A Day with the Sea Urchins. 71

 

would want to put a sleepy old head on his shoulders
instead, I suppose. No, no, boys will be boys, and
every dog must have his day, and so must boys and
ducks also.”

“Rude boy—cut off—my head—tickled it—when
you come to’my age,” murmured Mrs. Puffin, and then’
she was fast asleep again, and snoring loudly.

“The old lady can’t last long at this rate,” remarked
a young Drake, who was studying medicine under Dame
Nature. “That snore sounds very apoplectic, and no
wonder, eating so many sprats, and sleeping all day in
the sun like that.”

And he was right, for an hour or two later the poor
old Puffin fell off her perch into the sea with a heavy
splash, and when she was picked up she was found to
be quite dead.

The Urchins employed themselves, for some time
after the departure of the Queen, in restoring the
banqueting hall to its usual order, and putting away
the remains of the feast. By this time Topaz was
better, and she came to assist them, looking very much
ashamed of herself, but they all good-naturedly pre-
tended not to have noticed her misfortune, for they
knew, from their own experience, no doubt, that she
had already been sufficiently punished for her fault.

The stranger Urchins had all departed in detach-
ments, so that now only the original six were left. I