True to her Task.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVI, Issue 179, 2 August 1904, Page 4

True to her Task.

Tt would be disrepectfiil to Say i that there is anything obstinate about a sitting hen, but one must acknowledge at least that she. is firm. There is a story of a good old coun-try-doctor who found that n hen was pitting in the back of a gig, long unuseid. His ovory-day gig haid given out, and he needed the old ono to make a. round of calls; so he harnessed up and started, the hen and all. Thus he continued to do day after day, and the Hitler was faithful to her post. Only the eggs suffered inconvenience, for the janing finally addled them. Another hen was brooding over some eggs in a barrel in the H verystable where she made her homo. The stable caught fire. With tha courage of the boy on tho burning deA, she refused to leave lier post. The top of tha barrel took fire. Tt burned half-way down, and still the hen did not move. The stable was almost totally deal roved, but the firemen had the flames so far under control that a stream of water, turned upon the hen's apartment, extinguished the blazo. The smoke did not seem to disturb the hen, nor did the flood of water pouring down the inside of the barrel. When daylight came she was still In her half-burned''tenement, and in due time- she brought out a brood off eight chickens.