Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1877-07-30
2Ilonth's Column.
mr.. TOMPKINs SMALL STORY.

about another hen in a not very good
way, and in not at all friendly way.
The hen she talked about was named
Phe-endy Alone. Her own name was
Teedla Toodlum. They both belonged
to q flock of white hens which lived in
the PARKWAY country of Chickskumeat-
yourkornio.
Now, the one that was named Teedla
Toodlum went around among the other
hens, making fun of Phe-endy Alone,
on account of her having a specklcd
feather in her wing. She told them
not to go with Phe-endy Alone,
or scratch up worms with her, or any,
thing, because she had that speckled
feather in her wing.
One of the hens that Teedla Toodlum
talked to in this way was deaf, and
therefore could not hear very well. She
had become deaf in consequence of not
mindIng her mother. 1t happened in
this way: A tall Shanghai roost-cock
crowed close to her ear, when she was
quite small when, in fact, she was just
Matched out of her shell. She had a
number of brothers and sisters who came
out at almost the same time. The Shang-
hal stood very near, and in such a way
that his throat came close to the nest,
and he crowed there. The chicks want
ed to put their heads out from under
their mother, and see who was making
such noise. Their mother said:
mo, no,-no! Keep under! You
might be made deaf I've heard of such
thing happening"
But one of the chicks did put her
head out, and close to the Shanghai's
wide-open throat, too and when he was
growing terribly!
Then her mother said:
"Now, 1 shall punish you'll 1 shall
prick you with my pin.feathers p
And the chick was pricked, and she
became deaf besides; so that, when she
grew up, she hardly could h ear herself
cackle. And this was the reason she
could not understand, very well, when
the hen named Teedla Toodlum was tell
ing the others that the hen named Phe-
endy Alone had speckled feather in
her wing.
One day, the hen named Teedla TODD.
lum scratched hole in the sand, be.
neathe bramble- bush, and sat dowr
there where it was cool. And while
she was sitting there, COW came along
at the other side of the bramble- bush
with load of passengers" on her back
The cows in the country of Chickskum.
eatyourkornio permit the hens to ride
on their backs, and when great many
are on, they step carefully, so as not tt
shake them off. In frosty weather they
allow them to get up there to warn
their feet. Sometimes hens who hav,
cold feet fly up and push off the Others
who have been there long enough.
The cow passed along at the othel
side of the bush, and by slipping on
foot into deep hole which was bidder
with the grass, and therefore could no
be seen, upset the whole load of passen
gers. She then walked on; but tn
passengers stayed there, and had littl
talk together-after their own fashion
of course. The deaf one happened t
be among them, and after while, see
ing that the others were having grea
! sport, she wanted to know what it wa
all about. Upon this the others-thos
of them who could stop laughing-raise
their voices, and all began at once t
try to make her understand. And TIL
is what they said:
D Think of that goose of a hen, Teedl
Toodlum, telling us not to 60 with Phi,
endy Alone, because Phe-endy Alom
has speckled feather in her win,
when, at the same time, Teedla Too
= lum has two speckled feathers in HI
e own wing, but doesn't know it %
Teedla Toodlum was listening, an
. heard rather more than was pleasant
: hear. She looked through the brandt
a bush and saw them. Some had the
!, heads thrown back, laughing some we
n holding on to their sides, each with OIL
claw; and some were stretching the
, necks forward, trying to make the de
/ one understand, while the deaf one he
J her claw to her ear, in order to hear Il
4 better.
4 "Ah feel ashamed !" said iced
Toodlum to herself. 81 see, now, tn
J one should never speak of the speckl
feathers one sees in others, since OIL
Ie can never be sure that one has 4
d speckled feathers ones self!"-M
Abbg Morton Didz, in st. Nicholas.