_"What a rude old bird," said Laurie._]

"I'm afraid you have hurt his feelings," said Aunt Laura, "you see he is
not used to little boys calling him names"--"Well, I'll not do it any
more, I'm sure I didn't know he minded," replied Laurie, "but still," he
continued, "it's not as if he really understood, he couldn't unless he
were a fairy--but turkeys, and cows and pigeons on farms are not
fairies, are they, Aunt Laura?" "I can't tell you that, Laurie," said
Aunt Laura, "for I've never seen any fairies--some animals are more
sensible than others, and some like to be petted, and are fond of being
with people--if that is what you mean." "No, that is not what I mean
altogether, it's only part of what I mean," he answered; "if the
turkey-gobbler wasn't a fairy, it ought not to make any difference to
him, my calling him rude or not, for he couldn't understand, but he
looked at me in such a funny way, with his head on one side, that he
must have known what I was saying."

[Illustration: Laurie taking off his shoes and stockings]

CHAPTER III.

"I couldn't be a bit lonely here, Aunt Laura," he said, as he was
sitting on the floor that night beside his bed, struggling to take off
his shoes and stockings all by himself, "you see even when you and Uncle
Sam are too busy for me to 'sturb you, I can just go out and play with
the chickens, and talk to the little calf, and 'pretend.'

"It's lots of fun 'pretending,'" he continued, "I can pretend, oh! ever
so many things--I learned to do it when I had the mumps, and had to stay
in bed. It wasn't half so bad the having to stay in bed then. I used to
pretend I was a magician sometimes, and could turn my toys into real
soldiers, and real ships, and it used to be lots of fun."

"I don't think we shall ever be too busy for you to disturb us, Laurie,"
said Aunt Laura.

"Oh, may I peep into that funny little door?" Laurie exclaimed, as he
caught sight of a tiny closet over the mantelpiece. "Where does it go
to, does it go into the chimney?" Aunt Laura laughed, "No, it does not
go into the chimney, though everybody who sees it thinks so at first."
And indeed that seemed the only place that it could open into, for it
was exactly over the fireplace, where the chimney must be. To be sure
the fireplace had been boarded up and painted white, and was never used
now; in its stead a great iron stove like a box, where corn cobs were
burned, was used in winter, for that made the room mu