But His Especial Wrath Was Reserved For The Fowl-Roosts Over His Sleeping
Quarters.
"What's 'er matter!
Fowl sit down close up kitchen!" he
growled in furious gutturals, whenever his eyes rested on them; and as
soon as time permitted he mounted to the roof and, boiling over with
righteous indignation, hurled the offending roosts into space.
New roosts were then nailed to the branches of a spreading coolibar tree,
a hundred yards or so to the north of the buildings, the trunk encircled
with zinc to prevent snakes or wild cats from climbing into the roosts; a
movable ladder staircase made, to be used by the fowls at bedtime, and
removed as soon as they were settled for the night, lest the cats or
snakes should make unlawful use of it (Cheon always foresaw every
contingency); and finally, "boys" and lubras were marshalled to wean the
fowls from their old love.
But the weaning took time, and proved most entertaining; and while the
fowls were being taught by bitter experience to bend to Cheon's will, the
homestead pealed with shoutings and laughter.
Every evening the fun commenced about sundown, and the entire community
assembled to watch it; for it was worth watching - fowls dodged, and
scurried, and squawked, as the staff and the rejected, under Cheon's
directions, chivied and danced and screamed between them and their
desire, the lubras cheering to the echo every time one of the birds gave
in, and stalked, cackling and indignant, up the ladder into the branches
of the coolibar; or pursuing runaways that had outwitted them, in
shrieking, pell-mell disorder, while Cheon, fat and perspiring, either
shouted orders and cheered lustily, bounded wrathfully alter both
runaways and lubras, or collapsed, doubled up with uncontrollable
laughter, at the squawk of amazement from fowls which, having gained
their old haunt, had found Jimmy there waiting to receive them.
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