Minnie's Pet Parrot. Leslie Madeline
sweet, coaxing tones. Puss seemed delighted, and walked innocently up to the cage, which happened to be set in a chair.
“Kitty, kitty,” repeated Poll, until she had the little creature within reach of her claws, when she suddenly caught her, and bit her ears and her tail, Fidelle crying piteously at this unexpected ill treatment, until some one came to rescue her. Then puss crept softly away to the farther end of the room, and hid under a chair, where she began to lick her wounded tail, while Poll laughed and chuckled over the joke.
CHAPTER II.
THE PARROT AND THE TRAVELLER
One morning when the whole family were in the breakfast room, Poll began to talk to herself, imitating exactly the manner of a lady who had recently visited the house with her children.
“Little darling beauty, so she is; she shall have on her pretty new bonnet, and go ridy, ridy with mamma; so she shall.”
In the midst of this, the bird stopped and began to cry like an impatient child.
“Don’t cry, sweet,” she went on, changing her voice again; “there, there, pet, don’t cry; hush up, hush up.”
This conversation she carried on in the most approved baby style, until, becoming excited by the laughter of the company, she stopped, and began to laugh too.
After this, whenever she wanted to be very cunning, she would repeat this performance, much to the amusement of all who heard her.
Poll was a very mischievous bird, and on this account was not let out of her cage, unless Minnie or some one was at liberty to watch her.
Mrs. Lee, who usually sat in the back parlor, from which place she could hear Poll talk, was sure to know if the bird was doing any great mischief, for she always began to scold herself on such occasions.
“Ah, ah!” she exclaimed, one day; “what are you about, Poll?”
Mrs. Lee rose quickly, and advanced on tiptoe to the door, where she saw the parrot picking at some buttons on the sofa, which she had often been forbidden to touch. Much amused at the sight, she listened to an imitation of her own voice, as follows: —
“Go away, I tell you, Poll! I see you! Take care!”
Finding her buttons fast disappearing, she suddenly entered, when the bird went quickly back to her perch.
In the afternoon, when her husband returned from town, she related the incident to him and to Minnie.
“That shows us,” answered the gentleman, laughing, “how careful we ought to be what we say before her; we shall be sure to hear it again.”
After tea, when Minnie and her father were in the library, they heard Poll singing a variety of tunes in her merriest tones. They stopped talking a while to listen, and then both laughed heartily to see how quickly she struck into a whistle, as Tiney walked deliberately into the room in search of her little mistress.
“What a funny bird she is!” cried Minnie; “she runs on so from one thing to another.”
“In that respect she shows a want of judgment,” replied her father; “but, by the way, I have a story for you of a curious parrot, which I will read.
“A gentleman who had been visiting a friend near the sea shore, and concluded to return by way of a ferry boat, walked to the beach to see whether there was one ready to start. As he stood looking over the water, much disappointed that there was none in sight, he was surprised to hear the loud cry of the boatman, —
“‘Over, master? Going over?’
“‘Yes, I wish to go,’ he answered, looking eagerly about.
“‘Over, master? Going over?’ was asked again in a more earnest tone; and again he repeated, —
“‘Yes, I wish to go as soon as possible.’
“The questions were repeated constantly, and yet no preparation was made for granting his request. He began to be somewhat indignant, and seeing no one near upon whom he could vent his wrath, he walked rapidly toward a public house near by. Here his anger was speedily changed to mirth, for on going near the door he saw a parrot hanging in a cage over the porch, from whom all the noise had proceeded.”
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