ornithologist's text -book. 83 



like a fish.' These words were hardly uttered, 

 when the footman, in a loud voice, announced ' Mrs. 



!' and as the new visitor, a portly, proud 



dame, came sailing into the room, ' Mrs. !' 



exclaimed the Parrot, ' Mrs. drinks like a 



fish.' Mrs. wheeled round, with the celerity 



of a troop of heavy dragoons, furiously to confront 



her base and unknown maligner." * Mrs. !' 



cried the Parrot again, c Mrs. drinks like a 



fish.' ' Madam,' exclaimed Mrs. to the lady 



of the house, ' this is a piece of wickedness towards 

 me which must have taken you no short time to pre- 

 pare. It shews the blackness of your heart towards 

 one for whom you have long pretended a friendship ; 

 but I shall be revenged.' It was in vain that the 

 mistress of the Parrot rose and protested her inno- 

 cence ; Mrs. flounced out of the room in a 



storm of rage, much too loud to admit of the voice 

 of reason being heard. The Parrot, delighted with 

 his new caught up words, did nothing for some days 

 but shout out, at the top of his most unmusical 



voice, ? Mrs. ! Mrs. drinks like a fish. 7 



Meanwhile, Mrs. 's lawyers having once taken 



up the- scent, succeeded in ferretting out some in- 

 formation > that ultimately produced written proofs, 

 furnished by some secret enemy, that the lady's im- 

 prudence in the propagation of this scandal had 

 not been confined to the instance we have men- 

 tioned. An action at law was raised for defama- 

 tion. The Parrot was arrested and carried into 

 court, to give oral testimony of the malignity of the 

 plot which was supposed to have been laid against 



Mrs. 's good fame ; and he was by no means 



niggardly of his testimony, for, to the great amuse- 

 ment of the bench, the bar, and all present, he was 

 no sooner produced, than he began, and continued 



loudly to vociferate, c Mrs. ! Mrs. drinks 



like a fish 1' till judges and jury were alike satisfied 



