Our First Birds. 119 



could think of nothing else, so that I had some doubts 

 as to the benefits they might get from the coming sermon. 

 However, my misgivings were happily ill-founded, for 

 on questioning them afterwards on the subject, though 

 Judy confessed she could not help thinking about it 

 whilst the bells were ringing, yet, as soon as the 

 service commenced, she dismissed all thoughts of such 

 things out of her head, and was able to join the service 

 and follow the sermon throughout, as well as though 

 nothing of the kind had happened. This was as it should 

 be with us all at all times ; and I need hardly say we 

 all returned home with joyous hearts and happy feel- 

 ings, without having allowed our earthly pleasures to 

 interfere with our religious duties, or permitted our re- 

 ligious exercises to mar or cast a gloom upon our 

 domestic pleasures, which surely God never intended 

 they should do. In the afternoon, a second was said 

 to have become visible, and now I hardly know which 

 were the most pleased, the children or the parent birds. 

 Beauty and Buttercup surveyed the little strangers 

 with the fondness of a parent's eye, and evidently viewed 

 them with the most exquisite delight. The news soon 

 spread throughout the whole aviary that some young 

 birds had been born into their little world, though 

 no penny-a-liner connected with the press was there to 

 publish it abroad. However, so it was ; the secret was 

 not to be kept long from the lady birds, who, we ob- 

 served, immediately nocked round the happy pair, and 

 had a peep at the little strangers, and, perhaps, congra- 

 tulated their parents on their happy lot. Having done 

 this, each returned to their respective homes, cheered, 



