er
before, and did not know what to do. But Mother Mit-chee took a drop of
clear, cold water in her bill, and raised her head before she swallowed
it. Each chick copied her motion exactly. It was fun for the little boy
to watch them. Nearly the whole dozen would clip their little bills into
the water at once, and raise their heads to swallow it, as they had seen
their mother do.

"Mother Mit-chee," said the little boy, after they had all finished
drinking, "what makes you raise your head before you swallow the water?"

"Oh," said Mother Mit-chee, "that is our way of giving thanks to the
Master of Life for the cool, sweet water. Our family learned to do it a
long time ago, and we have always done it since."

"That sounds as if there might be a story about it," said the little
boy, who was always on the watch for stories.

"Well," said Mother Mit-chee, "there is a story about it."

XXI. WHY THE FEATHERED FOLK RAISE THEIR HEADS WHEN THEY DRINK

"A long time ago," she went on, "there came a summer when no rain fell
for many weeks. As you know, all the feathered folk can get along pretty
well if there are only dew-drops to drink. But after a time there was no
dew, and even the grass withered and died.

"All the feathered tribes suffered terribly from thirst. At last they
gathered together in a great council, and asked the Master of Life to
take pity on them in their sad state. He heard their prayer, and sent
the angel who cares for the wild folk to speak to them.

"'The Master of Life,' said he, 'has seen your sufferings and heard your
prayers. He is merciful and kind, and has given orders to the Angel of
the Rain Clouds to supply your needs. Look!' said he, pointing to the
west. All the feathered folk looked, and behold, in the distance, the
dark Rain Clouds were already flying toward them, driven by the breath
of the Angel of the Winds.

"Soon the rain began to fall, the grass, the flowers, and the trees
revived, the springs were filled, and the sweet murmur of running water
was again heard in the brooks and rivers. The wild folk drank and were
refreshed.

"Before the Angel of the Wild Folk departed, he said, 'From this time on
forever when you drink, you must raise your head as a token of
thankfulness to the Master of Life who has sent you the refreshing
rain.'

"If you watch them, you will notice that all the feathered folk show
their gratitude to the Master of Life in the same way."

XXII. L