River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1893-02-09
A HEN WITH A HISTORY.
Record of an Humble Fowl That's Gifted
with Wonderful sagacity.

Record of an Humble Fowl That's Gifted
with WONDERFUL sagacity.
"How dye do?" he asked, with a
grin OF familiar recognition. Don't
seem to know me, do We? was in here
last year and gave yer some anecdotes
about some snakes | saw abroad. Re.
membera''
Yes" growled the editor. II recol-
lect You. All your snake stories were
false, and we got letters from all over
the world saying so. What do you want
now?"
"You don't tell me-" ruminated the
snake man, smoothing his hat softly.
False" was they? Mebbe the parties
as writ to yer knowed more about them
snakes than me. P'rhaps what | come
to tell yer about my speckled hen is all
false. too"
"What has she done?"
''She's done more than the snakes,
and if snakes was lies that hens a
whopper, that's all can say" and he
looked deeply injured.
'Tell us about her" said the editor.
"Yer hearn about the eat that Matched
chickens, / reckon Well my old specl1-
led hens bin discounting that cat
She's Matched four brood of kittens;
one in each brood"
''Oh, go home and sleep it off" rec
commended the indignant editor.
Fact. Four brood. and one to the
brood. seen her gittin' restless and
setten on things, and tried fer to knock
her out o the idee. No use. She'd set
on a hot fiatiron but what she'd set"
"Fust she hatched an old millpail in
to tin cups. and then she squatted on
some dough that was Sot to rise, and
I'm blessed il she didn't hatch out a
dozen biscuits and then try to learn 'em
TO swim.
II seen she was gettin' broody. and
/ says to the old woman, says /, Mar.
sumpin' must be done for that speclxled
hem Mar tumbled to the idee, and
says she: 1T must So with that we
figgered what we'd best do. While we
was figgerin' she sot on load o wood.
and I'll eat a grind stun if it didn't
come out all sawed and split. I'm
tellin' yer this so yer won't think the
kittens was unnatural.
''Well. mar and me figgered and fig
gered, and while we was figgerin' the
specified hen was figgerin' too. She
hoped on to a barl o. scrap iron, and
I'm hanged if she didn't whack out
two hundred papers o tacks. We seen
that sumpin' had got ter be done right
off, but before we hit on to the scheme,
tan my skin if she didn't set on the
pump handle and hatch it into tooth
picks. Sure as yer born.
Somehow my reapin' machine got
under her one night, and the next
morning it was iron tent-pegs. Yer
never seen nothin' like it. She was
bent fer to set, I'll tell yer"
mo doubt of it. But how about the
kittens?"
'Well, some men came to put a new
roof to the house; got there just before
dinner, and left their tools i'm the yard.
l see the old hen watching them tools.
but / didn't think no harm. Just be-
fore that"
Never mind anything else. Come to
the cats"
''Jist so. While we was at dinner /
seen her explorin', and I didn't know,
from what happened the day before
drop that said the editor, sternly,
give MS the four brood of cats, one in
a brood"
''Well, the four worlzmen were at
dinner. and the old specified hen was
nosin' about, and / says to mar:
Nor"
''Out with those cats quick"
Certainly. The tools was outside,
yer know, four sets on 'em in-what's
this they carry tools in?"
"A kit?"
"And that old speclSled hen sot on
them four kits, and if she didn't hatch
out four brood o."
The editor bounded from his chair,
brandishing a heavy paper-weight
The story was never finished. Chicago
Infpr-Ocean