The Tale of Tom Kitten

In a little house by a green garden lived the cat mother Mrs. Tabitha Twitchit with her three naughty kittens: Moppet, Mittens, and Tom Kitten. There was going to be a tea party, and mama wanted everything to be tidy and fine.

"Stand still, my little ones," said Mrs. Tabitha. She washed noses and paws and combed soft whiskers. Then she dressed them in fine clothes. Moppet got a white dress with an apron. Mittens got a blue dress with a bow. And Tom got a blue suit with shiny buttons that glittered in the sun.

"Now go out in the garden and keep yourselves clean until the guests come," she said. "No mischief!"

"Yes, mama!" answered the kittens and padded out.

The garden smelled good. Butterflies fluttered, bumblebees buzzed, and the grass tickled under the paws. The kittens tried to walk nicely, but the clothes fit a bit tight. Tom tugged at his trousers. The buttons on the vest gleamed, and he felt handsome. "Look at me!" he said and took a little hop.

The hop became bigger than he thought. Pop! A button flew. Moppet laughed. "No running!" whispered Mittens, but soon all three were chasing a yellow butterfly around the lilac bush. They rolled over a soft grass mound. Pop, pop! More buttons came loose. Tom's trousers slid down, and the vest popped open.

"Oh no!" said Tom and tried to pull up the trousers, but the belt was lost. The kittens stopped and looked at each other. They were dirty on the knees. Tom's fine clothes lay in a little heap in the grass.

Then a soft splash was heard from the pond. A row of ducks came waddling between the trees. They chattered and bobbed their necks. "Quack?" said the first duck and looked curiously at Tom's clothes.

"Those are mine," said Tom shyly and tried to hide behind Moppet.

But the ducks' eyes glittered. They thought the clothes looked very fine. They picked up the coat, vest, and trousers with their beaks and began to dress themselves. Oh, how silly it looked! The trousers were too short for long duck legs. The vest wouldn't button over a round duck chest. The coat hung front and back. The ducks waddled proudly anyway, as if they were gentlemen on a walk.

The kittens laughed, but then mama's voice was heard from inside the house. "My little ones! Where are you?"

Mrs. Tabitha came out on the porch, with an apron and a stern look. She saw the dirty kittens. She saw the ducks' silly costumes. "No, no, no!" she exclaimed and ran after them. "Give back Tom's clothes!"

The ducks became frightened and began to run. They waddled faster and faster toward the pond. Pop! A button flew. Flop! A trouser leg fell off. Plop! Into the water tumbled the vest. Soon buttons and fabric pieces floated among the water lily pads. The clothes were gone.

Mrs. Tabitha stamped lightly in the gravel, but she mostly sighed. "In with you," she said calmly to the kittens. "It's washing again."

She washed them in warm water, dried them soft, and put on nightshirts. "Into bed with you," she said kindly but firmly. "You can stay up another day." When the guests came, she hummed and smiled politely. "The children are unfortunately sick today," she said and served tea and cookies.

Moppet, Mittens, and Tom didn't lie quite still. They padded up from the beds and peeked down through the stair railing. They saw hats and cups, sugar cubes and jam. When no one looked, Tom whispered: "Shall we?" And then they slid—quiet as shadows—down the stair railing, pling! Bang! Right into the hall rug. They giggled so their whiskers trembled.

After the tea party Mrs. Tabitha fetched them and hugged them tiredly. "My little rascals," she said. "Tomorrow we'll play outside again. But no fine clothes just then."

And since that day, even though they grew and became steadier on their paws, Tom, Moppet, and Mittens were never again dressed in just those fine clothes. For buttons can pop, ducks' beaks are curious, and gardens are made for play.