bird, of course."

"`Bird,'" continued the essayist. "`It was in Nore's arck and is good
eating'--that's all I know about it. Tell us something more, Wally,
there's a good chap."

"Oh, bother. Don't go disturbing, it spoils everything."

"`The cobberer oart not to be disterbd for it spoyls everything--it
spoyls your close and--' wire in, Wally, what else does it do? You
might tell a chap."

"What I'll do to you, you cad, and that's pull your nose if you don't
shut up!" retorted Wally, who was busy over his own theme.

"`--and puis yore knows if yore a cad, and don't shut up.' There,
bother it, that ought to do--twelve lines. Good enough for him."

"Stuck in the stops?" asked Ashby.

"No; by the way--glad you reminded me--I suppose about every four words,
eh?"

"Something about that," said Ashby.

So D'Arcy sprinkled a few stops judiciously through his copy, and having
done so began to upbraid his partners for their slowness.

Some time was lost in suppressing him, but he was eventually disposed of
under the bath, which was turned upside down to accommodate him and sat
upon by the other three, who were thus able to continue their work in
peace.

Ashby was done first. He had a congenial subject and wrote _con amore_.

"I shall now say something about the pig which is my favourite annimal--
The pig is a quadruped--Sometimes he is male in which case he is called
a hog. Sometimes he is female in which case he is called a sow. Pigs
were rings in their noses and are fond of apple-peal. Their young are
called litter and are very untidy in their habbits. Pig's cheek is nice
to eat and pork in season is a treat." (The writer was very proud of
this little outbreak of poetry.)

"It is preferrablest roast with sage and apple sauce. I hope I have now
described the pig and told you why he is my favourite."

Fisher minor, on the uncongenial topic of the rabbit, found composition
difficult and punctuation impossible.

"I like rabbits next best to dogs which Wally has taken mine were black
and white one was one and the other the other the white one died first
of snuffles he had lobears the other had the same pequliarity and was
swoped for 2 white mice who eskaped the first-night owing to the size of
the bars there is a kind of rabbit called welsh rabbit that my father is
fond of he says it goes best on toast but I give mine oats and bran it
is a mistake for boys to keep rabbits because first they give them