The San Francisco call., 1896-08-02
TIE DUCKS NEST.
Hurrah for the funI School is done!
vyooo& iau WIG oaf f0-dav


Vacation get to-day.
School is over, school is overl No more les
sons for, oh, too many days to count and be-
sides l am tired of counting already. Let us.go
and see if dear old aunt Katie is coming. We all
loved this auntie so well we called her Date.
Now you must not think because l say dear
old Aunt Date, that she is gray and wrinkled;
instead she is just like my big sister would be-
If she had lived. So out we all ran to the gate
to see If she is within signt; and, yes there
she comes.
OF course, being well-behaved little children,
we dare not run to meet her, but wait patiently
until she arrives. Then she greets US with
CHEEKY "Good-morning, children" and We all
answer I'VE have vacat ton; do take US some
where and let us have some fun" "Well, you
must first have mammals permission" They
very soon obtain that, and then Aunt Date
asks where would they like 10 go-to the duck
farm or TO the piggery. "To the duck farm, of
course" Sly ones, they think they can go TO
the piggery on the way home.
Soon ready, off they start, and as 1t was not
very far they reach their destination in
short time. The first thing they see on enter
ing the yard is little girl, like the one in the
picture. sitting with pan OF peas feeding the
little tiny ducks. oh, how sweet they werei
Just like balls Of down. Aunt Date showed
them some large, white duck eggs, and told.
them how the tiny ducklings came out Of eggs
like them.
She then took the children to the pond where
the ducks drank and bathed; also to mother
duck on g. nest. After having lovely time,
they returned home well pleased and very
hungry. The next day their mother and aunt
went out and the children got. hungry and
concluded to have something to. eat,
They thought what fun it would. be TO
cook for themselvesl Fred said: "Oh,.
VIII, 1 can get some eggs. Yesterday
| +bo oh forr T
some eggs lying outside the fence and so +
will just run over and get them. The duck
must have lost them there" So off he went
and soon came back with seven big eggs.
Nellie started fire and Will brought out ;
some biscuits, ham and tarts and then made
tea; then May cooked the eggs and they sat :
down to eat. The biscuits and eggs would be
splendi d, they said, and such fine large eggs
they were, too, only not so nice and clean as
those mamma always had.
When they cracked the shells-ready to eat
them-wen, they did not smell like eggs
mamma cooked, eiIherl However, they sea-
soned them well with salt and pepper, and all
ate them but Fred. Alasl poor, poor fellow,
he could not eat his at ALL Why? Because
there was no egg there to eat. 1t was:
Head, TAIL feathers feet, -.
Just little duck complete.
AS salt and pepper would do that no good he
had to be content with biscuits, ham and tar IS,
ssquite good luncheon" mamma said, "for
little boy who had stolen eggs and robbed
nest" She also said the mother duck ad laid
her eggs outside the fence because twas qpiet
and sheltered, and that it would have been
much better to have left them in the hest
until they were Matched, and how
badly the mother would feel
when she returned and found them gone. She
also told Fred how the little duckling in his
egg might have been alive when he took 1t.
He felt very sorry for cooking it and said, al
prefer my ducks minus shell and eggs minus
duck" When Aunt Date heard what Fred
had done she said she would not take him to
the piggery, as he might rob their nests too,
and then we would have neither ham nor
eggs for breakfast MARIE CHEswoRTH.
THE GIRL AND HER DUCKS.
"Come,. Maggie" called Mrs. Mansfield. "and
get me some peas for dinner"
Eyes, mamma" replied Maggie, putting her
dollie in its carriage, for Maggie was an obeoi-
ent little girl.
The peas were soon picked and seating her.
self on an old basket in the corner of the porch
she began to shell them, but before she had
quite finished band of little ducks which she
had raised herself came troopiEg up. beside
her. She had dropped quite number OF peas
and now the ducks began to eat them.
Before they had eaten them all up one little
duck curled up and went to sleep, while three
Others walked away quite satisfied, but the
fifth one. whom Maggie had been in the habit
of petting, stood quite STILL waiting for her to
take it up But she raised her hand and shook
her head and said no, that she did not have
time to pet her now, but ducky would not go
away until Maggie took her mother the peas
and came out to petit. r. MAUD MALLORY.