Polly Was The Heroine Of The Fire

: Daddy's Bedtime Bird Stories

Jack and Evelyn had been to see a friend of theirs who owned a parrot.

The parrot, whose name, of course, was Polly, had completely fascinated

them. She could dance when a tune was whistled, she took sugar from her

mistress's mouth, and she could talk. She could say: "Pretty Polly,"

"Polly, want a cracker?" "Polly hungry," "Polly, want a bite?"



So when daddy came home that evening, of course Jack and Evelyn told

him all about the parrot, and later he told them a story about another

parrot.



"In a small town," said daddy, "a little girl named Alice owned a pet

parrot who was very clever. This parrot could talk a great deal and say

ever so much more than just 'Polly, want a cracker?' This Polly could

whistle, too, most beautifully, and could do a great, great many

wonderful tricks. Of course, as you can imagine, Alice was very proud of

her parrot, and Polly was devoted to Alice.



"One night when every one in the town was fast asleep a fire broke out

in a deserted barn, and, as there was a high wind, it began to spread.

The house nearest the fire was the one in which Alice lived, and Polly

Parrot was the first to smell the smoke. She shrieked at the top of her

lungs, 'Fire, fire!' and the whole household came rushing downstairs and

found the library, where Polly was, full of smoke.



"They put on coats and, grabbing Polly's cage, rushed out of the house

as quickly as they could, for the flames were beginning to break through

on all sides. Alice's daddy rushed off to ring the fire bell, while

Alice, carrying her Polly Parrot, and her mother followed along. Soon

every one in the town was up and out in the street. The firemen managed

to keep the fire from spreading, and they saved all the valuable things

in Alice's home.



"As everyone stood around watching the firemen throwing the water on the

fire Polly kept calling out: 'It's pretty hot! It's pretty hot! I tell

you it's pretty hot!' That amused everyone, so that it kept up their

spirits during the awful fire.



"At last, however, the firemen succeeded in putting the fire out, and

one of the neighbors invited Alice and her mother and daddy to stay at

her house, and, of course, Polly Parrot went along too.



"Polly was now not only considered a very clever bird, but a real

heroine, for she had awakened Alice and her family and saved their lives

and also the lives of many others, for with such a wind many houses

would have gone had not the firemen been called out just when they were.



"Instead of being vain about it, Polly Parrot acted as though her one

pride was that Alice was more devoted to her than ever."