ade her low-spirited.

The snake had crept as far as Philip's mattress, which was lying on
the grass, when Maggie saw him. She instantly gave the alarm, "A
snake, a snake!" for she knew he was a bad character. Sam and Puss
jumped up and began to bark; Joey said, "There is na luck aboot the
hoose." Bruin was too stupid to say anything. The snake said, "Here
is a terrible row all at once, I must make for a hole." He had a
keen eye for a hole, and he soon saw one. It was a small one, in
Philip's mattress, almost hidden by the seam, and had been made most
likely by a splinter or a nail. The snake put his head in it,
saying, "Any port in a storm," then drew in his whole length, and
settled himself comfortably among the straw.

Beasts and birds have instincts, and a certain amount of will and
understanding, but no memory worth mentioning. For that reason the
domestics never told Philip about the snake in his mattress, they had
forgotten all about it. If Sam had buried a bone, he would have
remembered it a week afterwards, if he was hungry; but as for snakes,
it was, "out of sight, out of mind."

Philip took in his mattress and blanket before sundown and made his
bed. The snake was still in the straw; he had been badly scared, and
thought it would be best to keep quiet until he saw a chance to creep
out, and continue his journey down the garden. But it was awfully
dark inside the mattress, and although he went round and round
amongst the straw he could not find any way out of it, so at last he
said: "I must wait till morning," and went to sleep.

When Philip went to bed the snake was disturbed, and woke up. There
was so heavy a weight on him that he could scarcely move, and he was
almost suffocated. He said: "This is dreadful; I have been in many
a tight place in my time, but never in one so tight as this.
Whatever am I to do? I shall be squeezed to death if I don't get away
from this horrid monster on top of me."

Philip fell asleep as usual, and by-and-by the snake began to flatten
his ribs, and draw himself from under the load, until at last he was
clear of it; then, heaving a deep sigh of relief he lay quiet for
awhile to recover his breath. He knew there was a hole somewhere if
he could only find it and he kept poking his nose here and there
against the mattress.

After sleeping an hour or two, Philip turned on his other side, and
the snake had to move out of the way in a hurry for fear of being
s