Mice, I suspect, are fully as sagacious as rats; perhaps they are more
so. In their foraging expeditions what cleverness do they exhibit!
When one or two have been caught in a trap, how careful are the rest of
the community not to be tempted by the treacherous bait.
A honey-pot had been left in a closet, from the wall of which some of
the loose plaster had fallen down. In the morning, the honey being
wanted, the pot was found with a considerable portion abstracted.
Outside of it was a heap of mortar reaching to the edge, forming an
inclined plane, while inside a similar structure had been raised with
the loose plaster. From the marks on the shelf, it was clearly the work
of a mouse; which had thus, by means of a well-designed structure,
obtained entrance and exit.
If a little mouse, to gain its object, which you deem a wrong one, can
employ so much intelligence, how much more should you exert your
superior faculties to attain a right object.