CHAPTER IV.
POLL AT THE PARTY.
"Please, mamma, tell me all you can remember about Mrs. G.'s parrot,"cried Minnie, a few days later. "Was she as wonderful as our Poll? andwas she as handsome?"
Mrs. Lee smiled. "If I should answer all your questions," she saidpresently, "I should have work for the rest of the day. My friend'sparrot was green, with a brilliant red neck and tail. She was a greattalker, and seemed to understand the meaning of much of what was said inher presence. I can recollect now two or three incidents which are wellworth repeating.
"Polly was very fond of children, and enjoyed being let out of her cageto play with them as much as our Poll does. One day, when Mrs. G. hadcompany, they were all startled by hearing loud and repeated screams ofdistress. Recognizing the voice of her favorite bird, my friend ranhastily into the yard, expecting to see Polly in some dreadful trouble.To her surprise, there was the bird perched safely on the clothes line;but going a few steps farther, she saw her youngest child, a darlinggirl between two and three years old, just balancing over the edge of ahogshead of water, and entirely unable to recover herself, or to utterone sound. Situated as she was, the poor child could not have remainedlong in that position, and, but for the alarm given by the watchfulbird, must have fallen into the water and drowned."
"O, wasn't that a good bird, mamma? I'm sure they all must have lovedher better than ever. Will you please tell the rest?"
"Mr. G. was for a long time ill, and was unable to rest well at night.Polly, who always remained in their chamber at night, was in the habitof rising early, and practising all her accomplishments by herself assoon as she could see. She would begin, 'Mr. G.,' and then go on, 'Mydear,' the name he always called his wife, 'Francis, Maria,' until shehad repeated the name of every member of the family; after which shechattered away a strange mixture of sense and nonsense until called tobreakfast. After the gentleman was so ill, his best hours for rest weresoon after dawn, and my friend would whisper, 'Still, Polly! keepstill!'
"This caution the parrot tried to enforce on herself by softly repeatingthe words away down her throat--'Keep still; Polly! keep still!' andever after until Mr. G.'s death, whenever she saw her mistress point tothe bed, and put her finger on her lip, she began to whisper, 'Keepstill, Polly! Keep still!'
"At Mr. G.'s funeral, the clergyman, who was an Episcopalian, read withgreat solemnity the funeral service.
"The strangeness of the scene, the great concourse of people, and thesound of weeping, so interested Polly that she did not utter a word;but no sooner had the family returned from the grave than she began toutter sounds in sentences so nearly like what she had heard at thefuneral, that it was recognized at once as the service for the dead.
"I forgot to tell you that, having been in the habit of hearing thechildren when they repeated the Lord's prayer, she had long ago learnedit, and never went to sleep on her perch without uttering the wordswith apparent solemnity.
"After the funeral, whenever a number of persons were assembled andbegan to talk in a mournful tone, Polly always seemed to think this aproper occasion to repeat her funeral service, often occupying an hourin the recital. There were no distinct words; but the sentences were sosimilar in length, and the tone so exactly that of the clergyman, thatmany persons recognized it without being told who the parrot wished toimitate."
"I think Polly is the very best parrot I ever knew," exclaimed Minnie."I wish Mrs. G. would bring her here. I wonder what Poll would say toher."
"Mrs. G.'s bird is dead, my dear; and a sad death it was too. I willtell you about it. After her husband's decease, my friend had a littleBlenheim spaniel presented her--a beautiful creature, with long whitehair like satin, and salmon ears. She was naturally fond of pets, andsoon became greatly attached to the dog, who returned her affection withall his heart. As soon as she entered the room, he ran joyfully to meether, licking her hands, and showing his pleasure in every possible way.
"For some days she noticed that the bird seemed dull, and talked verylittle; yet she did not connect it with the fact of her attention to thedog. But at last as Polly refused to eat, and seemed uneasy when thespaniel was present, she was convinced that the bird was jealous. Everymeans was tried to reconcile the old friend to the new one, but in vain.Polly knew that children must of course be loved and cared for. Sheherself loved the children of her mistress; but she could not endurethat any other favorite should divide the affection she had so longenjoyed. From this time she drooped; and upon consulting a physician, hesaid she had every symptom of consumption. Her feet swelled, and at lastshe died on my friend's breast, seeming 'happy in being allowed to diein the arms of one she so dearly loved.'"
A few weeks later, Mrs. Lee invited a small party of friends to take teaat her house. They were all seated in the parlor, and Poll, who was outof her cage, perched on the back of a chair in the next room, andlistened with the greatest curiosity to the hum of so many voices.
Presently one of the ladies related a precious bit of scandal thenrunning through the town. She had scarcely finished her narration, whena shrill exclamation,--
"Possible!" in a tone of incredulity, came through the open doors.
The relator blushed deeply, but went on to prove that her statement mustbe true, while Mrs. Lee was so much amused, she was obliged to make agreat effort to keep from laughing.
Again, as soon as the lady ceased, the exclamation,--
"Possible!" was repeated, as if in greater doubt.
This was too much of an insult, and the lady's face kindled with anger.
Mrs. Lee quietly arose, saying, "Poll must come in and make her ownapology for her rudeness;" and soon returned with the parrot clinging toher finger.
"Poll has a bad habit of interrupting conversation," she said,playfully, "especially when she wishes to be invited to join thecompany, as at present."
"Could that sound come from a bird?" inquired the lady; "I certainlythought it was a human voice."
Many of the company tried to make Poll talk, but she declined for thepresent. After a while, however, when some witty remark was made whichcaused a general laugh, Poll laughed too, both loud and long, and then,as if perfectly exhausted with so much emotion, exclaimed,--
"Oh, dear! Oh, dear me!"
Two or three of the company had been invited to bring their children,and just at this time Minnie returned with her young friends, havingintroduced them to Jacko and her other pets.
The little girls gathered eagerly around Mrs. Lee, begging her to makePoll talk to them.
"Perhaps you would like to play a game of hide-and-seek with her," criedMinnie; "she plays that real nice."
"Yes, oh, yes indeed!" was the united response.
"Come, Poll," called Minnie, extending her finger.
The parrot went at first with seeming reluctance, but presently enteredinto the spirit of the play, running after the children around thetables and chairs, laughing as merrily as any of them, and every oncein a while repeating that curious "Oh, dear! Oh, dear me!" as if quiteworn out.
Minnie then called the little girls into the next room, shutting thedoor behind them, when Poll, putting her head down close to the crack,seemed trying to listen to what they said. She well understood the game,however, for she presently called, "Whoop," and then hid behind thedoor, to catch them when they came along, crying out, as she did so,"Ah, you little rogue!"
After this, she laughed so heartily that none could help joiningher,--certainly the ladies could not; but all agreed she knew altogethertoo much for a bird, and was the most wonderful parrot they had everseen.