The Ducks' New Clothes

By Sarah Van Wagoner Fairbanks

as told by Lydia F. Yates Burrows, and written by Lenore F. Frodsham

John and Sarah Fairbanks had just crossed the plains and were trying to get a farm going to feed their family. They were asked by Brigham Young to settle the Payson area, and so they did, building a farm. They built their home near a stream that had pretty wildflowers growing along the edges.

Food was very scarce in those days, and so they had to cultivate and utilize everything they had available to them. Sarah had a flock of ducks that she cared for and was very proud of. One day she walked down to the stream to visit the ducks, and to her horror, found them all laying dead on the ground. Wondering whatever had happened to them, she shed a tear and sat down to ponder what to do. She must use them for something. She went back to the house and found a large flour sack which she took back down to the stream. Sadly, she plucked out all their feathers to make beds, pillows, or blankets. She then went back to the house, leaving them in peace until she knew what to do next.

That evening when John came home from the fields, he entered the house with a perplexed look on his face. "Whatever happened to the ducks? They are running around naked!!"

Sarah felt, oh, so terrible. She and John rushed back out to see the ducks, running about in confusion. As they looked around, they found some wild poppy flowers that looked as if they had been ruffled. The ducks must have been eating the poppy flowers and seeds, and been overcome with sleep. Feeling no pain, they were anesthetized while their feathers were being plucked out.

Sarah got right to work, and knitted sweaters for each of her little ducks, to keep them warm until their new feathers grew back . . . which they did. But until then, the Fairbanks' flock was the finest dressed in Payson.