THE THREE RUNAWAYS BECOME ILL
Nobody can tell just how long it was after the Chickens ran away, butit was certainly some little time, when Older Brother began to havetrouble about breathing. "There seems to be something stuck in mythroat," said he to his mother. "I can't breathe without opening mymouth a good deal."
"There is something stuck in my throat too," said Younger Brother.
"And in mine," added Little Sister.
The Barred Plymouth Rock Hen looked very sad. "It is just as Iexpected," said she.
At that moment another brother ran up. "What's the matter with theseChickens?" he asked his mother. "They've been running around allmorning with their mouths open, and it makes them look too silly foranything. I don't want to play with them if they can't keep theirbills shut. I wish you'd tell them to stop."
"They can't stop," said the Barred Plymouth Rock Hen, sadly. "Theyhave the gapes."
"What is that?" cried all the four Chickens together, while three ofthem looked badly scared.
"That is a kind of illness," answered their mother. "I have beenexpecting it all along."
"What did you let us be sick for then?" asked Older Brother. "Whydidn't you tell us to eat more gravel or something? I don't think itis taking very good care of us to let us get sick."
"Now," said the Barred Plymouth Rock Hen, and she spoke very firmly,"you are not to speak again until you can speak properly. On the dayyou ran away you played with Chickens who had the gapes, and you wentwith them into a closed hen-yard and ate Angleworms. That is what gaveyou the gapes. There were tiny Gapeworms in the Angleworms, and youswallowed them. Now the Gapeworms are living in your throats and youcannot get them out. The Farmer had shut the poultry out of that yardbecause he knew that they would become ill if they fed in there. Nowyou are ill and I can't help you."
Older Brother looked scared. "How did she know what we did overthere?" he whispered to Younger Brother.
"I don't know," answered Younger Brother, while he watched his motherto be sure that she did not overhear. "Mothers always seem to find outwhat a Chicken is doing, anyhow."
Little Sister began to cry. "I'm afraid we are going to die," shesobbed. "I feel so very, very badly."
"Shall we die?" asked the sick brothers, and they were so scared thattheir bills chattered. Their teeth would have chattered, you know, ifthey had had teeth, but none of their family ever do have them.
"Yes," answered their mother, sadly. "You will die unless something isdone to get the Gapeworms out of your throat. I cannot help you, forthey cannot be taken out by creatures who have only wings and feet.There are times when hands would be handy. The only thing for you todo is to find the Man and keep near him until he sees that you are illand does something to cure you. I will go with you."
You can imagine how sad the whole brood felt when they heard the news.The brother who had not wanted to play with them was much ashamed ofhimself, and kept scratching up fine Worms for the sick Chickens toeat. He thought that a good way of showing how sorry he felt.
"I tell you what," said Older Brother to Younger Brother. "If I everget well again, I'll mind my mother every time, even if I just hateto!"
"So will I," said Younger Brother. "I wish we hadn't coaxed LittleSister to go along."
By this time they had reached the place where the Man was working. Itseemed a long while before he noticed that three of them were sick.When he did, he put his hat on the back of his head and wiped hisforehead with his handkerchief. His handkerchief was white. The Farmerhad always carried red ones, and the Gobbler was much pleased when hefound that the Man did not.
"I wonder what is the matter with those Chickens," said the Man. "Theymust be sick in some way. I will look it up in one of my books."
That was why, soon after this, the Man came from the house with asmall book and seated himself on the wheel-barrow to read. He wouldlook at the page for a few minutes, then put his finger on a certainpart of it and watch the sick Chickens. At last he arose and put thebook in his pocket. Then he got a box and a piece of burlap. He alsohad a pan with some white powder in it. He set these down closetogether and threw grain to the Chickens. When they came to pick it uphe caught the sick ones and put them into the box. "Oh! Oh!" theycried. "Mother! Mother! The Man has caught us! The Man has caught us!"
"Keep still! Keep still!" clucked the Barred Plymouth Rock Hen. "TheMan has to catch you before he can cure you." She spoke as though shewas not in the least frightened, but the truth is that she was verybadly scared. She could not stand still, and kept walking to and fro,clucking as fast as she could. She had never seen anybody use a boxand powder for Chickens that had the gapes. The Farmer had always madeloops of Horse-hair and put them down the Chickens' throats to catchand draw out the tiny Worms. That was bad enough, and always hurt theChickens, but she had never told them beforehand that it would hurt.You can see that she was a very brave Hen, for she made her childrenstand the hard times that would make them better, and a Hen needs tobe very brave for that.
Now the Man covered the open top of the box with burlap and began tosift the white powder through it.
"Ow!" said Older Brother, coughing as though he would never stop. "Ow!Ow! I can't breathe! I am stifling!"
"Ow!" said Younger Brother. "Ow! Ow! I can't stop coughing!"
"Ow!" said Little Sister. "Ow! Ow! Isn't this dreadful!"
The three Chicks staggered around in the box, coughing just as hard asthey could. The dust which came down through the burlap seemed to biteand sting their throats, and very soon they were coughing so hard thatthey could not speak at all. The Man was coughing too, but he did notstop for that. The Chickens who were well could not understand whatthe Man was doing to the sick ones, and it was a very sad time for thewhole family. At last the Man uncovered the box and lifted theChickens out. They could not stop coughing all at once, yet theymanaged to get over to where their mother was. Then she spread herwings and tried to cover them, as she had done when they were firsthatched. She could not do it, because they were so big; still, itcomforted them to have her try, and after a while they were able tospeak.
"Why," said Older Brother. "I must have coughed up some of theGapeworms! I can breathe with my mouth shut."
"So can I," said Younger Brother.
"So can I," said Little Sister.
"Then come down to the meadow for the rest of the day," said theirmother. "We can find good feeding there."
"We will come," answered the three, and they were hardly away fromtheir mother's side during the rest of that day. Once they got nearthe fence that separated the meadow from the road, and a couple ofChickens from the other farm called to them to come across. "Uh-uh!"they answered. "Our mother doesn't want us to."
They did not even ask their mother what she thought about theirgoing, and there was no reason why they should, for they knewperfectly well that they ought not to go. When they had walked so faraway that they were sure of not being overheard, they looked eachother in the eye and said solemnly, "You don't catch us going whereour mother thinks we should not!"