was quite a spoiled bird by this time, and I heard Carl telling the
family afterward that it was as good as a play to see Miss Bella
strutting in with her breast stuck out, and her little, conceited air,
and hear her say, shrilly, "Good morning, birds, good morning!
How do you do, Carl? Glad to see you, boy."

"Well, I'm not glad to see you," he said decidedly, "and don't you
ever come up here again. You'd frighten my canaries to death."
And he sent her flying downstairs.

How cross she was! She came shrieking to Miss Laura. "Bella
loves birds. Bella wouldn't hurt birds. Carl's a bad boy."

Miss Laura petted and soothed her, telling her to go find Davy, and
he would play with her. Bella and the rat were great friends. It was
very funny to see them going about the house together. From the
very first she had liked him, and coaxed him into her cage, where
he soon became quite at home, so much so that he always slept
there. About nine o'clock every evening, if he was not with her, she
went all over the house, crying, "Davy! Davy! time to go to bed.
Come sleep in Bella's cage."

He was very fond of the nice sweet cakes she got to eat, but she
never could get him to eat coffee grounds food she liked best.

Miss Laura spoke to Carl about Bella, and told him he had hurt her
feelings, so he petted her a little to make up for it. Then his mother
told him that she thought he was making a mistake in keeping his
canaries so much to themselves. They had become so timid, that
when she went into the room they were uneasy till she left it. She