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"But what became of the fowls afterwards?" asked one of the common hens. "I never tell a hen a secret," said the cock; and he strutted off to hunt for worms. And what became of Flaps after they all left Hencastle?
"Hush!" said the cock, who was standing motionless with one leg in the air, an attitude he often assumed when any very hard thinking had to be done; "I was just trying to recollect one." After a pause, he said in a solemn voice: "I will tell you the terrible tale of the troubles of 'The Hens of Hencastle.
Paler and paler grew the grey sky, and at last it was broken with golden bars, and at the first red streak that caught fire behind them, Mark crowed louder than before, and all the hens of Hencastle roused up for good. "What do you see and hear from the tree-top, dear Mark?" they inquired. "Is Flaps coming?"
The first chance of help that arose was from a couple of cats and a kite, who seemed likely to perform the required work, but the cocks declined to accept their aid, feeling that the Hencastle had suffered too much already from two-winged and four-legged protectors.
But her good wishes were always at any one's service, and she would say that she sincerely hoped that a sad injustice had not been done to the red-haired gentleman with the singularly agreeable manners, who would have been gatekeeper of Hencastle at this moment if it had not been for Flaps. Poor Flaps! Well might he say, "One ear is enough to listen to you with, you pack of ungrateful fools!"
"'Who may you be? hissed the owl, and glared with its fiery eyes into the cleft. "'We come from Hencastle, where there are hundreds of mice, who devour our corn day and night. "'Whoo hoo! I'll come, I'll come, screamed the owl, snapping its beak with pleasure.
I swear it most solemnly, said the fox, staring up into the tree. 'But whence do you come, my worthy masters? "'We live at Hencastle, but no one knows where that is except the mice, who eat us out of house and home. "'You don't say so, said the fox from below, licking his lips. 'And are there many more such handsome, magnificent birds as you are, at Hencastle?
"A year passed away, and when winter returned again the mice came and took the stored corn away in such quantities that everybody saw none would be left to sow in the spring. "Matters had come to a crisis; many and anxious discussions were held amongst the fowls, for good counsel was a thing much sought after at Hencastle.
'That is exactly the man for us; he is neither two-winged nor four-legged, so he will be quite safe. "They flew down at once to the rat-catcher and made their proposition. He laughed softly and pleasantly to himself, and accepted their invitation without any demur, and started at once with a light step and lighter heart for Hencastle.
When the repairs were completed they called it Hencastle. "During the autumn some of the fowls ventured forth into the cornfields that lay near the haunts of men, and collected a store of grain to supply them with food during the winter.
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