The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1896-04-11

patiently up and down each row, un-
til they went in. Never while he
lived did he get over his fear of water.
When the hot, sitting weather came
they thought he would surely want
to go in swimming, as the boys did
in the river; but he never did, he
never even went near the pond when
the children did, but stood some dis
lance off looking at them, as if he
had not forgotten that they had once
put him into it. Four full-grown
white ducks were given to them, and
they thought that then he would
surely be enticed in by them; but he
was not, and would not associate
with such curious beings; he would
not eat with them, or sleep in their
house when they tried to make him;
for they were afraid that he would be
carried off by the skunks, for there
were many of them about.
1t was then that he learned to hide
away when they shut up their other
fowls, sometimes it was one place and
sometimes another, and often he was
found for several nights in succession
in different places under the wood
pile and shut up; he went off long
before dark the next night and at
last, quite late in the evening, and
when Olga was getting worried about
him, they heard him scrambling up
the kitchen doorstep; and when he
could not get in, he pecked at the
door with his bill, as he had learned
to do in the daytime, when he hap
pened to be shut out for awhile. He
walked in looking so pleased and
flirted his tail in a saucy way,
turning his head from side to side
and cooking up first one eye and then
the other at Olga when she said
Naughty Patrick"
After that they used to catch him
late in the afternoon and turn bar
rel that was open at both ends over
him; for they could not run the risk
of having Patrick carried off by a
skunk or fox; and he objected to
that very much indeed, but he was
obliged to submit. When they COW
cred the top with board at night
partly for protection from the animals
and partly lest it should rain, for
Olga said, "He does hate water SO"
he walked round and round his
prison and quacked loudly; but after
while he became used to it, and
would come when he was called in
stead of making the children chase
him all over the farm. When Olga
sat down to sew he would cuddle
down close to her feet and often go
into doze, to start up, however, at
her least movement, and to waddle
after her if she only went into the
next room. But poor Patrick's crown
of sorrow came when Olga took three
tiny chickens into the house during a
long spell of wet weather. She put
them in his old box by the window,
and at first Patrick did not notice
them; but when Olga took chicken in
her hands and sat down and tried to
make it eat little food from her
hands, Patrick few at her feet and
pecked her shoes, and beat at her
skirts with his wings.
At first they did not understand
what was the matter, but after little
while it was perfectly evident that
Patrick was jealous. He wandered
about the kitchen between Olga and
the window, flying at her whenever
she approached the box; and as in
doing her work it was often necessary
for her to go near the window, and as
Patrick could not be kept out of the
kitchen, Olga had to succumb and to
put the poor little things out in their
coop. 1t was only then that he set
tied down to be quiet again in the
kitchen. He seemed fond of the dog
and the cat, and followed them about
when Olga sat outdoors; but with
anything feathered he would have
nothing whatever to do.
One very wet night he could not be
found, and although distressed to
have him out, they were sure that he
would not be out in the rain; for he
never stayed out when it rained a
single moment, even if he was shut
out of the kitchen, if there was shell
ter to be found anywhere; and they
felt that it might be good thing if
he had been accidentally shut up in
the fowl house. But in the morning,
with many quackings of explanation
and much flirting of his tail, Patrick
walked out of the stable door when
Eddy opened it in the morning. He
had gone by the open door of the
fowl house, and chosen the society of
the horse.