American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1873-08-23
ORR PARROT.

valuable resource. Poliy's observations
are so well-timedI She does not talk by
rote like a parrot, she converses. If
hungry or thirsty, Polly does not call for
food or water as vulgar bird might be
trained to do; but, with an ingenuity all
her own, she always tries to get what She
wishes for by showing that she deserres all
the good things of this life. She praises
herself up TO the skies when she wants
anything. pretty Poll! Polly's dear
hirdl |" she says In this matter she shows
a refinement of reasoning, an acutencss,
which is very wonderful
Polly can also assume an injured tone
If left out in the garden too long, she says
hoarsely, 'Polly's caught cold" or some
times, ''Polly's caught shocking cold"'
And then she sneezes. 1t is TO be feared
that Polly's sense of the beauty of truth
fulness is defective, for she never does
catch cold; she is only suffering IA tempo
rary inconvenience from the GOODNESS of
the evening air when she makes her COM
plant about being left out loo late. Like
every one else in INDICATE. Polly talks a
good deal about the weather: VERY cold
day" mice morning. and so on. When
any one is leaving her presence Polly
says polite Goodbye" Some time ago
it was found that she ate very little sugar,
and wasted good deal, so she was de-
bore it silently for several days, and then
she delivered herself of telling phrase
which she had invented expressly to suit
the occasion. She said, Good bye, lump
of sugar. Her tone was pathetic.
1t was impossible to resist her appeal,
and she was forthwith made happy by a
supply of sugar. A stranger entering the
kitchen is at once saluted with the ques-
ton, want the cook" Polly says it
very sharply, as if to convey to the in
truder that wanting the cook" can be
the only valid excuse for an unfamiliar
presence in those regions. There is NO
would have us all to know. As the
butchers boy appears walking across the
back garden, Polly calls out, ANY orders
for the butcher?" She sometimes adds a
very loud "Telki Telk! Come up" to the
horse, and if the animal obeys her (Which
often hapnens) the boy has to run off to
stop his cart, and Polly throws herself
back in her cage in a hearty fit of laugh
ter. She thoroughly enjoys joke.
She loves mischief She pretends to be
fond of the cat; calls him up near her
cage, and says "Puss," quite affectionate-
1y; but if opportunity offers she never
fails to catch his tail through the bars,
and to give it pinch. A little dog spent
some weeks in the house with Polly and
the cat, and it occurred to Polly to have a
little fun, SO she used to call out, "Cat!
catr' and when the dog took the hint,
barked, and gave chase, Poll used TO go
into one of her convulsive fits of laugh
ter. A boy persisted in teasing her for a
long time, and, Notwithstanding frequent
warnings, he used to continually poke his
finger at her. Polly's eye showed tenn
per; but she waited for days till he gave
her a good chance, and then, when his
finger was pushed we'll through the bars
of her cage, she caught it, and bit it to
the bone. He screamed Justify, and Polly
chuckled over it for long time. Her
disposition is rather interesting and orig
inal than aimiable.
Although she is past thirty, her man
ners are youthful. Her love of practical
joking is a prominently Juvenile trait of
character. She coaxes all new corners to
scratch poor Poll,' and she holds down
her head invitingly, hoping to be able to
give their unwary fingers squeeze. But
she is sometimes swayed by softer feelings.
When her friend the cat comes in, cold
and wet, in bad weather, Polly has been
heard to say, cOmpassionately, poor, poor
Puss! poor Pussy" She is gentle with
her owners, allowing them to ruffle her
feathers, and to display to admiring spec
tators her beautiful, shell-like little ears
a liberty which stranger could only take
at his own risk and peril; but even with
her best friends her affections showed it
self rather in passive than in active ways.
She permits them to take hold of her and
to pet her, but she is not lavish of caresses
in return.
Polly Is not only clever at originating
conversation, but is also particularly hap
py at repartee A maid, who had been
bitten by Polly, tried to vex her, and sue
ceeded by contradicting all Polls favorite
utterances. You are not dear bird
you are not poor good Polly; you are not
pretty Polly" etc. Polly bore it quietly
for a long time, being no doubt employed
by thoughts of vengeance, and at length
she asked very pertinent question. She
said, (Which is the nicestI" evidently
thinking that she could bear comparison
with her tormentOr in the matter of per-
sonal appearance. Some declared that
that remark proved Polly to be "uncanny''
-witch-like. Her opponent was com
pletely silenced by it.
She rarely says anything inappropriate.
Now and then she said it was "a very fine
day" when it was not particularly bril-
liant weather; but others besides Polly are
prone to make similar meteorological re.
marks at hap-hazard. Everybody says, at
one time or another, that it is rather
chilly" or that ''the evenings are drawing
in" 1.-The days getting shorter with a
view of saying something; and when We
talk for talks sake" our theme is usually
the weather. POlly's ordinary CONVERSE
ton chiefly consists in complimentary re-
marks about herself, which no one with
taste and judgment can deny; and when
ever she takes the trouble to put new
phrase together, it's always thoroughly
suitable and happy; in short, great rhe-
much more brilliant than the remarks
made by the members of our INDICATE CO.
terie. Polly's last sayings and doings are
often our topic, and some of our set have
told anecdotes of other birds, illustrative
of their intelligence, or of their affection
ate nature. One story was about n bish-
ops parrot. The bird got away, and the
palace was in commotion- The bishop
AID his retainers went into the garden and
out through the grounds in search OF
Polly, who was at last discovered
on the top of a high tree. All the
party gathered round the foot of the tree
looking up at the runaway, and wonder
ing how it was possible to induce her to
come down and be caught. AS his lord
ship and all his people stood there, uncer
tain what to do next, Polly glanced at the
congregation below her, and said, "Lel
us prayl' The bishops bird must have
uau Il Keen sense OF inc humorous.
Another anecdote was a very pathetic
recital of the death of a canary. 1t died Of
grief The canary's mistress was a young
girl who had long been hopelessly i'll. The
day before she died, she asked some one
to put the cage near her pillow. She al
lowed the bird to hop out, and it lit or
her face, kissing her over and over, its
little wings half open, and quivering a,
the mother-bird's wings culver over tn,
nestlings Poor birdie was evidently
greatly agitated. Ii was put back into
ito and p.yt Ja1, and its rnisfreS.