JLX. A Little Tragedy 



OF ALL the youngsters in the barnyard the 

 chickens are the most attractive. They 

 are fluffy little balls of down of most en- 

 gaging appearance, and I don't blame 

 Beatrice very much because she shows a longing to 

 eat them. She is allowed out for a run with "her 

 nine farrow" every day, and she has to be watched 

 carefully to keep her away from the chicken coops. 

 Yesterday she went over beside the road to pasture, 

 and the boy who was watching her thought she was 

 safe, but as soon as he took his eye off her, she made 

 off to a neighbour's barnyard, attacked a chicken 

 coop and got a couple of chickens. I haven't faced 

 the music about that yet, but Beatrice will get me 

 into trouble unless we hurry and make a proper pig 

 run, where she and her greedy little wretches can get 

 around without getting into trouble. The little pigs 

 are now beginning to eat out of the trough with 

 their mother, and sometimes she chases them off with 

 a howl of rage that hasn't a trace of maternal ten- 



834. 



