"That I will," said Mr. Spinner; and away they went to find the cotton
balls, Thrush first and Spinner following.

In a very few days the Spinner had spun all the cotton into the finest
thread. Then he took a pair of scales, and weighed it into two equal
parts (he was an honest man, too): half he kept for himself, and the
other half he gave to the Thrush.

The next thing this clever Thrush did was to fly to the house of a
Weaver. The Weaver used to buy thread, and fasten a number of threads to
a wooden frame, called a loom, which was made of two upright posts,
with another bar fastened across the top. The threads were hung to the
cross-bar, and a little stone was tied to the bottom of each, to keep it
steady. Then the Weaver wound some more thread around a long stick
called a shuttle; and the shuttle he pushed in front of one thread and
behind the next, until it had gone right across the whole of the
threads, in and out. Then he pushed it back in the same way, and after a
bit, the upright threads and the cross-threads were woven together and
made a piece of cloth.

The Thrush flew down to the Weaver, and they made the same bargain as
before. The Weaver wove all the thread into pieces of cloth, and half he
kept for himself, but the other half he returned to the Thrush.

So now the Thrush had some beautiful cloth, and I dare say you wonder
what she wanted it for. As you have not been inquisitive, I will tell
you: she wanted clothes to dress herself. The Thrush had noticed that
men and women walking about wore clothes, and being an ambitious Thrush,
and eager to rise in the world, she felt it would not be proper to go
about without any clothes on. So she now went to a Tailor, and said to
him--

"Good Mr. Tailor, I have some pieces of very fine cloth, and I should be
much obliged if you would make a part of it into clothes for me. You
shall have one half of the cloth for your trouble."

The Tailor was very glad of this job, as times were slack. So he took
the cloth, and at once set to work. Half of it he made into a beautiful
dress for the Thrush, with a skirt and jacket, and sleeves in the latest
fashion; and as there was a little cloth left over, and he was an
honest Tailor, he made her also a pretty little hat to put on her head.

Then the Thrush was indeed delighted, and felt there was little more to
desire in the world. She put on her skirt, and her jacket with
fashionable sleeves, and the little hat, and look