"Don't worry," was the comforting response as Paolo nodded his wise old head; "he may not be able to shift for himself, but I am willing to wager he will manage to eat whatever you offer him. You see this particular kind of infant food only lasts a few days; after that the milk gradually thickens and becomes mixed with bits of grain. Almost before he knows it, Baby Pigeon is independent of his parents and eats quite as if fully grown."
With that the old caretaker held out a piece of cracked wheat to the fledgling who devoured it greedily and opened his beak for more.
The children laughed aloud and clapped their hands in glee, continuing to feed him until Paolo declared the bird had had a royal breakfast and carefully replaced him in the nest.
Then, with Andrea on one side and Maria holding tightly to the other hand, he led them out of the shed and into the bright sunshine.
They stopped for a moment under the window for a lingering glance upward while Paolo called their attention to the dry-goods box he had placed on end for their special convenience.
"By standing on this," he explained, "you can get on a level with the nest without being dependent on me."
All the morning the children hung around the shed, delighted when there was an occasional sound from the nest above, and from time to time they clambered up to whisper soft nothings to the sharp ears of Baby Pigeon.
At noon, when eating their luncheon, they plied the old caretaker with questions some of which, it must be confessed, taxed all his ingenuity to answer satisfactorily.
"How long will it be before I can begin to train him?" interrupted Andrea, on fire with his desire at once to realize his ambition.
Paolo laughed. "One question at a time. I notice some soft down already beginning to show, so I fancy it will not be many weeks until he can boast as much in the way of fine clothes as his own father and mother. As for his training, it's quite too soon to think of that; so, my boy, you will have to possess your soul in patience for a while longer. By the way, your bird should have a name. Have you any in mind?"