Then the little old Woman went up stairs into the bed-chamber in which
the three Bears slept. And first she lay down upon the bed of the
Great, Huge Bear; but that was too high at the head for her. And next
she lay down upon the bed of the Middle Bear; and that was too high at
the foot for her. And then she lay down upon the bed of the Little,
Small, Wee Bear; and that was neither too high at the head, nor at the
foot, but just right. So she covered herself up comfortably, and lay
there till she fell fast asleep.
By this time the Three Bears thought their porridge would be cool
enough; so they came home to breakfast. Now the little old Woman had
left the spoon of the Great, Huge Bear, standing in his porridge.
“_Somebody has been at my porridge!_”
said the Great, Huge Bear, in his great, rough, gruff voice. And when
the Middle Bear looked at his, he saw that the spoon was standing in
it too. They were wooden spoons; if they had been silver ones, the
naughty old Woman would have put them in her pocket.
“Somebody has been at my porridge!”
said the Middle Bear, in his middle voice.
Then the Little, Small, Wee Bear, looked at his, and there was the
spoon in the porridge-pot, but the porridge was all gone.
“_Somebody has been at my porridge, and has eaten it all up!_”
said the Little, Small, Wee Bear, in his little, small, wee voice.
Upon this the Three Bears, seeing that some one had entered their
house, and eaten up the Little, Small, Wee Bear's breakfast, began to
look about them. Now the little old Woman had not put the hard cushion
straight when she rose from the chair of the Great, Huge Bear.
“_Somebody has been sitting in my chair!_”
said the Great, Huge Bear, in his great, rough, gruff voice.
And the little old Woman had squatted down the soft cushion of the
Middle Bear.
“Somebody has been sitting in my chair!”
said the Middle Bear, in his middle voice.
And you know what the little old Woman had done to the third chair.
“_Somebody has been sitting in my chair, and has sate the bottom of
it out!_”
said the Little, Small, Wee Bear, in his little, small, wee voice.
Then the Three Bears thought it necessary that they should make
farther search; so they went up stairs into their bed-chamber. Now the
little old Woman had pulled the pillow of the Great, Huge Bear, out of
its place.
“_Somebody has been lying in my bed!_”
said the Great, Huge Bear, in his great, rough, gruff voice.
And the little old Woman had pulled the bolster of the Middle Bear out
of its place.
“Somebody has been lying in my bed!”
said the Middle Bear, in his middle voice.
And when the Little, Small, Wee Bear, came to look at his bed, there
was the bolster in its place; and the pillow in its place upon the
bolster; and upon the pillow was the little old Woman's ugly, dirty
head,—which was not in its place, for she had no business there.
“_Somebody has been lying in my bed,—and here she is!_”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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