“See here,” called the hen, From the near garden patch, “If you want any breakfast Just come here and scratch!” [Illustration: Chickens] Our Chickens We have a mother hen and many little chickens. We keep the chickens in a barn. When the chickens were very young they looked like fluffy balls. Every day they go out in the yard. The mother hen takes care of them. We lost some of our chickens. Some were weak and died. The rats killed some of the chickens. The mother hen stepped on one. A board fell on one chicken and killed it. But we still have many baby chickens. Mother and I feed the chickens. When the chickens were smaller, we gave them milk and oatmeal. Now we feed them corn. We throw the corn on the ground. When the chickens see us, they come running to the place where we are standing. They are always glad to get something to eat. At night the little chicks cuddle under the mother hen’s wings. The Clucking Hen The clucking hen sat on her nest— The nest was in the hay, And warm and snug beneath her breast A dozen white eggs lay. My Pet Hen I have a pet hen. She seems to like to follow me around the yard. When she gets into the chicken coop, she jumps up on the nest in a wooden box. She lays eggs for us. We eat some of the eggs, and sell some of them. This spring my pet hen had some baby chickens. She took very good care of them. Once when I was feeding my little hen, she jumped upon my arm. I was frightened. I screamed. I ran away as quickly as I could. But now I am not afraid. I still feed my pet hen every day. Cock-A-Doodle-Doo A little boy got out of bed— ’Twas only six o’clock— And out the window poked his head And spied a crowing cock. The little boy said, “Mr. Bird, Pray tell me, who are you?” And all the answer that he heard Was, “Cock-a-doodle-doo!” Grandmother’s Chickens My grandmother has some chickens. One chicken looks so funny! That is because he has not many feathers. Grandfather helps grandmother take care of her chickens. Every day my grandfather goes out to hunt for eggs. Sometimes he finds eight eggs. He finds them in the chicken house. When grandfather goes into the hen house, the hens become frightened. [Illustration: Farmer standing next to fence] They flap their wings, and fly to the other end of the house. My grandfather has a little pan that grandmother gave him. He puts water into this pan. The chickens drink the water. Every day grandfather goes to the corn-crib to get corn. He feeds the corn to the chickens. My little cousin likes to play with grandmother’s chickens. He tries to catch them. When he touches them, the chickens say “Cut-cut, cut-a-cut!” A Queer Hen