The star of Pascagoula. [volume] (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1873-1878, 1875-10-16
HISTORY OF PRINCE pRErrIcoMB.
Mrs CRAWFORD NErLsoS.

o. WV y Nf " h'Ntb FitlfNFNs
It was very, very early on q bright
spring morning. The SKY was cool and
gray the dew sparkled on the grass.
for The sun had not yet riseu and the
only sound 10 be heard on the farm was
the dull thud, thud Of the cowboys
boots, rs they walked over to the barn
10 do the milking. The farmers wife
and her daughter, Boxany Mari, rubbed
their sleepy eyes and turned uyer for
one more little snooze before they got
up To get breakfast and in his attic
chamber, way up in the roof, rosy
checked Bobby lay and dreamed of his
hen, Speckle, and the chickens that
would most likely come out that day.
Inside the h]en-hOuse were rows of nests,
filled with clean straw; and in each
nest sat a hen, with eight, ten, OF twelve
snowy egs under her. The hens, like
their owners, were fast asleep. Sud
denly a loud, clear " cock-a-doodle-don
reused the lazy dreamers. A-doodle-do,
a-dOOdle-dO-O-o-o-o-o echoed through
the building and all the ROSTERS fut-
tered down from their perches and went
out to dig fat earth-worms for break
fast.
"Now isn't that like menu" said Part
let. Hateful creatures! If they had
the care of young families, as we do,
they'd be glad enough to rest, instead of
cock-a-doodle-doing' this time in the
morning."
Perfectly true" said Brownie, her
%neighbor; ''but how are you getting
along with your eggs, PartletP"
. "Ohl my chickens are all out-eight
as lovely young creatures as you would
wish to see, - replied Partlet, rufiling
her feathers with pride andimportance.
81 have ten,n said Brownie.
just then Il giddy young Bantam hus-
tied past, and, nodding to the mothers,
said: Il shall go out with the ROSTERS
to hunt for worms. They always give
me some"
1.-The conceit of that creature is I'M
%bearable," chuckled all the hens. ''De-
tend us from fashionable mothers! Al
ways gadding about. She broke six of
her eggs and the Others were given to
Speckle; and, by the bye, she hasn't
spoken a word this morning. Surely,
she can't be asleep"
Then they all commenced to question
the sober old hen; but she answered
never a word.
Peep, peep, peep, peep" cried a
dozen little voices in the nest; but
Speckle did not move. "Stuck up old
thing" cried the hens. "She was al
ways hateful" But, needless of the
blame and her children's voices alike,
Speckle sat stiff and straight and never
moved a feather. Was she asleep or
was she deadp We shall see.
The sun came up over the hills, looked
IN at the kitchen window, and, finding
Roxany Mari and her mother busy with
Deans and brown bread, he kept on to
the attic, and stared in Bobby's face till
ne woke; and the first thing he thought
OF was Speckle and her brood.
lie hurried into his clothes and rushed
out to the hen-house, and there, sure
enough, were the little downy yellow
heads pOking themselves out of Spec
kle's feathers, and the little mouths cry
ing peep, peep; but Speckle was
dead. She had died, like a soldier, at
her post. And here were these twelve
uny orphans, only a few hours old, and
"hat would become of themp Bobby
wrung his hands at the thought, and,
putting them into an old basket which
ne found, he took poor Speckle under
us arm and went back to the kitchen.
La SUI met" cried Mrs. Barlow,
When she heard the story. "Ef that
IN too much. Poor cretur, poor Gre
tlr' she must "a sot too stiddy. An all
mem young mes. Fur's l know, they'll
ule too; for none o. tn other hens won't
take care of 'em.n
AT this dreadful speech poor Bobby
Ieeouoled his cries, and all the little
chickens in the cold basket peeped a
slgorous accompaniment. Now, Rox-
any Mari was what they call in New
England a very "faculized" person
mat Is, smart; so she came to the rescue
an9 SAID: "Stop your crying, Bob,
ana 20 up garnet. You'll find in a
oald-DoX the old straw ounnit Grand
moIher wore to meetin' when she's a
.oouhg gal. Fetch it to me, with a lot
raw cotton, an III make a step
alother FUR the chickens" So she lined
Ile olg bonnet with soft cotton, and left
~ tags of 1t hanging in all directions,
initiate feathers, and set it in the
Lhihhey-corner; and after she had given
n orphans some corn-meal and water
,L put them in the stepmother, and
icy went of to sleep as soundly as if
~" ~ mad been in Speckle's nest. Then
''y mad his breakfast and every