Little Half-Chick |
| Written by fairystory.org | |||
Mother Hen was very proud of her family of chicks. What pretty little chicks they were! They were yellow and round and fluffy. What clever little chicks they were! Already they were learning to scratch for worms. What good little chicks they were! They always ran as fast as they could when Mother Hen called "Chick, chick." All but one. One little chick was different from all the rest He was not round and fluffy. He wouldn't try to scratch for himself like the rest. He was a lazy little chick. He would not come when Mother Hen called, "Chick chick." He was a naughty little chick. One day when he was specially naughty, Mother Hen noticed that this little chick had only one eye, only one wing and only one leg. "You are only a little half chick," she clucked, "and that is why you behave so badly. I am sure you were a whole chick when you came out of the shell. And you must learn to be a whole chick again." But little Half-Chick went on behaving just as badly as ever. One fine day he came hopping up to his mother on his one little leg, peggity peg, peggity peg. "I will not stay in this farmyard any longer," he peeped. "I am going out into the world to see the king." "Oh, no, my dear," clucked Mother Hen, "the king will not look at a little half chick like you." But little Half-Chick would not listen. Off he hopped on his one little leg, peggity peg, peggity peg. Very soon he came to a little brook. The little brook was very sad. "Oh, Little Half-Chick," it cried out. "I am all choked with weeds. I cannot run through them. Won't you pull them away. Then I can flow along happily. Please, Little Half-Chick, help me!" But little Half-Chick shook his little half head. "Oh, no, little Brook," he peeped, "I cannot bother with you. I am on the way to see the king." And off he hopped on his one little leg, peggity peg, peggity peg. By and by the little half chick came to a fire. It was only a little fire with but a few bright sparks. The little fire cried out to little Half-Chick, "Oh, Little Half-Chick, will you help me? I shall go out altogether if I do not have some more sticks. Won't you gather some for me and then I can burn brightly?" But little Half-Chick shook his little half head. "Oh no, little Fire," he peeped. "I cannot bother with you. I have no time to gather sticks. I am going to see the king and off he hopped on his one little leg, peggity peg, peggity peg. By and by the little half chick came to a clump of bushes. A voice came from the bushes. It said, "I am the Wind and I am caught in these branches. I want to get out and blow. Won't you separate the branches and let me out? Please help me, Little Half-Chick!" But little Half-Chick shook his little half head. "I cannot bother with you," he peeped. "I have no time to separate branches and let you out. I am going to see the king." And off he hopped on his one little leg, peggity peg, peggity peg. At last when he had gone a long way little Half-Chick saw the palace of the king. Through the gate he went on his one little leg, peggity peg, peggity peg. It was the back gate of the palace so little Half-Chick had to pass by the kitchen. It happened that the cook was looking out of the window and saw little Half-Chick. "Ah," said the cook. "I need a little chicken for the king's dinner and there it is." Out into the yard he ran and caught little Half-Chick in his hand. Back he ran to the kitchen and before little Half-Chick had a chance to peep, the cook had popped him into the kettle along with a handful of onions, celery and carrots. Little Half-Chick felt the water creeping over him. "Oh, Water," he peeped, "do not cover me. I cannot breathe." But the water bubbled. "When I asked you to clear away the weeds that choked me you would not. You would not help me, Little Half-Chick, when I was in trouble and now I will not help you." Now the water was getting very warm for the fire was burning brightly. "Oh, Fire, Fire," peeped little Half-Chick. "Do not burn so brightly. The water is getting too hot." But the Fire crackled, "You would not gather sticks for me when I was going out. You would not help me when I was in trouble and now I will not help you." And the fire burned brightly and the water in the kettle grew hotter and hotter. The cook came along and lifted the cover to see how the soup was cooking. Little Half-Chick called out to the Wind that he heard whistling around the palace. "Oh Wind, please help me out of this kettle." But the whistled “no Little Half-Chick, when I asked you to let me out of the bushes you would not help me, and now I will not help you." But the wind did blow little Half-Chick out of the kettle and carried him up in the sky. Up, up, up he blew him over the house-tops, up, up, up to the very top of the church steeple. "Only a half chick behaves the way you do," whistled the Wind, "so you must stay here until you learn to be a whole chick. And every time I come this way, you must turn just as I blow you."  The Wind set little Half-Chick down on the tip-top of the steeple. And little Half-Chick has to stay there and turn and turn just as the Wind blows him. For little Half-Chick is a weather-cock. And he turns this way and that way so the people of the village know which way the wind is blowing.
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