6 The Lost Idea

his work and keep us without our wonderful
boots !”

Timothy, plump and happy, sat down on

the grass by the river and fished ; and during
the day he caught three small bleak, and
hung them up by their gills to twigs, with
weights on their tails to stretch them out
as long as possible, in order to surprise his
fishing-club with his catch. And while he
sat fishing he suddenly got an idea in his
head. And this is the turning-point of the
story ; so please notice it well.
' Very well; at five o'clock he got up, took
down his three bleak from the twigs, flat-
tened out the marks made round their
tails by the string which had suspended the
weights, and trotted towards home.

Just as he had got half-way home he
suddenly stopped, clapped his hand to his

forehead, and turned very pale. “Bless my
soul!” he said, “I have forgotten to bring
my Idea!”

He ran back as hard as he could and
searched in the grass where he had been
sitting, but he could not find his Idea;