COCK-A-DOODLE-DO.

Evening Star, Issue 3996, 15 December 1875, Page 1 (Supplement)

COCK-A-DOODLE-DO.

Domestic duties appear at times to be almost aa exasperating in New Zealand as in the town of Daabury. Yoa keep fow'.s, giving them the privilege of semi-iucUpen-dency by letting them out in winter, hut just at seed time you keep them fast in the ran. Some rooming you undertake to give them some oats, not knowing that >our wife has already fed them. You open the door, and immediately one of tbem hops out, running over your freshly-polished boots with its muddy feet. You east a sorry glance at the once shining pedals and quickly slam the door to, but not before yva. have firmly enough rixed one of them by the neck between the door r.o3t. Opening the door again you relieve the sufferer, and while you are examining the the nature of the wound another hops out. You call your little boy to help you in with th?m by sending him round; then, while you stand at the door ready to open it at the critical time, after running them all round the garden till your patience is nearly exhausted, he succeeds in bringing them up to the door, which you then open, standing at the same time on ODe side, you have just brought the truants to threshold when all the rest of the prisoners make a rush to tb.n door. You gesticulate to them with all your might till you look like a semaphore in full action. You shout to them in broken t_ hina ; but do you think you can make thos<s birds understand what you want ? '-o, indeed, they just nod to you. Your menancts only Hucceed in frightening the first couple away again; while two more hop out of the den. You begin to think that if you would be successful this week, you must increase your forces; so you call the servant, and you all commence lifting up your arms and shouting "Piucksh, pluoksh." The few remaining prisoner's think you are feeding the outsiders, for they recommence nodding, and step out. The noise brings your wife out asking what on this planet can be the matter, and white you are explaining the moves your little boy alters the position of the snemy by driving them in two main divisions. "Whatever have you been doing to Mother Hubbard's neck," and on your informing her you have been doing nothing to it, but that the hen deliberately put its neck through the door the moment you were shutting it, she proceeds to marshal her forces. (Ic shoul) have been promised that all the birds are called af ler some celebrity, local or otherwise.) Thus, for instance, the bird in Sir George, and one of the subdivisions is ranged under him, who is trying his best not to look frightened a bit about it, and would, in fact, resist unto the death any attempt agaiusfc their liberty. J hey march to your vegetable and fruit garden. The other sub-division Htrolls oif to your flower-garden, where you keep all your bee-hives. Your little toy calls ou*-, " Oh, pa, the fowls are a scratching ua the garden, and raising up sue \ a dust. " The situation becomes exasperating. In your pursuit they seem to know your weakness of keeping to the beaten walks, for they Btudioualy avoid them. Yon very nearly come to grief by catching your foot on a flower-stake you make an ungaiuly gyralion round a bee-hive, and, to save yourself, imprudently catch hold of a eweetbriar. However, by gradually concentring your forces, the birds again arrive aear tho door of the den # aud just as jou are anticipating success, three of them fly clean over your heads. " Really we mußt cut those birds' wings," exclaims your-better hal'. You think of the proverb of " first catching your hare," and you catch a crick in your nock in following theibirds \in their eccentric flight. "I do wish. .Norman you would not meddle with the fowls, really they become almost unmanageable after sitting time." The situation now becomes desperate, when your man, having just been to the Spa for some water, appears. Said he "It is the easiest thing in the world to get them in, that is if you know how, when, and where to do it. I kept seveuty-five of them once, rnd never had any bother. I never run after them now ;" whereupon he put bis hand in his pocket and soon miyht be seen a long train of figures written in golden cram and sown so deft'y that most of the birds begin examining them. You notice thnt some of them make a great noise as if they were trying to discourage the >.thers from attempting the digestion of such grain. However, you ob.-erve those noisy ones really goublu up more than the rest, "i always get myself provided with a proper amoimt of this" said he. ''Oats are all very well in their way, but you see how they do like a change. Everything you see delighteth therein. I mind the time when I thought it far bettor to let tho birdn ran in two separate lots : one lot—the layers and sitters •• in the rose garden, while tho3e for killing to be ke- 1 in the fruit garden. But however well this might have answered once —that is before I got that road made through the garden—l should have very »iave duubts of its desirability now. Yon seo tho times have changed, and 1 changed too, to keep abrea-.t of them, " And" continued he," there is noi. the necessity for cutting 'those'bird's ntfw

that we are just eom detlup those wires. You wonder how he hesrd tiae threat of 83 d'.ing, when it suddenly occur.!! to you that yon have only two hours left to finish writing your name and address to a despatch that must go by to-day's mail. Rowever, it is with an indescribable sense of relief you feel that though you have not seen them all iu their den yet, still if anything goes wrong now it will not bo your fault. You wipe your brow and hu*ry away, vowing that you will nevermore, during the full term of your natural life, meddle with fowls again.