back-yard; but, as it had swallowed the ribbon without being able to
swallow the bonnet, it carried that with it. The boy who specially owned
the goat ran it down in a frenzy of horror and apprehension, and managed
to unravel the ribbon from its throat, and get back the bonnet. Then he
took the bonnet in and laid it carefully down on the table again, and
decided that it would be best not to say anything about the affair. But
such a thing as that could not be kept. The goat was known at once to
have done the mischief; and this time it was really sent away. All the
children mourned it, and the boy who owned it the most used to go to the
house of the people who took it, and who had a high board fence round
their yard, and try to catch sight of it through the cracks. When he
called "Nanny" it answered him instantly with a plaintive "Baa!" and
then, after a vain interchange of lamentations, he had to come away, and
console himself as he could with the pets that were left him.

Among these were a family of white rabbits, which the boys kept in a
little hutch at the bottom of the yard. They were of no more use than
the goat was, but they were at least not mischievous, and there was only
one of them that would bite, and he would not bite if you would take him
up close behind the ears, so that he could not get at you. The rest were
very good-natured, and would let you smooth them, or put them inside of
your shirt-bosom, or anything. They would eat cabbage or bread or apples
out of your hand; and it was fun to see their noses twitch. Otherwise
they had no accomplishments. All you could do with them was to trade
with other boys, or else keep the dogs from them; it was pretty exciting
to keep the dogs from them. Tip was such a good dog that he never
dreamed of touching the rabbits.

Of course these boys kept chickens. The favorite chicken in those days
was a small white bantam, and the more feathers it had down its legs the
better. My boy had a bantam hen that was perfectly white, and so tame
that she would run up to him whenever he came into the yard, and follow
him round like a dog. When she had chickens she taught them to be just
as fond of him, and the tiny little balls of yellow down tumbled
fearlessly about in his hands, and pecked the crumbs of bread between
his fingers. As they got older they ran with their mother to meet him,
and when he sat down on the grass they clambered over him and crept into
his shirt-bosom, and cro