“Stealing my peppermints. I’ll teach you — you young cub,” and she grasped a ruler that lay on the shelf.

“It’s life or death,” thought Blinky very quickly, and made a dart off the counter and round the corner, right into a large tin of biscuits. Fortunately the tin was nearly empty, so there was plenty of room to hide.

“You young scallawag,” cried Miss Pimm, “wait until I catch you. All my gum-tips gone as well.” This seemed to put new vigour into her actions and she fairly flew round the shop. To Blinky, hiding away in the biscuit tin she sounded more like an elephant rushing round than anything else. Round the corner she came and then, catching sight of Blinky in the tin, she banged the lid down with an awful crash.

“I’ve got you now, you young thief,” she called out triumphantly. “You won’t get out of there in a hurry, and to make sure of you, I’ll get a box to put you in.”

Blinky was breathless. Whatever was going to happen? Would he be killed or taken to one of those zoos that Mrs Grunty spoke about?

I must get out of here, he thought, and waste no time about it.

Listening with his ear to the side of the tin, he heard Miss Pimm’s footsteps going towards the kitchen, then pushing open the lid a little way with his head he peeped out. Everything was safe. She was still away, but he could hear her talking and rummaging about outside. Quickly he climbed out of the tin and was walking round the back of the counter looking for a good place to hide when he heard Miss Pimm’s footsteps coming back again.

“Oh dear, what shall I do?” he panted. “She’ll catch me for sure this time.” He dived into a sack of potatoes just as she came through the doorway.

“You’ll stay in this box now, young man,” said Miss Pimm, “and I’ll sell you to the first person who wants a young thief.” She tramped round to the biscuit tin. Imagine her rage when she found the tin open and no bear there.

“He’s the devil himself,” she cried, and started to open every tin she could find. Next she looked round the boxes of fruit, and under the counter, then sniffing loudly, she came to the sack of potatoes. “So you’d make all my potatoes taste of eucalyptus. Well, we’ll see about that. Where’s my box?” She rushed over to the door to get the box, and at the same moment Blinky jumped out of the sack of potatoes. But she saw him. Round the counter she came, the box under her arm, and round the other way rushed Blinky.

“Stop! Stop! I tell you,” she screamed. But Blinky had no idea of stopping. He popped in and out of corners, over tins, under bags, and Miss Pimm after him. It was a terrible scuttle and the whole shop seemed to shake. Bottles and tins rattled on the shelves, the door banged, papers flew everywhere, and in the middle of all the din Miss Pimm tripped over a broom that was standing against the counter. Down she fell, box and all. The clatter was dreadful and her cries were worse. Blinky was terrified. How he wished a gum-tree would spring up through the floor. Suddenly, all in a twinkling, he saw a big bin standing open beside him and without any thought of what might be inside, he climbed up the side and flopped in. It was half full of oatmeal. Using both paws as quickly as he could, he scratched a hole in the oatmeal, wriggled and wriggled down as far as he could until he was quite hidden: all that could be seen was a little black nose breathing very quickly.