"my sister had told me some weeks before that i might have the pick of her geese for a christmas present, and i knew that she was always as good as her word. i would take my goose now, and in it i would carry my stone to kilburn. there was a little shed in the yard, and behind this i drove one of the birds—a fine big one, white, with a barred tail. i caught it, and prying its bill open, i thrust the stone down its throat as far as my finger could reach. the bird gave a gulp, and i felt the stone pass along its gullet and down into its crop. but the creature flapped and struggled, and out came my sister to know what was the matter. as i turned to speak to her the brute broke loose and fluttered off among the others.