ng.

"Yes indeed," said the Rook solemnly "'the stork in the heavens knoweth
her appointed time, and the turtle, and the crane, and the swallow
observe the time of their coming.'"

This conversation, and all his other talks and small adventures, were
faithfully reported to the home-tied wife. His voice beguiled the many
weary hours during which she patiently sat on her nest.

It was thus that matters went on until towards the end of the thirteenth
day, when certain mysterious sounds were heard to proceed from the nest,
faint peckings, which would cease and then begin again. One day, while
his wife was taking her mid-day meal, the Blackbird hopped close to the
nest, and put his head over the side, and as he watched and listened, lo
and behold, through a slight crack in the blue shell of one of the eggs
peeped a very tiny beak!

It was very marvellous! This beak moved backwards and forwards, and in
and out, and gradually, the crack becoming larger, a small featherless
head emerged. Yes, so it was; and before sunset the following day five
callow little birds lay huddled together in the nest, and although they
were his own sons and daughters, it must be confessed that the Blackbird
could not help thinking them remarkably ugly. They had very few feathers
on their poor naked little bodies, their heads appeared to be of an
enormous and disproportionate size,--and then, their mouths!

As they squatted in the nest with their five mouths opened to their
widest, displaying five red throats, the Blackbird thought that never
before in all his long life had he seen anything so frightful. How such
enormous creatures had ever come out of those five pretty little eggs he
could not imagine. However, he had no time for reflection, for what on
earth did those eager little monsters mean by gaping at him like that?

At last it occurred to him that they might be hungry, and thereupon he
and his wife set off to pick up small worms and insects for them. The
Blackbird fancied that being so very young they would require delicate
feeding, but this proved to be an entire mistake. Never before had he
thought it possible that such small bodies could dispose of so much
food. From morning to night, and almost from night to morning, he and
his poor wife were to be seen flying backwards and forwards conveying
provisions to the nest.

However, none of the brood ever seemed to be satisfied. Five mouths
always opened wide when the Blackbird returned,