The Highland weekly news. [volume] (Hillsborough [Hillsboro], Highland County, Ohio) 1853-1886, 1876-01-13
THE YOUNG FOLKS.


Where the brook sings to the sedges all through th
summer day."
+" Fnsky little kitty puss, where is your home,
"In the barn beneath the birchen tree sunny mil,
away,
The mice and play hide-and-seek along the dust,
While laughing runs the little brook outside tn,
wide barn-door."
:. Pretty little chipmunk you so far astray ?"
!" live by the birehen tree sunny mile
away,
Down underneath the moss and ferns my soft warm
bed is made,
And on my little closet shelves sweet nuts in pile:
are laid"
Merry little Marian sits singing at her play;
" See, just above the birchen tree sunny mile
awag,
Our pretty cottage chimney with its smoke flag
blowing out,
And, wading down the little brook, hear Tom and
Patty shout I"
Puss and bird and chipmunk, and Marian glad and
Are neigsRibors by the bircheu tree sunny mile
The loving Heavenly Father cares tenderly for all
Alike all his little ones his rain and sunshine
! fall. ELSIE GoThdm.
A GOOSE SToRY.-"A goose storyT'
Didu't hear somebody say that scorn-
fully, just as l put my pen to this paper ?
Well, l am not surprised, for have
heard all the common expressions, ".Silly
as goose" ]" Don't be a goose" and
you little goose" Indeed, 1 may as
well confess that l sometimes use such
expressions, but of late years never do
SO without feeling rather ashamed of my
self; and am now going to tell you
how this feeling came about. Not very
! long ago, it was my lot to board for a
whole year at a farmhouse, and l was
an eyewitness to the truth of this little
story.
The farmers wife, having no geese,
set some goose-eggs under a hen, but
| only three were Matched, and soon two
of the goslings died, leaving only one.
Then, to make matters worse for the
poor little fellow, the hen forsook him.
Any boys and girls that live where
fowls are kept will know that chickens
and goslings don't like to be without
companions one whit more than children
do; and this small orphan cried so pitt
fully after his lost friends, that the good
woman of the house, out of kindness
toward him, set some more goose-eggs.
These were Matched when the first was
about six weeks old and he Immediately
claimed relationship with the young
goslings. Strange to say, this second
brood was also deserted by the hen
mother, within ten days after they saw
the light; but they got along very nicely
without her, for straightway the older
gosling took them under his charge,
though not under his wings, for at that
time he had none worth mentioning.
Some people might have counted it a
silly goose }" performance, but to my
fancy it was touching one, when that
gosling gander, not yet arrived at the
dignity of feathers, would run kissing
at any living thing that he suspected of
unfriendly intentions toward his nurs-
lings; while the little things ran along
behind him or at his side, seeming to
think him mother enough for them. He
led them down the roadside to place
where tiny rivulet crossed the road
and he found for them all the bright
green spots were the grass was fresh and
tender; then, at evening be brought
them home to the woodshed, where they
had been hatched, and which had always
been their sleeping-place.
After his feathers were grown, and he
was become handsome, stately fellow,
you should have seen him as he came
home at nightfall, marching along, with
his head erect and his bright eyes keenly |
looking out on either side; the other
three were sure to be close behind, but |
walking quite carelessly, evidently with
out any concern on their minds, and |
leaving both dignity and vigilance to
their brave leader.
Their confidence was not misplaced, |
fer when he was fully grown-and in
deed all through the following winter |
it was not exactly safe for any outsider
to meddle much with the affairs of that |
could do more than hiss with |
that mouth of his, and slap from his |
wings once brought him off conqueror
in a contest between bullying, vexa-
tious boy and himself The boy threat
ened vengeance dire, but his mother in
terfered. She said it was fair fight,
and if the gauder had the best of it, she
was glad, as he was only standing up for
his rights; he didn't begin the quarrel.
However, there was persistent feud
between Johnnie and the gander up to
the period when 1 left the farmhouse.
For time l was little afraid of the
martial bird; but as l was given to
pokiDg around among the por;ltry, we
somehow became very well acquainted
and the best of friends.
He would take bits of bread from my
fingers, as gently as though he had been
taught politeness at boarding-school;
and he submitted with excellent grace
when l passed him by to feed my lame
pensioners, of whom l had several about
the premises.
Like many another brave and efficient
male protector, this feathered biped was
very fond of little ones; so much SO,
that when the black hen brought out an
early brood of chickens, and in April led
them around the garden in search of
worms and last years seeds, the gander !
found the sprightly little creatures so
that he seemed quite taken
up with them, and wandered about in
their vicinity, or sat on the ground
where he could keep them in view.
At length, he was drawn from the
chickens by a stronger attraction. One
of the geese, after several misfortunes,
III tuc way VI DIcdkiLS ucI tSSs, anu
rolling them out of the nest, Matched
one gosling. Poor little thing! it was
very wee, and more dead than alive
when it was rescued from under the
feet of its awkward young
mother, and placed in basket of wool
to come to its senses. 1t due time it was
lively enough TO be put out of doors
among the geese; but there is no know
ing what would have been the fate Of
that toddling mite, if it had been left
entirely to the care of its mother.
However, the gander soon discovered it,
and then it was a sight TO see him stretch
his neck, with head almost touching the
ground, as he made his observations.
You would really think his low gable
was u fatherly talk or counsel TO those
ignorant and rather stupid females of
his family. Anyway, from that hour
they seemed to consider the bantling a
kind of jOint-stock possession among
them; and never family were more
preposterously proud of young one