A Gnawing Issue

The feet shuffled and bumped overhead.

"But what are they all doing here today?" queried the country-mouse as he peered up through a knot-hole in the planking.

The city-mouse sighed heavily, "This used to be a good neighborhood to live in--but, no more, no more."

"Yes, yes, I know all that," the country-mouse wiggled his whiskers impatiently, "but what are they doing here? Isn't it enough they've thrown you out of house and home?"

"Oh, them. They've come to lay a cornerstone or something seems it's four years old today."

"Humph." The visiting cousin twitched his tail nervously and shifted his position to get a better view. "Always knew it was a lot of nonsense anyway."

The city mouse's eye was sad but his words were stern, "You shouldn't say that. They've put me out in the street, but I never forget how important it is."

"Important," snorted the country-mouse, "all's they do is talk, talk, talk."

"That's not so. You forget about all the other things they do when you say things like that." The city-mouse squeaked more shrilly, "you don't hear about all the good things they do in health and trade and food and education. People don't talk about those things."

"Yes, yes," the country cousin grew impatient again, "but what about the big problems, the real problems--they don't get anywhere with them. Sometimes I think we should just forget about the whole thing."

"That's just it, you can't forget about it." The city-mouse worked his whiskers excitedly, "if you forget about it, what other way do you have left?"