The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1897-10-02

perch, and began to play with the
chain by which the bird was fas-
tened. giving the loop a push with
her paw SO it swung back and forth.
The parrot watched her awhile, then
suddenly cried, "Miowl' Minnie
locked up. "Ha, ha, hal" shouted
the bird, as much as to say, did you
think it was another cat9" and forth
with began to scream afresh, Growing
like cock, barking like dog. imi-
tating the creaking of a door, and
then suddenly going into a frenzy of
sneezng and coughing and snuffiing,
like person in the most desperate
stages IF influenza. Minnie sat looking
as if she enjoyed the performance,
and the children laughed till they
were tired. Then mamma called the
children upstairs and they skipped
away.
II think I'll set my bread to rising
before supper, said Christine to her.
self; "then | shall have more time to
write my letter home this evening"
So she mixed it up and put it in a
large wooden bowl, covering it with
a nice clean towel, and leaving it to
rise on the dresser After supper,
when everything was in order for the
night, she babe good-evening to Min
zie and Polly, went upstairs to her
room, and began to write to her
weekly letter to her dear, far off Nor
way. She wrote slowly, and had been
busy about an hour when she heard
a loud distressed "Miow," outside her
door. Evidently something was the
matter. "Why, what is it," she cried,
as she opened the door. Minnie
sprang in, quite excited, rubbed
around her and ran back toward the
door. Christine started down stairs,
bearing the lamp in her hand, the
cat frisking around her. When she
reached the kitchen door, she heard
cry from the parrot.
Come, come, come" cried Polly.
Good gracious! Won't you take
walk?
The voice did not proceed from the
birds accustomed corner, and look
ing about, the first thing Christine
saw was the linen towel she had
spread over the bread, on the floor,
and Minnie standing up on her hind
paws with her two white mittened
fore-feet at the edge of the table,
craning her head forward and crying
piteously. There, in the middle of
the large pan of soft dough, sat
Polly, sunk to her shoulders in the
sticky mass, only her neck and head
with it's huge black beak and CLASSY
yellow eyes, to be seen. She had
pulled the towel off the bread, and,
IN the process OF investigating it, had
become fastened in the thick paste,
sinking deeper and deeper, till she
was in danger of disappearing alto
gether.
"Ship-ahoy!" cried Polly Come!
Poor Polly! What does Polly want?"
Christine burst into laughter, and
much 10 Minzie's distress, ran to call
the children before helping Polly.
With shouts of merrime mt they
helped to disengage the bird, and
set her into basin of water to soak
She was very quiet, and let them do
as they pleased with her, only ejacu-
lating, now and then, "Gcod gra-
ciousl What does Polly want9 Oh,
my! Won't you take a walk?"
IF it had not been for Minzie,"
said Christine, "poor Polly would
have been smothered in the dough"
a nd she told the children how the cat
lad called her.
After they had washed Polly and
set her on her perch, as near the
fire as they dared, to dry her be-
draggled feathers and warm her shiv-
ering body, "Bless my SOUL" she
chartered; What does Polly want9"
II shouli think you wanted to be
punished, if you weren't punished
enough already" laughed Christine
as she proceeded to set another bowl