"It's a serious time in your family, sir," said Goody Kertarkut, "and
you ought to be at home supporting your wife. Send for Dr.
Peppercorn without delay."

Now as the case was a very dreadful one, Dr. Peppercorn called a
council from the barn-yard of the squire, two miles off, and a brisk
young Dr. Partlett appeared, in a fine suit of brown and gold, with
tail-feathers like meteors. A fine young fellow he was, lately from
Paris, with all the modern scientific improvements fresh in his head.

When he had listened to the whole story, he clapped his spur into the
ground, and leaning back laughed so loudly that all the cocks in the
neighbourhood crowed.

Mrs. Feathertop rose up out of her swoon, and Mr. Gray Cock was
greatly enraged.

"What do you mean, sir, by such behaviour in the house of mourning?"

"My dear sir, pardon me; but there is no occasion for mourning. My
dear madam, let me congratulate you. There is no harm done. The
simple matter is, dear madam, you have been under a hallucination all
along. The neighbourhood and my learned friend the doctor have all
made a mistake in thinking that these children of yours were hens at
all. They are ducks, ma'am, evidently ducks, and very finely-formed
ducks I daresay."

At this moment a quack was heard, and at a distance the whole tribe
were seen coming waddling home, their feathers gleaming in green and