"Yes, Rosy, out of just such shells as our eggs had this morning; and if in the summer we had given this good hen five or six of her own eggs in this little house of hers, she would have sat upon them, and spread her wings over them to keep them warm; and there she would have staid so patiently all day long, and day after day, until the dear little chickens were ready to come too." "And wouldn't the hen get tired?" said Rosy. "I shouldn't like to stay still so long." "No, I don't think you would," said her mamma, chucking her little girl under the chin; "but then, you see, you are like the little chickens, and not like the mamma hen. I think you will find that she has not got tired even yet, for if you peep down again you will see that she is keeping two of the little chickens warm under her even now. Little chickens are like little babies, and they very soon get cold, so they like keeping very close to their mammas." "Are the little chickens naughty sometimes?" asked Rosy. [Illustration: "If you stoop down you will see that she is keeping two of the little chickens warm under her."] "Well, I don't know, Rosy; but I know that I have often thought it very pretty to see how they will all run to their mother when the great hen clucks for them." "O, mamma, I should _so_ like to hear her cluck," cried Rosy, clapping her hands. "Well, Rosy, you go a little way off, and keep quite quiet; and then I will see if I can tempt the good lady out of her nest with some of this nice seed." So Rosy ran away, and her mamma stepped back a few paces and threw down some of the seed. The hen saw it directly, and looked for an instant as if she would like some very much; and she did not wait long, but soon stepped out of her house, and began picking up the seed. Just at that moment a cat came creeping along the outside of the paling, and watching to see if she could pounce on one of the little chickens. The hen saw the cat, and began to stretch out her neck very fiercely, as if she meant to fly at its eyes, and then began to cluck for her little ones, which all came running to her as fast as their legs would carry them. Rosy's little eyes sparkled with pleasure, and she went up and put her hand into her mamma's, and said softly,-- "Wasn't it nice?" "Yes, Rosy," said her mamma, "and I hope that my little chicken will always run to my side as quickly as these did to their mother. You see she knew that they were in danger when they didn't themselves; and so do I sometimes when my Rosy thinks she is quite safe." [Illustration] * * * * * Transcriber's Notes: Obvious punctuation errors repaired. Page 7, "the" changed to "she" (so that she)