What shall I do ? ' It was a dreadful blow to Mrs. Cluck ; and Aunt Cockletop did n't show herself for a whole day after that story was known , for every fowl in the yard twitted her with the difference between her preaching and her practice . Strut , the other son , was the vainest chick ever seen ; and the great aim of his life was to crow louder than any other cock in the neighbourhood . He was at it from morning till night , and everyone was tired to death of hearing his shrill , small voice making funny attempts to produce hoarse little crows , as he sat on the wall and stretched his yellow neck , till his throat quite ached with the effort . ` Ah ! if I could only fly to the highest beam in the barn , and give a splendid crow that everyone could hear , I should be perfectly happy , ' said this silly little fowl , as he stared up at the loft where the old cock often sat . So he tried every day to fly and crow , and at last managed to get up ; then how he did strut and rustle his feathers , while his playmates sat below and watched him . ` You 'll fall and get hurt , ' said his sister Blot . ` Hold your tongue , you ugly little thing , and do n't talk to me . I 'm going to crow , and ca n't be interrupted by any silly bit of a hen . Be quiet , down there , and hear if I ca n't do it as well as daddy . ' The chicks stopped scratching and peeping , and sat in a row to hear Strut crow . Perching himself on the beam , he tried his best , but only a droll ` cock-a-doodle-doo ' came of it , and all the chicks laughed . That made Strut mad , and he resolved to crow , even if he killed himself doing it . He gave an angry cluck , flapped his wings , and tried again . Alas , alas , for poor Strut ! he leaned so far forward in his frantic effort to get a big crow out , that he toppled over and fell bump on the hard barn-floor , killing himself instantly . For some time after this , Mrs. Cluck kept her three remaining little ones close to her side , watching over them with maternal care , till they were heartily tired of her anxious cluckings . Peep and Peck were always together , being very fond of one another . Peep was a most inquisitive chicken , poking her head into every nook and corner , and never satisfied till she had seen all there was to see .
XXXXX was a glutton , eating everything she could find , and often making herself ill by gobbling too fast , and forgetting to eat a little gravel to help digest her food .
Blot Cockletop Peck barn-floor cluckings cock-a-doodle-doo day fall night nook