"'She's going to pull out our feathers with which to stuff pillows and
beds for Mr. Man to sleep on,' Mr. Gander said.

[Illustration: Mrs. Wild Goose Goes Away in a Hurry.]

"Dear me, dear me, I never will put up with such treatment as that! I
only came here for a change of air and food, and couldn't think of
parting with my feathers!'

"Then, without stopping to thank us for the pleasant visit, off she flew
to find another place where she could make a glutton of herself without
having to pay or work. Some birds seem to think, as did Mrs. Pea-Hen,
that they have nothing to do in this world but enjoy themselves; but
I've lived long enough to know that we must do our full share of the
work, if we want to take part in the play."

"What did Mrs. Pea-Hen believe," your Aunt Amy asked, and Mrs. Gray
Goose replied:




WHEN MRS. PEA-HEN ABANDONED THE ORPHANS.


"She always has looked, and always will look first after her own comfort
or pleasure, no matter how much others may suffer. Any other bird on
this farm would have been so ashamed, after doing what Mrs. Pea-Hen has,
that she'd never hold up her head again, and what I'm going to tell you
isn't the first selfish thing she has done.