The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1868-03-22
A Queer Cuckoo Clock.

an deliberately carved affair representing q
SWISS cottage. perehedon aninaeecssible rock
Gorpii ported Il expressly for ME, and il
reached, IN Its packing case. nv cottnge in
safety. II arrived there during my absence,
and great was the curiosity aud anxiety of my
little ones to know what were its contents
My wife, even, ard Aunt JEANNE, confessed
10 having felt an unusual desire to learn what
that odd. foreign looking box contained The
children were promised that the secret should
be revealed to them as soon az papa came
home; but. rs fate would have il. was unu-
saaliy late that ereniag, and the little ones
got quite sleepy betofc NY arrival. Little
Mary actually TOPPED ever on the sofa, and
went fast 70 sleep: but the moment my step
ives heard on the yeran3a, they were III az
vide awake as busy bees and clustered around
me In an instant Then the box was placed
ON tire table, and with the little ones gathered
about il, was carefully opened and unpacked.
They took il for toy house, and is il mine,
papa each asked.
No, = answered. iii is for your mother:
aad Il IS NOT toy hease, bui elock-a
cuckoo clock.
he clock, a. last, was ready TO begin OPP
eral;ons; the weights we're drawn up. the
penduiutn set in motion, and the Icing ey.
pected hour came round when the hands
pointed to eleven o clock. Tick, tick, wen,
the clock: the children stood ON tiptoes he
meath III mamma ard aunt Jeannie. seated in
their rocking chairs, looked quietly On: while
papa, standing with folded arms, Ike Ma
poeon at ST. Helena, said, as The long ivorY
minute hand drew close to the hour, Nav
Tick, tick, said The clock. The minute
hand moved slowly along.
1.-The cuckoo surely mast make lis an
pearanee now, | said little obviously,
however; for the hand had gained the center
of ithe figure XII, and was creeping past it,
and yet all that the clock said was stick,
tick indeed it went quite past without IT.
teflng any other sound; but we watched it
patiently. hoping that the bird would yet
come forth, and that he was only little back
ward in makirg bis appearance before strsn
gers. 1T last eyen the most sanguine a us
saee il up, and ] said: There must 30
something wrong in my arrangements Of
those ghaina. my dear; viii rearrange them.
So placed them little differently aud
sgain sci The clock in motion The children
had early discovered that there were Two
little doors il the front Of the clock, and
wished 10 know ii there were mere than one
keo within IT,
''Nc, replied, .only one cuckoo, and
he calls the hours; but there is also quail
and he c7nes forth to whistle The quarters .
AT the instant the minute hand pointed to
the quarter paSt elesen. the right hand doc.
in the clock opened. and ont sprane the quail,
which phistled once. and taen went back to
hisnest. This proved satisfactorily. that there
were birds in That clock; butthe children did
not get as much Of the whistle as they wished
to have, and SO, with mammals permission,
they were allowed to sit IN to await the next
appearance Of theqnsil. The minutes dragged
Slowly along: but the half hear finally came
a-,H - ba a
ismped out and gave two shrill whistles. Than
he went in again. The children. being salts
fed with the quail, were more than ever anx-
ions to hear the cnckoo; 50 | consented TO
hurry up the clock. and bring the hour Of
twelve q few minutes earlier than 1t would
naturally come. Then turned the hands
forward, and the third quarter brough. cut the
quail in due order. Wien the hand reached
the fourth quarter, the watchful interest Of
the children greatly increased, and, af err the
qaeii had visited and The cuckoo cid aetn.sl-
IS make bis appearance and cry tie twelve
hours tie excitement was, to use term of
genial Jack s. immense. y 0 sooner had the
cuckoo retired in good order. than out sprung
the quail AID whistled the quarters; then out
came the euoko again, and called one, and
immediately thereafter the qsal appeared aud
gave us the quarters then the cuckoo. not To
be untdone, once more came forth and sound
ed his notes lor two o clock: and to make a
long story short, 1t was quail and euck 90,
cuckoo and quail, till even the most DESTROYS
among Is oi hearing them wss satisfied, and
would have forgiven them even il they had
never again opened their beaiss
After this thing had eoae on for half hour, /
said ny dear, ! think there is something
wrong about thu clock. Il don't strike me
thai those aisds are doing the proper thing. :
'.iaey seem 10 me, said my wife ito be
rather OVERRIDING it, and wish that you would
stop them.
lit is all very web !" | answered, sto say
stop them; butt don't know how il is 10 be
done 1t il certainly provoking
'sprovoking.H echoed my wife lit is
abonInatIe How We are going to sleep to-
night with that contest going on Aelween
these BIRDS | can't imagine, You must do
something-pui one OF those brass chains,
and see what will come Of it.
pulled the one, the weight attached to
which was nearest the tloor, md the only eff
feet was, ifanything, TO Increase the yivseity
OF these birds. We stopd it for fifteen min
n'eg longer, until the song ofcnckoo grew un-
pleasing even to unmarried ears, and the
very children asked me to stop him.
Take II ont into the barn, said my
wife.
LIB y III tHc AlstcIni ediu hHHt 81 1u.tl6,
Fake il over 70 the college said Em
stNo, | said, II will send it up 10 the
Professor he will possibly be able to use the
birds III gumbo, and vii, invite US to the
feast.
II wouldn't hare the dear Professor tor.
mented with it, my wife said mo take it
back, in the morning, to Goupils and ex-
change it for = picture
.lha, is all very WE'LL replied ..but
the question il, what shall We Do with /. to-
night? iii keeps on in this manner, none
ofus viii gel wink ofsleep."
.4Will i mol run down By and by r my
wife asked.
Probably II will. answered ssbat be-
liese those eonfnanded things will run eight
dsysafter once winding them NJ, aud we would
NIL be !nan Insane asy'u, before that time
ssBut there must be way 10 stop these
birds, my wife said, approaching the clock
and scrufinizing il closely.
Ne might, the boy in boots said. rub
hing his sleepy little eyes, twist off their
heads, as Michael does with the chick,
els