will choose her the next time they want 

 one of my household, I really do." 



"Oh, yes," sneered Jane, "you'll run 

 away and squawk as you always do, and 

 leave me to my fate." 



"Run away," screamed Mr. Rooster 

 making a dash for her, "I run away!" 



"Fie, fie," I exclaimed, "you musn't 

 show your valor by striking one of the 

 weaker sex. You were intended to be 

 her protector, you know." 



I was here interrupted by a great 

 commotion among the hens and chicks 

 at the farther end of the enclosure. 



"Only a quarrel, I presume," said he 

 indifferently, "they can settle it among 

 themselves, to-day." 



"No, it seems to be something rather 

 serious," I responded, and as I spoke a 

 large cat succeeded in squeezing her 

 self through the palings. Wildly ran 

 the fowls about, cackling with fear. 



"Hubby, hubby!" cried the hens. 



"Papa, papa!" screamed the chicks. 



"Run for your lives," admonished 

 that hero, his knees knocking together, 

 his comb and tail drooping, "run for 

 your lives," and suiting the action to 

 the worci, away he scurried to the other 

 side, and spreading his wings over the 

 fence he flew, in his blind flight drop 

 ping at the feet of his hostile neighbor. 



"Get out of here," screamed the 

 young Shanghai, whom the handsome 

 hen admired, "How dare you come 

 over in my yard?" 



"Give me time," meekly said my 

 heroic Rooster, "give me time to gain 

 my breath and I will." 



"Now is my time," thought the young 

 Shanghai, "the very chance I have been 

 looking for," and straightway into the 

 trembling Mr. Rooster he pitched. 



From my standpoint I closely viewed 

 the battle. 



"Lo, the conquered braggart comes," 

 I hummed, as a woebegone-looking ob 

 ject in a very little while dropped 

 wearily over into our enclosure again. 



"My poor dear," pityingly cried old 

 Jennie. "Come, Sukey, let's lead him 

 to the trough and bathe his wounded 

 head." 



I was about to depart, my heart 



wrung with compassion at the sight of 

 his wounds, when, lifting his drooping 

 head, with a ghastly wink of his unin 

 jured eye, he said: 



"Well!" 



"Well!" I echoed in some surprise. 



"Didn't I play that trick cleverly?" 

 he asked with a sickly grin. 



"Trick?" 



"Yes, trick, you stupid! Couldn't 

 you see the pretense I made of running 

 away from the cat, just to get a chance 

 of flying over the fence to get at that 

 impudent Shanghai rooster?" 



"But," I gasped, "you didn't whip 

 him, you know." 



"Didn't whip him!" he mimicked 

 with brazen effrontery. "Why, how else, 

 I'd like to know, could I have been 

 torn up so? All I want now is a chance 

 at that sneaking cat, and I'll make the 

 fur fly, I warrant you." 



Here the old ' deceiver, overcome 

 with weakness and loss of blood, stag 

 gered, and would have fallen but for 

 the support of the faithful Jennie and 

 Sukey. 



"Go away," hoarsely muttered the 

 rooster, "go away; what do females 

 know about war. They can't crow! 

 Go away!" 



I bethought me here of one very im 

 portant question. 



"I hesitate," I said, "'to disturb a suf 

 fering creature, but 



"Call to-morrow, Miss Reporter," he 

 muttered wearily, "call to-morrow." 



"But," I persisted, "you may not be 

 alive to-morrow, and I only desire to 

 know why you roosters invariably crow 

 at midnight?" 



"Midnight!" he echoed faintly, catch 

 ing but the last word. "Is that the rea 

 son it has grown so dark? Ah, that 

 Shanghai over there will get ahead of 

 me; that'll never do,'' andthe dying old 

 boaster, drawing himself up stiffly, a 

 feeble "cock-a-doodle" rang out on the 

 air, but the final "doo" stuck .in his 

 throat, a gasp, a shiver, a swaying to 

 and fro, and the long, slender toes of 

 Mr. Rooster were presently turned 

 toward the sky. 



134 



