104 NEWS FROM THE BIRDS. 



which was her way of pronouncing Phcebe. A 

 favorite place for her cage was by the window 

 looking out upon the veranda, where she 

 could see her master as he came home for his 

 meals, and- as soon as she espied him she would 

 cry with all the joyfulness of a child, " Mas- 

 ter ! vndi^ter ! " always putting the accent on 

 the last syllable. 



One day a woman living in another part of 

 the house had several visitors. Polly's mistress 

 was not at home. The visitors were anxious 



to see the bird, and so Mrs. K opened the 



door between the t^vo apartments and stepped 

 into the room where Polly had been left. The 

 bird was sitting on top of her cage, and no 

 sooner had she seen her would-be caller than 

 she screamed with rage, clambered down from 

 her perch, and rushed toward the intruder. 



Mrs. K , in her fright, sprang upon a chair 



and held her skirts out of Polly's reach. When 

 Polly saw that she had treed, or rather chaired, 

 her caller, she broke into peal after peal of 

 laughter, as if she realized the ridiculous- 

 ness of the situation. She kept the woman 

 on the chair until she had had her fill of sport, 

 when she walked solemnly away, leaving her 

 frightened guest to step down and hurry 

 home. 



