The Pie and the Patty-Pan Page #2

"The Pie and the Patty-Pan" is a children's story by Beatrix Potter, featuring her anthropomorphic animal characters, Duchess the dog and Ribby the cat. The tale revolves around a mix-up involving a pie for tea. Duchess believes she has accidentally swallowed a small baking dish, leading to a series of misunderstandings and confusions. The book showcases themes of friendship, honesty, and the chaos of misunderstandings, while presenting various quirky animal characters and charming illustrations.

• Children

								


"There isn't a patty-pan," said
Ribby, looking perplexed.

"Yes, indeed, my dear Ribby; where
can it have gone to?" said Duchess.

Duchess looked very much
alarmed, and continued to scoop the
inside of the pie-dish.

"I have only four patty-pans, and
they are all in the cupboard."

Duchess set up a howl.

"I shall die! I shall die! I have
swallowed a patty-pan! Oh, my dear
Ribby, I do feel so ill!"

"It is impossible, my dear Duchess;
there was not a patty-pan."

"Yes there WAS, my dear Ribby, I am
sure I have swallowed it!"

"Let me prop you up with a pillow,
my dear Duchess; where do you think
you feel it?"

"Oh I do feel so ill ALL OVER me, my
dear Ribby."

"Shall I run for the doctor?"

"Oh yes, yes! fetch Dr. Maggotty,
my dear Ribby: he is a Pie himself, he
will certainly understand."

Ribby settled Duchess in an
armchair before the fire, and went
out and hurried to the village to look
for the doctor.

She found him at the smithy.

Ribby explained that her guest had
swallowed a patty-pan.

Dr. Maggotty hopped so fast that
Ribby had to run. It was most
conspicuous. All the village could see
that Ribby was fetching the doctor.

But while Ribby had been hunting
for the doctor--a curious thing had
happened to Duchess, who had been
left by herself, sitting before the fire,
sighing and groaning and feeling very
unhappy.

"How COULD I have swallowed it!
such a large thing as a patty-pan!"

She sat down again, and stared
mournfully at the grate. The fire
crackled and danced, and something
sizz-z-zled!

Duchess started! She opened the
door of the TOP oven;--out came a
rich steamy flavour of veal and ham,
and there stood a fine brown pie,--
and through a hole in the top of the
pie-crust there was a glimpse of a
little tin patty-pan!

Duchess drew a long breath--

"Then I must have been eating
MOUSE! . . . No wonder I feel ill. . . .
But perhaps I should feel worse if I
had really swallowed a patty-pan!"
Duchess reflected--"What a very
awkward thing to have to explain to
Ribby! I think I will put MY pie in the
back-yard and say nothing about it.
When I go home, I will run round and
take it away." She put it outside the
back-door, and sat down again by
the fire, and shut her eyes; when
Ribby arrived with the doctor, she
seemed fast asleep.

"I am feeling very much better,"
said Duchess, waking up with a jump.

"I am truly glad to hear it! He has
brought you a pill, my dear Duchess!"

"I think I should feel QUITE well if he
only felt my pulse," said Duchess,
backing away from the magpie, who
sidled up with something in his beak.

"It is only a bread pill, you had
much better take it; drink a little milk,
my dear Duchess!"

"I am feeling very much better, my
dear Ribby," said Duchess. "Do you
not think that I had better go home
before it gets dark?"

"Perhaps it might be wise, my dear
Duchess."

Ribby and Duchess said good-bye
affectionately, and Duchess started
home. Half-way up the lane she
stopped and looked back; Ribby had
gone in and shut her door. Duchess
slipped through the fence, and ran
round to the back of Ribby's house,
and peeped into the yard.

Upon the roof of the pig-stye sat Dr.
Maggotty and three jackdaws. The
jackdaws were eating piecrust, and
the magpie was drinking gravy out of
a patty-pan.

Duchess ran home feeling
uncommonly silly!

When Ribby came out for a pailful
of water to wash up the tea-things,
she found a pink and white pie-dish
lying smashed in the middle of the
yard.

Ribby stared with amazement--
"Did you ever see the like! so there
really WAS a patty-pan? . . . But MY
patty-pans are all in the kitchen
cupboard. Well I never did! . . . Next
time I want to give a party--I will
invite Cousin Tabitha Twitchit!"
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