Cat and Mouse

“Whoever thought a tiny mouse would cause an even bigger delay for you!”

― Bertie

Cat and Mouse is a magazine story.

Plot

One day, Bertie is about to pull out of the bus depot when the manager shouts to tell him to stop. It becomes apparent that there is a cat fast asleep on Bertie's roof. Bertie's driver fetches a ladder and brings the cat down safely. On the cat's collar, there is a tag bearing his name and address. The cat is called Sugar and the driver takes him home.

Bertie always carries lots of early morning passengers to the main station to catch the express. That morning, by the time he arrives, the express has already gone. Bertie explains what had happened and the Fat Controller calls on James to take the passengers instead. James cannot believe that they let a cat cause such a hold-up.

The next day, the bus is right on time to meet James - who is covering for Gordon who has gone to the works - and the express. The passengers board James' coaches and, suddenly, a passenger shouts; she has seen a mouse. All of the passengers get off the train while the guard tries to find the little creature. The stationmaster hurries over to help as the passengers stand waiting on the platform. The mouse proves to be very hard to catch. The guard fetches some cheese from the buffet and puts it on the coach's floor. When the mouse come out to eat it, the guard gently catches it.

At last, James is allowed to leave the station. Bertie is still standing outside the station and he has been told everything by a porter. Bertie can't resist and teases James for letting a tiny mouse cause an even bigger delay than a cat.