Richmond daily times. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1853, 1853-04-09
THE DAILY'TIMES
50 1T rs VERY TRUE -

- at rs VERY TRUE"
"sIt is frightful !! said hen, lin remote cor
ner of the town, where no historian bad ever beer
seen. 1T is frightful poultry yard story
really would not dare to sleep alone at night. Il
is fortunate that there are many of us together
when we go to roost ~ And she spoke in such {
mysterious way as to make the feathers of all the
other hens stand out, and the comb of the cock
fall down. 1t is very true.
| "But we will begin at the beginning, and that
| was at another corner Of the town. in poultry
yard. The sun had set, and the fowls flew up to
their perches; one of them-she had white fea-
theirs and short legs, laid her eggs with all due
regularity, and was, as hen, in every way re-
spectable-as she was about to go to roost,
pecked herself with her bill, and down fell one of
her little feathers.
".There it goes = said she, and the more I
pluck out the handsomer l shall become>n But
this was only said in jest-for she was the gayest
among all the 70 Is, although, as before sad ex-
tremely respectable. So she Tell asleep. There
was darkness all around hen was perched by
hen; but the one who was placed nearest to her
was not asleep. She heard and she did not hear,
as people are so often obliged to do in this world
in order to live in peace; but she could not resist
saying to her next neighbor, Have you heard
what has just been said z l blame no one-but
there is hen who has determined to pluck her
own feathers out by way of making herself beau
card her =
GA little way above the hen-roost lived an OWL
with its mate and owlets; they had quick ears in
that family; they overheard every word that the
talkative fowl had said, and they stared with their
eyes, and the matron owl famed herself with her
wings. ooh do-only listen! But you surely
heard what was said! | heard it with my own
ears. Actually one of these hens has so far for
gotten all propriety, that she is sitting there
pucking off all her feathers, and allowing the
cock to look at her thus denuded p
"'Prenez garde aux enfants' exclaimed the
father of the young owls; Children should not
hear of such doings'
ed shall 60 and tell the owl who is our oppo
site neigbbor about it though she is good sort
of friendly creature;' and away flew the mother
owl.
"'Hu, hu whuh y hooted they both together,
while they made the best of their way to pigeon
house near; have you heard the news? have you
heard the news! uh uh! A hen has plucked
out all her feathers for the cocks sake; and she
is freezing to death-if not already dead, uh
uh y
"'Where? where?' cooed the pigeons.
&C In the neighboring poultry. yard. | have
almost as good seen it myself; it seems an in
credible story to tell-but 1t IS uery true
'sWe believe every word Of it, said the pigeons,
and down they flew to their poulty-y yard. There
is a hen-nay, some say there are two hens, who
have plucked off all their own feathers, to look
different from the rest, and attract the attention
of the cock. 1t was dangerous proceeding
enough to give them cold and make them die of
fever-and they are both dead
GO Wake up ! wake upn erowed the cock, as
he flew up on the wooden paling; his syes were
still heavy with sleep, but he crowed away not
withstanding. Three hens have died of unhappy
love for cock They have plucked out all
their feathers. 1t is shocking story, but it can
not be concealed
s'It cannot be concealed = repeated the BATS
and the hens clucked and the cocks crowed-and
so the report travelled from poutry-yard to poul-
try-yard, till at length it came back to the place
where it had originated. 1t was there told that
five hens had plucked out their feathers, in order
to see which of them had become the thinnest
from their unfortunate love for the cock-that
they had attacked each other in desperate man
ner, and fought till each, bathed in its blood, had
fallen down dead, to The everlasting disgrace of
their families, and to the great loss Of their
owner.
1.-THE hen, who had dropped the light little fea-
Their, naturally did not recognise herself to be the
heroine of the tale, aud, as she was a very re.
spectacle fowl, she said, For my part can feel
nothing but contempt for these hens; but there
are too many of the same calibre! Such scanda
lous occurrences cannot be concealed, and l do
no doubt the story will find its way into the news
papers. 1t is only what these wretched hens have
deserved, and their families to boot
"The story did get into the newspapers; it was
actually printed; and it is very true that one lit
tie feather can be magnifed into five fowls J"