Part 3 (1/2)

He ot a drink, and then the cups were filled again And all the while Dolly stood as quiet as possible--looking benignly round, as if she would be happy to supply milk to the whole parish, if the Brownie desired it

”Soh, Dolly! Thank you, Dolly!” said he, again,And while he spoke, the real voice was heard behind the hedge There was a sound as of a great wasp flying ahich eness was cos, but there was no need, they had all turned into buttercups again

Gardener jumped over the stile, as cross as two sticks, with an old rope in his hand

”Oh, what a bother I've had! Breakfast ready, and noover those lost ducklings Stand back, you children, and don't hinder et Hillo, Dolly? Quiet old girl!”

Quiet enough she was this tiht as well havedrop resounded against the empty pail; for, when they peeped in, the children saw, to their amazeot a drink, and then the cups were filled again--Page 32]

”The creature's bewitched!” cried the Gardener, in a great fury ”Or else somebody has milked her dry already Have you done it? or you?” he asked each of the children

They ht have said No--which was the literal truth--but then it would not have been the whole truth, for they knew quite well that Dolly had been milked, and also who had done it And their ht them that tohim one Yet still they did not like to betray the kind little Brownie Greatly puzzled, they hung their heads and said nothing

”Look in your pail again,” cried a voice from the other side of Dolly

And there at the bottom was just the usual quantity of milk--no more and no less

The Gardener was very much astonished ”It htened tone; and, taking off his hat, ”Thank you, sir,” said he to Mr nobody--at which the children all burst out laughing But they kept their own counsel, and he was afraid to ask theht wore off a little ”I only hope the ood milk, and will poison nobody,” said he, sulkily ”However, that's not my affair You children had better tell your mother all about it I left her in the fars”

Perhaps Brownie heard this, and was sorry, for he liked the children's mother, who had always been kind to him Besides, he never did any body har a Brownie, he could hardly be said to have a conscience, he had so to see people happy rather thancoal for the day, when, after breakfast, the children and their mother came out to look at a new brood of chickens, he crept after them and hid behind the hencoop where the oldones round her

There had been great difficulty in getting her in there, for she was a hen who hatched her brood on independent principles Instead of sitting upon the nice nest that the Gardener one into a little wood close by and made a nest for herself, which nobody could ever find; and where she hatched in secret, coain, till at last she re-appeared in triu after her The first brood there had been twelve, but of this there were fourteen--all fros, of course, and she was uncommonly proud of them So was the Gardener, so was the s Such a picture as they were! fourteen soft, yellow, fluffy things, running about after their mother It had been a most troublesome business to catch--first her, and then them, to put them under the coop The old hen resisted, and pecked furiously at Gardener's legs, and the chickens ran about in frantic terror, chirping wildly in answer to her clucking

At last, however, the little family was safe in shelter, and the chickens counted over, to see that none had been lost in the scuffle

How funny they were! looking so innocent and yet so wise, as chickens do--peering out at the world frogled all together under her breast, so that nothing was seen of thereat centiped

”How happy the old hen is,” said the children'scompassionately at that other forlorn old hen, who had hatched the ducklings, and kept wandering about the fars, what can have become of them? If rats had killed the; and weasels would have sucked their brains and left them They must have been stolen, or wandered away, and died of cold and hunger--hed, for she could not bear any living thing to suffer

And the children nearly cried at the thought of what s That very h a hole in the hencoop,the old htest shadow of an eneuinea-fowl suddenly ran across the far in its usual harsh voice But it was not the usual sort of guinea-fowl, being larger and handsomer than any of theirs

”Oh, what a beauty of a creature! how did it ever cohted children; and started off after it, to catch it if possible

But they ran, and they ran--through the gate and out into the lane; and the guinea-fowl still ran on before theht of it, and i on the top of a big thistle--so big that he must have had to clis were crossed, and his arly on one side, and he was laughing heartily

”How do you do? Here I ao to bed after all Shall I help you to find the ducklings? Very well! co beside theh he looked such an old s and arenerally failed, and only bruised their fingers and noses

He lured thereen path in it, which well as they knew the neighborhood, none of the children had ever seen before It led to a most beautiful pond, as clear as crystal and as blue as the sky Large trees grew round it, dipping their branches in the water, as if they were looking at thelass

And all about their roots were quantities of priirls had ever seen Down they dropped on their fat knees, squashi+ng ather thean to cry because her hands were so full that the flowers dropped through her fingers But the boys, older and ht we had cos,” said the eldest ”Mother is fretting dreadfully about her ducklings Where can they be?”

”Shut your eyes, and you'll see,” said the Brownie, at which they all laughed, but did it; and when they opened their eyes again, what should they behold but a whole fleet of ducklings sailing out from the roots of an old -tree, one after the other, looking as fat and content as possible, and swi as naturally as if they had lived on a pond--and this particularly pond, all their days