a beautiful green meadow,
all covered with daisies, red clover, cowslips, and golden buttercups.
Here Downy resolved to find a place to live in: and she whisked about
under the tall heads of the cowslips and buttercups; at last she fixed
on a little green mound, such an one as you, Alfred, call a fairy's
throne, and here she began to scratch with her fore feet, till she had
made a little opening in the turf, and she used such diligence, that
before night she had made a hole large enough to sleep in, and though
it was not lined or so warm as her house under the old apple-tree, yet
she slept so sound that she never awoke till the sun had risen quite
high in the heavens.

"Downy jumped up in a hurry when she saw how late it was: the birds
had been up hours before her, and were all busily employed building
their nests; every bush resounded with the songs of these little
creatures while at work, and Downy knew she must not be idle, for she
had much to do; being very hungry she first went to an oak which grew
at some little distance, and here she found plenty of acorns among the
leaves--of these she made a hearty meal, and carried some to where she
was at work. With a great deal of care and labour she dug her house
and made it quite round and smooth, as she went on, carrying it in a
slanting direction along the hollow side of the hill. It cost poor
Downy many a long day's hard work before her house was completed, and
many a weary nibble before she had finished lining the inside of it.
Her next care was to make a secure room for stowing away her winter
stores; for this purpose, she made an opening on one side of her first
room, and carried a passage along some little distance, and then
formed her store chamber, which she was a long time making, but it was
at length completed perfectly to her own satisfaction, having rendered
it a most convenient granery. She had now nothing to do but find feed
for herself, and play, but Downy never came home without bringing
something useful for her house, either a bit of straw or hay, a little
tuft of moss, or the dried stalk of a flower; these she cut with her
teeth into little bits, and laid in her nest to make it soft and warm.

"Downy was now quite happy, her mound was all covered with flowers,
fine cowslips, and butter-cups, and tuft of daisies grew close to the
entrance of her house, and served to hide it from the eyes of owls,
mousehunts, or any of the enemies to poor mice; and Downy