frightened kittens. Oh, how they trembled!
But this little animal was as much frightened as they, and made haste to get away. The kittens did not know that it was only a harmless rabbit.
Next they saw, perched upon a limb of a tree, a large and fierce-looking bird. It had great, round, blinking eyes. From behind a bush, the kitten watched it with fast-beating hearts.
It paid no attention to them, but closed its eyes and fell asleep. Then the kittens crept quietly away.
Owls do not see well in the day-time. That is the reason why they go in search of food at night. This owl had not seen the kittens at all.
“The birds and animals in the wood never harm little kittens,” they told one another.
Then turning a corner, they came suddenly upon a great monster grazing at the roadside. Every kitten took to his heels and ran as fast as his little legs could carry him.
When they had reached the foot of the hill, they stopped and looked back. The monster was still quietly grazing where they had met it. Cows take very little notice of naughty kittens.
“How foolish we are!” they said and frisked merrily on their way.
So these adventurous kittens travelled on and on until they were far from home.
“I am tired,” said one tearful kitten.
“I am hungry,” said another.
“I am thirsty,” said a third.
“We want to go home to our mother,” they all wailed.
But the way home was hard to find, and night was coming on. These naughty kittens were lost in the great, wide world.
“I see a stream not far away,” said a thirsty kitten; “let us go and get a drink.”
Very slowly they travelled toward the stream, for their little feet were sore.
“We are so tired,” said a very wise little kitten, “we’ll roll down the bank.”
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Now, it was springtime and the willows grew along the stream. On the branches were sticky, gummy lumps, for the sap was beginning to flow.
The kittens rolled against these branches, and what do you think happened? Why, the sticky places caught them and held them fast, and they were glued to the willow branches.
Being too tired to kick themselves loose, the kittens curled up in the warm sap and closed their eyes.
The breezes playing among the willow branches saw them there and kissed them softly. Then whispering lullabies, they rocked them to sleep.
“How pretty they are!” said the willows. “We must keep them here.”
“If you do, you can never be just plain willows again,” whispered the breezes. “You will be pussy-willows.”
“We’ll keep it a secret,” said the willows.
But the wind, a noisy fellow, heard the whisper. Rushing among the willows, he drove the breezes away, and tried to shake the kittens from the branches.
All his efforts were in vain, for the willows held them tight.
At this, the wind grew very angry.
“I’ll tell your secret to the world. Pussy-willows! Pussy-willows!” he screams, as he disappeared over the hill-tops.
And all the world heard, and came to