The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1882-01-13
THE BABY'S ADVENTURE.

Once upon time-"all on q sum:
mer's day''-a small white bundle
might have been seen half lying on 8
grassy bank, in certain garden in the
northern part of Germany. We al
know that appearances is deceitful;'
but this small white bundle certainly
looked nothing more nor less than 8
baby's pillow a good deal trimmed with
lace and embroidery. on which was tied
with two or three straps of scarlet rib.
bon, German fashion, something that
looked very like a baby. looked very
like a baby, and it cried very like a
baby. l suppose you would have called
it baby.
1t was pretty little thing, whatever
you would have called it. The small
pink face shone forth from daintily
embroidered cap. 1t had two great
eyes as blue as pimpernels, pair of the
sweetest dimples in the world, and q
perfect little rosebud of q mouth, that
could open into full-blown rose at the
shortest notice, as you will see before
this story is done.
1t was all alone in the garden. I do
not know whether the baby knew she
was alone in the garden or not, but she
seemed very happy and contented. She
sat perfectly still, much engaged, appa-
rently, in watching some long willow
branches that went swaying back and
forth in the lazy breeze.
"Caw! cav! caw!'' screamed a
hoarse black crow overhead. There
was q " whir-r-r'' in the air, and down
swooped the crow, lighting where
do you think? Rig ht on top Of that
baby.
shall always maintain that she be-
haved very well under the circum-
stances. She did not so much as open
/ her lips till the bold creature began
pecking at the scarlet ribbons. You can
hardly blame her for giving such a
scream then that the unwelcome visitor
flew off in a hurry.
A stork that happened to be passing
heard the cOmmotion, and felt obliged
tn stop and see what was the matter.
She also flew down to the garden, and
it was not long before she too spied the
little white bundle sitting there under
the trees.
The baby had stopped crying by this
time, and, all being quiet, Mrs. Stork
stepped cautiously forward. every min
ute stepping nearer and nearer, till at
last she could look straight down into
the pair of blue eyes.
Gravely the stOrk surveyed the baby,
and gravely the baby surveyed the stork.
Neither seemed to know quite what to
make of the situation, although soon it
began to dawn upon Madame Longlegs
that maybe she had the best of it, and
giving her head toss, her wings gen.
tie flap, and opening wide her bill, she
said softly to herself:
Murray! this is lucky day for you,
Mother StOrkr'
Casting another glance at the baby,
who still did not offer to resent all this
familiarity on the part of stranger.
Mrs. Stork, like Master Crow, next con-
cluded to try taste of those gay rib
bOns.
The pimpernels shut up in a twinkling.
The rosebud kept opening wider and
wider. And alas! the harder the baby
cried this time, the more delighted the
visitor seemed to grow.
"Ahem! it's real baby and no mis-
take" whispered the stork, dancing ON
one leg in high glee, and making noise
enough with her wings to have been a
dozen of her sisters and brothers. '.Hur-
ray! hurrayr'
The sound of voices could now be
heard in the distance. If the children
only needn't have dawdled for once! If
the butterflies hadn't led them such a
chase through the flower-beds! H-if-
if But then there would have been
no story to tell.
And as usual the children did dawdle.
They run from one rosebush to another
in pursuit of yellow butterfly; they
held buttercups under their chins to see
whether they liked butter or not; they
stopped for a peep of their silly little
faces in the clear waters of the fountain;
and meanwhile Mrs. Stork had been
making up her mind to great things.
She had snatched up the little white
bundle, and serenely sailed off through
the bright summer sky.
my baby! my baby! why. that
s0icked, aDicked creatures got my babyw
was the agonized cry that rose from the
garden.
If Mother Stork heard, she did not
heed. On she flew with her burden,
never resting once till she came to her
own home-nest on top of high barn in
a village ever so many miles away.
As for the three young storks, they
were very much fluttered, indeed, at the
sight of such an unexpected guest. The
first thing they did was to hop out of the
nest as fast as they could; and having
arranged themselves gracefully on one
leg in semi-circle, they gazed solemnly
down at their mamma big prize, while
that delighted lady, wishing to show of
all its beauties and accomplishments, be-
gan pecking again at the scarlet ribbons.
For the third time that day the baby
cried. She cried with such q will that
the village sexton forgot to play his
usual hymn-a thing he had not done in
the course of sixty years.
Now, you must know that they were
all very good, pious people who lived in
that village. And ever since the church
had been built, as regularly as two
o'clock came round, come rain, come
shine, the sexton had climbed the tower
stairs, and there on the little balustrade
had played a hymn in Gods praise.