Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1903-10-10
The Story Of Pip.
The Rooster that Wanted to Know
and Found Out.
BY May c, Ringwalt.

in the meadows; yellow huffs OF chick
abiddie in the barnyard.
Pip, you naughty little rooster,
come home this Instant" Susan Nip
per chuckled excitedly, her head
thrust out the coop window.
With a reckless disObedience, Pip
strobe on-three bold steps toward the
curious black object with the two yell
low lights in the tower. Then, in sud-
den panic, he turned tail, and fed.
He found his mother wildly pacing
the floor. her feathers ruffled with
anxiety. Pip! Pip! How can you
worry me SOL" she nervcusly clucked.
81 wanted to know
WANTED to know!'" angrily re-
peated Mrs. Ntpper. THAT was
your excuse for getting into the water
can and almost drowning when you
were five days old!
Little roosters, my son. who wish
to be really wise, mind their mothers
without wanting to know the why's
and wherefores. for mothers always
have good reasons for their COM
mands. That was Cat which you
insisted upon approaching in so fool
hardy a manner-a dangerous beast
with horrible claws, which kills little
chickens, and eats them. This partic-
.ular creature belongs to our dear mis-
tless, and is said to be harmless, but
I do not trust her. 1t makes my
feathers creep to see her watching you
children at play! Now, Pip Nipper,
you're not to go out again this after
noon.
Pip sulked in corner of the coop.
1t was ridiculous to treat him like
baby, when he was growing up so
fast. That very morning Pedro
Shanghai and he had been comparing
combs, and Cleopatra Speckles had de-
clared Pips the more promising.
Although Mrs. Nipper had very
large family, her other children were
all sweet little things. Why Pip
should be so different was sad puz-
Gle. There was a sudden tug at her
left wing.
Pip" she clucked in a whisper, sis
that you kicking the covers cff?"
a frightened voice.
What what is?"'
"That awful spooky rustic! Oh,
mother. I'm so afraid it's the DOGGY
rooster after mel"
pip Nipper, have you been listening
to Pedro Shanghai's silly stories, when
Mother told you net to play with him
again? The only DOGGY rooster is
bad conscience that troubles small
chickens when they don't mind their
mothers. The sound you hear is the
pretty leaves on the trees talking in
their Sleep"
There was long silence, and at
last Mrs. Nipper's head YEARLY nod
ded.
But if PiD's nursery days filed SUI
san Nipper's breast with anxiety, when
her chickabiddies were old enough to
leave the COUP. and be proudly led
about the great outside yard, his beha.
viOr became a positive torment to his
nervous, sensitive mother.
Upon all risky expeditions of investi-
cation, he ran beyond the sound of her
cluck. If it were muddy, he battered
across the clean porches; if it were
dry, he busted himself in the middle
Of the mistress's pet flower bed-al-
ways he brought scolding and shoo-
ing upon his whole family. There was
no mischief nor disturbance in the
barnyard that the hens did not cackle:
"That horrid little Pip is at the bot
tom of it," In spite of his mothers
arguments. he almost broke a wing
because he wanted to know" why he
couldn't fly I'D on the roost like the
''grown-ups," and he disastrously
strained his vocal cords trying to crow
like his uncle Caesar Augustus. Final
ly he famed himself for week by fall
ing down in tangle of underbrush in
the woods where he had stealthily
gone against his mothers strict COM
mands, because he wanted to know"
what was on the other side of the
fence.
The time came at last when even so
devoted mother as Susan Nipper was
forced to admit that her children were
grown up.
"Of course. my dears," she i'm
pressed upon them, the last night that
she was to gather them under her
wings, eff you're in any trouble or
wish advice. come at once to mother.
But you're old enough to make your
own places in the world, and I'm sure
you'll get along capitally without
me-" She tried to speak cheerfully
but when she glanced at Pip, her cluck
broke down. AS far as he was con.
cerned, all her careful training and
wise counsels had been lost, and now
that he could not longer be under her
watchful eye, she felt that some terri
BILE calamity might befall him.
The next day was very sad and
lonely for Susan Nipper. She tried
to take up her social duties again, and
after carefully dressing her feathers
made calls on Mrs. Speckles and Mad
am Shanghai, but their cakling gossip
bored her. The only happy experience
was the five minutes she spent al
young Mrs. Leghorn's new coop, where
she clucked over the pullet's babies tt
her hungry hearts content.
She was regretfully turning away
from this coop when terrible noise
greeted her. 1t was as deep and awful
as a groan, as high and piercing as 4:
shriek-it was the cry of alarm giver
by her brOther-in-law, Caesar Angus