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THORNTON W. BURGESS
NY PUBLIC LIBRARY THE BRANCH LIBRARIES
3 3333 08124 6288
BLACKY THE CROW
BOOKS BY
THORNTON W. BURGESS
BEDTIME STORY-BOOKS
THE ADVENTURES OF:
1. REDDY Fox 10. SAMMY JAY
2. JOHNNY CHUCK 11. BUSTER BEAR
3. PETER COTTONTAIL 12. OLD MR. TOAD
4. UNC' BILLY POSSUM 13. PRICKLY PORKY
5. MR. MOCKER 14. OLD MAN COYOTE
6. JERRY MUSKRAT 15. PADDY THE BEAVER
7. DANNY MEADOW 16. POOR MRS. QUACK
MOUSE 17. BOBBY COON
8. GRANDFATHER FROG 18. JIMMY SKUNK
9. CHATTERER, THE RED 19. BOB WHITE
SQUIRREL 20. OL' MISTAH BUZZARD
MOTHER WEST WIND SERIES
1. OLD MOTHER WEST WIND
2. MOTHER WEST WIND'S CHILDREN
3. MOTHER WEST WIND'S ANIMAL FRIENDS
4. MOTHER WEST WIND'S NEIGHBORS
5. MOTHER WEST WIND -WHY" STORIES
6. MOTHER WEST WIND "How" STORIES
7. MOTHER WEST WIND "WHEN" STORIES
8. MOTHER WEST WIND -WHERE" STORIES
GREEN MEADOW SERIES
1. HAPPY JACK 3. BOWSER THE HOUND
2. MRS. PETER RABBIT 4. OLD GRANNY Fox
WISHING-STONE SERIES
1. TOMMY AND THE WISHING-STONE
2. TOMMY'S WISHES COME TRUE
3. TOMMY'S CHANGE OF HEART
LIGHTFOOT THE DEER
THE BURGESS BIRD BOOK
FOR CHILDREN
THE BURGESS ANIMAL BOOK
FOR CHILDREN
JOHNNY CHUCK HAD STUFFED HIMSELF UNTIL HE
WAS FATTER THAN EVER BEFORE.
Frontispiece. See page 89,
BURGESS IBADE QUADDIES
(green Jforetft
BLACKY THE CROW
BY
THORNTON W. BURGESS
With Illustrations by
HARRISON CADY
SWVAD-Q3S
BOSTON
LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY
1922
Copyright, 1V2J,
BY LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY.
All rights reserved
Published April, 1922
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Dedication
TO AN AMERICAN CITIZEN WHO, DESPITE
PERSECUTION AND CHANGED CONDITIONS, HAS
BY HIS ADAPTABILITY AND INTELLIGENCE
MAINTAINED HIS PLACE IN THE LAND OF HIS
FOREFATHERS THE CROW
CONTENTS
CHAPTER PAGE
I BLACKY THE CROW MAKES A DIS-
COVERY 1
II BLACKY MAKES SURE .... 8
III BLACKY FINDS OUT WHO OWNS THE
EGGS 14
IV THE CUNNING OF BLACKY ... 20
V BLACKY CALLS His FRIENDS ... 26
VI HOOTY THE OWL DOESN'T STAY STILL . 32
VII BLACKY TRIES ANOTHER PLAN . . 38
VIII HOOTY COMES TO MRS. HOOTY'S AID . 44
IX BLACKY THINKS OF FARMER BROWN'S
BOY 50
X FARMER BROWN'S BOY AND HOOTY . 56
XI FARMER BROWN'S BOY Is TEMPTED . 62
XII A TREE-TOP BATTLE .... 69
XIII BLACKY HAS A CHANGE OF HEART . 76
XIV BLACKY MAKES A CALL ... 82
XV BLACKY DOES A LITTLE LOOKING
ABOUT
XVI BLACKY FINDS OTHER SIGNS 94
XVII BLACKY WATCHES A QUEER PERFORM-
ANCE 100
XVIII BLACKY BECOMES VERY SUSPICIOUS . 107
XIX BLACKY MAKES MORE DISCOVERIES . 113
Vlll
CONTENTS
CHAPTER PAGE
XX BLACKY DROPS A HINT . . .119
XXI AT LAST BLACKY Is SURE . . .126
XXII BLACKY GOES HOME HAPPY . . .132
XXIII BLACKY CALLS FARMER BROWN'S BOY . 139
XXIV FARMER BROWN'S BOY DOES SOME
THINKING 146
XXV BLACKY GETS A DREADFUL SHOCK . 152
XXVI WHY THE HUNTER GOT No DUCKS . 158
XXVII THE HUNTER GIVES UP ... 165
XXVIII BLACKY HAS A TALK WITH DUSKY THE
BLACK DUCK 171
XXIX BLACKY DISCOVERS AN EGG . . . 177
XXX BLACKY SCREWS UP His COURAGE . 184
XXXI AN EGG THAT Dm N'T BEHAVE . . 192
XXXII WHAT BLACKY Dm WITH THE STOLEN
EGG 197
ILLUSTRATIONS
Johnny Chuck had stuffed himself until he
was fatter than ever before . . Frontispiece
"What are you talking about?" demanded
Sammy Jay PAGE 8
"Come on! Come on! Caw, caw, caw!" " 27
All of a sudden he was there, right in the
tree close to the nest ! . 48
"I hope I am not interrupting any secret
gossip." "82
"Good morning," said he, as Dusky swam
in just in front of him .... 122
He looked eagerly along the shore . . " 143
Striped Chipmunk saw something white drop
from Blacky's claws .... 197
BLACKY THE CROW
CHAPTER I
BLACKY THE CROW MAKES A
DISCOVERY
BLACKY THE CROW is always
watching for things not intended
for his sharp eyes. The result is
that he gets into no end of trouble
which he could avoid. In this re-
spect he is just like his cousin,
Sammy Jay. Between them they
see a great deal with which they
have no business and which it would
be better for them not to see.
Now Blacky the Crow finds it
no easy matter to pick up a liv-
ing when snow covers the Green
Meadows and the Green Forest,,
2 BLACKY THE CROW
and ice binds the Big River and
the Smiling Pool. He has to use
~
his sharp eyes for all they are
worth in order to find enough to
fill his stomach, and he will eat
anything in the way of food that
he can swallow. Often he travels
loiio' distances looking for food.
o o
but at night he always comes back
to the same place in the Green
Forest, to sleep in company with
others of his family.
Blacky dearly loves company,
particularly at night, and about
the time jolly, round, red Mr. Sun
is beginning to think about his bed
o O
behind the Purple Hills, you will
find Blacky heading for a certain
/ o
part of the Green Forest where he
knows he will have neighbors of
BLACKY MAKES A DISCOVERY 3
his own kind. Peter Rabbit says
that it is because Blacky' s con-
.'
science troubles him so that he
does n't dare sleep alone, but Happy
Jack Squirrel says that Blacky
hasn't any conscience. You can
believe just which you please,
though I suspect that neither of
them really knows.
As I have said, Blacky is quite
a traveler at this time of year, and
sometimes his search for food takes
him to out-of-the-way places. One
day toward the very last of winter,
the notion entered his black head
that he would have a look in a
certain lonesome corner of the
Green Forest where once upon a
time Redtail the Hawk had lived.
Blacky knew well enough that
4 BLACKY THE CROW
Redtail was n't there now ; lie had
gone south in the fall and would n't
be back until he was sure that
Mistress Spring had arrived on the
Green Meadows and in the Green
Forest.
Like the black imp he is, Blacky
flew over the tree-tops, his sharp
eyes watching for something inter-
esting below. Presently he saw
ahead of him the old nest of Red-
tail. He knew all about that nest.
He had visited it before when Red-
tail was away. Still it might be
worth another visit. You never
can tell what you may find in old
houses. Now, of course, Blacky
knew perfectly well that Redtail
was miles and miles, hundreds of
miles away, and so there was noth-
BLACKY MAKES A DISCOVERY 5
ing to fear from him. But Blacky
learned ever so long ago that there
is nothing like making sure that
there is no danger. So, instead of
flying straight to that old nest, he
first flew over the tree so that he
could look down into it.
Right away he saw something
that made him gasp and blink his
eyes. It was quite large and white,
and it looked it looked very
much indeed like an egg ! Do
you wonder that Blacky gasped and
blinked ? Here was snow on the
ground, and Rough Brother North
Wind and Jack Frost had given no
hint that they were even thinking
of going back to the Far North.
The idea of any one laying an egg
at this time of year ! Blacky flew
6 BLACKY THE CROW
over to a tall pine-tree to think
it over.
" Must be it was a little lump
of snow/' thought he. " Yet if
ever I saw an egg, that looked like
one. Jumping grasshoppers, how
good an egg would taste right
now ! ' You know Blacky has a
weakness for eggs. The more he
thought about it, the hungrier he
grew. Several times he almost
made up his mind to fly straight
over there and make sure, but he
didn't quite dare. If it were an
egg, it must belong to somebody,
and perhaps it would be best to
find out who. Suddenly Blacky
shook himself. " I must be dream-
ing/' said he. " There could n't,
there just couldn't be an egg at
BLACKY MAKES A DISCOVERY 7
this time of year, or in that old
tumble-down nest ! I '11 just fly
away and forget it."
So he flew away, but he could n't
forget it. He kept thinking of it
all day, and when he went to sleep
that night he made up his mind to
have another look at that old nest.
CHAPTER H
BLACKY MAKES SURE
" As true as ever I 've cawed a caw
That was a new-laid egg I saw."
" WHAT are you talking about ? '
demanded Sammy Jay, coming up
just in time to hear the last part
of what Blacky the Crow was mum-
bling to himself.
16 Oh nothing, Cousin, nothing
at all," replied Blacky. " I was
just talking foolishness to myself."
Sammy looked at him sharply.
" You are n't feeling sick, are
you, Cousin Blacky ? ' he asked.
" Must be something the matter
with you when you begin talking
about new-laid eggs, when every-
thing ? s covered with snow and ice.
'WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?" DEMANDED
SAMMY JAY. Page 8.
BLACKY MAKES SURE 9
Foolishness is no name for it.
Whoever heard of such a thing
as a new-laid egg this time of
year ?
" Nobody, I guess/' replied
Blacky. " I told you I was just
talking foolishness. You see, I ? m
so hungry that I just got to think-
in o; what I 'd have if I could have
o
anything I wanted. That made
me think of eggs, and I tried to
think just how I would feel if I
should suddenly see a great big
egg right in front of me. I guess
I must have said something about
it."
" I guess you must have. It
is n't egg time yet, and it won't be
for a long time. Take my advice
and just forget about impossible
10 BLACKY THE CROW
things. 1 'm going over to Farmer
Brown's corner ib. Corn may not
be as good as eggs, but it is very
good and very filling. Better come
along," said Sammy.
" Not this morning, thank you.
Some other time, perhaps/' replied
Blacky.
.'
He watched Sammy disappear
through the trees. Then he flew
to the top of the tallest pine-tree
to make sure that no one was
about. When he was quite sure
that no one was watching him. he
o
spread his wings and headed for
the most lonesome corner of the
Green Forest.
" I 'm foolish. I know I ? m fool-
ish," he muttered. " But I 've just
got to have another look in that
BLACKY MAKES SURE ii
old nest of Redtail the Hawk. I
just can't get it out of my head
that that was an egg, a great, big,
white egg, that I saw there yester-
day. It won't do any harm to
have another look, anyway."
Straight toward the tree in which
was the great tumble-down nest
o
of Redtail the Hawk he flew, and
as he drew near, he flew high, for
Blacky is too shrewd and smart to
take any chances. Not that he
thought that there could be any
danger there ; but you never can
tell, and it is always the part of
wisdom to be on the safe side. As
he passed over the top of the tree,
he looked down eagerly. Just
imagine how he felt when instead
of one, he saw two white things in
12 BLACKY THE CROW
the old nest, - two white things
that looked for all the world like
eggs ! The day before there had
been but one ; now there were two.
That settled it in Blacky's mind ;
they were eggs ! They could n't
be anything else.
Blacky kept right on flying.
Somehow he didn't dare stop just
then. He was too much excited
by what he had discovered to think
clearly. He had got to have time
to get his wits together. Whoever
had laid those eggs was big and
strong. He felt sure of that. It
must be some one a great deal
bigger than himself, and he was
of no mind to get into trouble, even
for a dinner of fresh eggs. He
must first find out whose they were ;
BLACKY MAKES SURE 13
then he would know better what
to do. He felt sure that no one
else knew about them, and he knew
that they couldn't run away. So
he kept right on flying until he
reached a certain tall pine-tree
where he could sit and think with-
out being disturbed.
" Effffs ! " he muttered. " Real
oo
! Now who under the sun
oo
can have moved into Redtail's old
house ? And what can they mean
by laying eggs before Mistress
Spring has even sent word that she
has started? It's too much for
me. It certainly is too much for
me.'
CHAPTER HI
BLACKY FINDS OUT WHO OWNS
THE EGGS
Two big white eggs in a tumble-
down nest, and snow and ice every-
where ! Did ever anybody hear
of such a thing before?
" Would n't believe it, if I had n't
seen it with my own eyes/' mut-
tered Blacky the Crow. " Have
to believe them. If I can't believe
them, it 's of no use to try to believe
anything in this world. As sure
as I sit here, that old nest has two
eo-o-s in it. Whoever laid them
oo
must be crazy to start housekeep-
ing at this time of year. I must
FINDS OUT WHO OWNS THE EGGS 15
find out whose eggs they are and
then "
Blacky didn't finish, but there
was a hungry look in his eyes that
would have told any who saw it,
had there been any to see it, that
he had a use for those eggs. But
there was none to see it, and he
took the greatest care that there
should be none to see him when he
once again started for a certain
lonesome corner of the Green
Forest.
" First I '11 make sure that the
eggs are still there," thought he,
and flew high above the tree tops,
so that as he passed over the tree
in which was the old nest of Red-
tail the Hawk, he might look down
into it. To have seen him, you
16 BLACKY THE CROW
would never have guessed that he
was looking for anything in par-
ticular. He seemed to be just fly-
ing over on his way to some distant
place. If the eggs were still there,
he meant to come back and hide
in the top of a near-by pine-tree
to watch until he was sure that he
might safely steal those eggs, or
to find out whose they were.
Blacky 's heart beat fast with
excitement as he drew near that
old tumble-down nest. Would
those two bio* white ews be there ?
o c?c>
Perhaps there would be three !
The very thought made him flap
his wings a little faster. A few
more wing strokes and he would
c?
be right over the tree. How he
did hope to see those eggs ! He
FINDS OUT WHO OWNS THE EGGS 17
could almost see into the nest now.
One stroke ! Two strokes ! Three
strokes ! Blacky bit his tongue to
keep from giving a sharp caw of
disappointment and surprise.
There were no eo-o;s to be seen.
oo
No, Sir, there was n't a sign of
eggs in that old nest. There
was n't because - why, do you
think ? There was n't because
Blacky looked straight down on a
great mass of feathers which quite
covered them from sio-ht, and he
o
did n't have to look twice to know
that that great mass of feathers was
really a great bird, the bird to
whom those eggs belonged.
Blacky did n't turn to come
back as he had planned. He kept
right on, just as if he had n't seen
18 BLACKY THE CROW
anything, and as he flew he shiv-
ered a little. He shivered at the
thought of what might have hap-
pened to him if he had tried to
steal those eggs the day before
and had been caught doing it.
" I 'in thankful I knew enough
to leave them alone/' said he.
" Funny I never once guessed
whose eggs they are. I might
have known that no one but
Hooty the Horned Owl would
think of nesting at this time of
year. And that was Mrs. Hooty
I saw on the nest just now. My,
but she 's big ! She 's bigger than
Hooty himself ! Yes, Sir, it 's a
lucky thing I did n't try to get
those eggs yesterday. Probably
both Hooty and Mrs. Hooty were
FINDS OUT WHO OWNS THE EGGS 19
sitting close by, only they were
sitting so still that I thought
they were parts of the tree they
were in. Blacky, Blacky, the
sooner you forget those eggs the
better."
Some things are best forgotten
As soon as they are learned.
Who never plays with fire
Will surely not get burned.'
CHAPTER IV
THE CUNNING OF BLACKY
Now when Blacky the Crow dis-
covered that the eggs in the old
tumble-down nest of Redtail the
Hawk in a lonesome corner of the
Green Forest belonged to Hooty
the Owl, he straightway made the
best of resolutions ; he would simply
forget all about those eggs. He
would forget that he ever had seen
them, and he would stay away from
that corner of the Green Forest.
That was a very wise resolution.
Of all the people who live in
the Green Forest, none is fiercer
or more savage than Hooty the
Owl, unless it is Mrs. Hooty. She
THE CUNNING OF BLACKY 21
is bigger than Hooty and certainly
quite as much to be feared by the
little people.
All this Blacky knows. No
one knows it better. And Blacky
is not one to poke his head into
trouble with his eyes open. So he
very wisely resolved to forget all
about those eggs. Now it is one
thing to make a resolution and
quite another thing to live up to
it, as you all know. It was easy
enough to say that he would for-
get, but not at all easy to forget.
It would have been different if it
had been spring or early summer,
when there were plenty of other
eggs to be had by any one smart
enough to find them and steal them.
o
But now, when it was still winter
22 BLACKY THE CROW
(such an unheard-of time for any
one to have eggs !), and it was hard
work to find enough to keep a
hungry Crow's stomach filled, the
thought of those eggs would keep
popping into his head. He just
could nH seem to forget them.
After a little, he did n't try.
Now Blacky the Crow is very,
very cunning. He is one of the
./ o
smartest of all the little people
who fly. No one can get into
more mischief and still keep out of
trouble than can Blacky the Crow.
That is because he uses the w T its in
that black head of his. In fact,
some people are unkind enough to
say that he spends all his spare
time in planning mischief. The
more he thought of those eggs, the
THE CUNNING OF BLACKY 23
more he wanted them, and it wasn't
long before he began to try to
plan some way to get them with-
out risking his own precious skin.
" I can't do it alone/' thought
he, " and yet if I take any one into
my secret, I '11 have to share those
eo-ors. That won't do at all, be-
Oc5
cause I want them myself. I
found them, and I ought to have
them." He quite forgot or over-
looked the fact that those eggs
really belonged to Hooty and Mrs.
Hooty and to no one else. "Now
let me see, what can I do ?
He thought and he thought and
o o
he thought and he thought, and
little by little a plan worked out
in his little black head. Then he
chuckled. He chuckled right out
24 BLACKY THE CROW
loud, then hurriedly looked
around to see if any one had heard
him. No one had, so he chuckled
again. He cocked his head on
one side and half closed his eyes,
as if that plan was something he
could see and he was looking at it
very hard. Then he cocked his
head on the other side and did the
same thing.
"It's all right," said he
at last. " It '11 give my rela-
tives a lot of fun, and of course
they will be very grateful to me
for that. It won't hurt Hooty or
Mrs. Hooty a bit, but it will make
them very angry. They have
very short tempers, and people
with short tempers usually forget
everything else when they are
THE CUNNING OF BLACKY 25
angry. We 11 pay them a visit
while the sun. is bright, because
then perhaps they cannot see well
enough to catch us. and we 11 tease
o
them until they lose their tempers
and forget all about keeping guard
over those eggs. Then 1 11 slip
in and get one and perhaps both of
them. Without knowing that they
are doing anything of the kind, my
friends and relatives will help me
to get a good meal. My, how r
good those eggs will taste ! '
It was a very clever and cun-
ning plan, for Blacky is a very
clever and cunning rascal, but of
o 7
course it did n't deserve success
because nothing that means need-
less worry and trouble for others
deserves to succeed.
CHAPTER V
BLACKY CALLS HIS FRIENDS
When Blacky cries " Caw, caw, caw, caw ! '
As if he 'd dislocate his jaw,
His relatives all hasten where
He waits them with a crafty air.
THEY know that there is mis-
chief afoot, and the Crow family
is always ready for mischief. So
on this particular morning when
they heard Blacky cawing at the
top of his lungs from the tallest
pine-tree in the Green Forest, they
hastened over there as fast as they
could fly, calling to each other ex-
citedly and sure that they were
going to have a good time of some
kind.
*
Blacky chuckled as he saw them
" COME ON ! COME ON ! CAW, CAW, CAW !
Pare 27.
BLACKY CALLS HIS FRIENDS 27
coming. " Come on ! Come on !
o
Caw, caw, caw ! Hurry up and
flap your wings faster. I know
where Hooty the Owl is, and
we ? 11 have no end of fun with
him, ' he cried.
" Caw, caw, caw, caw, caw, caw!'
shouted all his relatives in great
glee. " Where is he? Lead us to
o
him. We 11 drive him out of the
Green Forest ! "
So Blacky led the way over to
the most lonesome corner of the
Green Forest, straight to the tree
o
in which Hooty the Owl was com-
fortably sleeping. Blacky had
taken pains to slip over early
that morning and make sure just
where he was. He had discovered
Hooty fast asleep, and he knew
28 BLACKY THE CROW
that lie would remain right where
he was until dark. You know
Hooty 's eyes are not meant for
much use in bright light, and the
brighter the light, the more un-
comfortable his eyes feel. Blacky
knows this, too, and he had
chosen the very brightest part of
the morning to call his relatives
over to torment poor Hooty. Jolly,
round, bright Mr. Sun was shin-
7 O
ing his very brightest, and the
white snow on the ground made
it seem brighter still. Even Blacky
had to blink, and he knew that
poor Hooty would find it harder
still.
But one thing Blacky was very
careful not to even hint of, and
that was that Mrs. Hooty was
BLACKY CALLS HIS FRIENDS 29
right close at hand. Mrs. Hooty
is bigger and even more fierce
than Hooty, and Blacky didn't
want to frighten any of the more
timid of his relatives. What he
hoped clown deep in his crafty
heart was that when they got to
</ c /
teasing and tormenting Hooty and
making the great racket which he
knew they would, Mrs. Hooty
would lose her temper and fly
over to join Hooty in trying to
drive away the black tormentors.
Then Blacky would slip over to the
nest which she had left unguarded
and steal one and perhaps both of
the eggs he knew were there.
When they reached the tree
where Hooty was, he was blinking
his great yellow eyes and had fluffed
30 BLACKY THE CROW
out all his feathers, which is a
way he has when he is angry, to
make himself look twice as bio; as
o
he really is. Of course, he had
heard the noisy crew coming, and
he knew well enough what to ex-
o
pect. As soon as they saw him,
they began to scream as loud as
ever they could and to call him
all manner of names. The bold-
est of them would dart at him
as if to pull out a mouthful of
feathers, but took the greatest
o
care not to o-et too near. You
~
see, the way Hooty hissed and
snapped his great bill was very
threatening, and they knew that
if once he got hold of one of them
o
with those big cruel claws of his,
that would be the end.
BLACKY CALLS HIS FRIENDS 31
So they were content to simply
scold and scream at him and fly
around him, just out of reach, and
make him generally uncomfortable,
O i/
and they were so busy doing this
that no one noticed that Blacky
was not joining in the fun, and
no one paid any attention to the
old tumble-down nest of Redtail
the Hawk only a few trees dis-
tant. So far Blacky' s plans were
working out just as he had hoped.
CHAPTER VI
HOOTY THE OWL DOESN'T STAY STILL
Now what's the good of being smart
When others do not do their part?
IF Blacky the Crow did n't say
this to himself, he thought it. He
knew that he had made a very
cunning plan to get the eggs of
Hooty the Owl, a plan so shrewd
and cunning that no one else in
o
the Green Forest or on the Green
Meadows would have thought of it.
There was only one weakness in
it, and that was that it depended
for success on having Hooty the
Owl do as he usually did when
tormented by a crowd of noisy
HOOTY DOESN'T STAY STILL 33
Crows, - - stay where he was until
they got tired and flew away.
Now Blacky sometimes makes
a mistake that smart people are
very apt to make; he thinks
that because he is so smart, other
people are stupid. That is where
he proves that smart as he is,
he isn't as smart as he thinks
he is. He always thought of
Hooty the Owl as stupid. That
is, he always thought of him that
way in daytime. At night, when
he was waked out of a sound
sleep by the fierce hunting cry
of Hooty, he wasn't so sure
about Hooty being stupid, and he
always took care to sit perfectly
still in the darkness, lest Booty's
great ears should hear him and
34 BLACKY THE CROW
Booty's great eyes, made for
seeing in the dark, should find
him. No, in the night Blacky
was not at all sure that Hooty
was stupid.
But in the daytime he was sure.
You see, he quite forgot the fact
that the brightness of day is to
Hooty what the blackness of night
is to him. So, because Hooty
would simply sit still and hiss
and snap his bill, instead of trying
to catch his tormentors or flying
away, Blacky called him stupid.
He felt sure that Hooty would
stay right where he was now,
and he hoped that Mrs. Hooty
would lose her temper and leave
the nest where she was sitting
o
on those two eggs and join
HOOTY DOESN'T STAY STILL 35
Hooty to help him try to drive
away that noisy crew.
But Hooty is n't stupid. Not
a bit of it. The minute he
found out that Blacky and his
*.>
friends had discovered him, he
thought of Mrs. Hooty and the
two precious eggs in the old nest
of Redtail the Hawk close by.
"Mrs. Hooty mustn't be dis-
turbed," thought he. " That will
never do at all. I must lead
these black rascals away where
they won't discover Mrs. Hooty.
I certainly must."
So he spread his broad wings
and blundered away among the
trees a little way. He didn't fly
far because the instant he started
to fly that whole noisy crew
36 BLACKY THE CROW
with, the exception of Blacky were
after him. Because he couldn't
use his claws or bill while flying,
they grew bold enough to pull
a few feathers out of his back.
So he fleAv only a little way to
a thick hemlock-tree, where it
was n't easy for the Crows to
get at him, and where the light
didn't hurt his eyes so much.
There he rested a few minutes
and then did the same thing over
a^ain. He meant to lead those
o
bothersome Crows into the darkest
part of the Green Forest and
there- -well, he could see better
there, and it might be that one
of them would be careless enough
to come within reach. No, Hooty
was n't stupid. Certainly not.
HOOTY DOESN'T STAY STILL 37
Blacky awoke to that fact as
he sat in the top of a tall
pine-tree silently watching. He
could see Mrs. Hooty on the nest,
and as the noise of Booty's tor-
mentors sounded from farther and
farther away, she settled herself
more comfortably and closed her
eyes. Blacky could imagine that
she was smiling to herself. It
was clear that she had no inten-
tion of going to help Hooty.
His splendid plan had failed just
because stupid Hooty, who was n't
stupid at all, had flown away
when he ouo;ht to have sat still.
o
It was very provoking.
CHAPTER VII
BLACKY TRIES ANOTHER PLAN
When one plan fails, just try another;
Declare you '11 win some way or other.
PEOPLE who succeed are those
who do not give up because they
fail the first time they try. They
are the ones who, as soon as one
plan fails, get busy right away
and think of another plan and
try that. If the thing they are
trying to do is a good thing,
sooner or later they succeed. If
they are trying to do a wrong
thing, very likely all their plans
fail, as they should.
Now Blacky the Crow knows
all about the value of trying and
BLACKY TRIES ANOTHER PLAN 39
trying. He is n't easily discour-
aged. Sometimes it is a pity
that he is n't, because he plans
so much mischief. But the fact
remains that he is n't, and he tries
and tries until he cannot think of
another plan and just has to give
up. When he invited all his rel-
atives to join him in tormenting
Hooty the Owl, he thought he
had a plan that just couldn't
fail. He felt sure that Mrs.
Hooty would leave her nest and
help Hooty try to drive away his
tormentors. But Mrs. Hooty did n't
do anything of the kind, because
Hooty was smart enough and
thoughtful enough to lead his
tormentors away from the nest
into the darkest part of the Green
40 BLACKY THE CROW
Forest where their noise would n't
bother Mrs. Hooty. So she just
settled herself more comfortably
than ever on those eggs which
Blacky had hoped she would give
him a chance to steal, and his fine
plan was quite upset.
Not one of his relatives had
noticed that nest. Thev had been
i
too busv teasing Hootv. This was
/ /
just as Blacky had hoped. He
did n't want them to know about
that nest because he was selfish
and wanted to get those eggs just
for himself alone. But now he
knew that the onlv wav he could
t t
get Mrs. Hooty off of them would
be bv teasino' her so that she
*
would lose her temper and try to
catch some of her tormentors. If
BLACKY TRIES ANOTHER PLAN 41
she did that, there would be a
chance that he might slip in and
get at least one of those eggs.
He would try it.
For a few minutes he listened
to the noise of his relatives grow-
ing fainter and fainter, as Hooty
led them farther and farther into
the Green Forest. Then he opened
his mouth.
" Caw, caw, caw, caw ! ' he
screamed. " Caw, caw, caw, caw !
Come back, everybody ! Here is
Mrs. Hooty on her nest ! Caw,
caw, caw, caw ! '
Now as soon as they heard that,
all Blacky 's relatives stopped chas-
ing and tormenting Hooty and
started back as fast as they could
fly. They did n't like the dark
42 BLACKY THE CROW
part of the Green Forest into
which Hooty was leading them.
Besides, they wanted to see that
nest. So back they came, cawing
at the top of their lungs, for
they were very much excited.
Some of them never had seen a nest
of Hooty' s. And anyway, it would
be just as much fun to tease Mrs.
Hooty as it was to tease Hooty.
"Where is the nest?" they
screamed, as they came back to
where Blacky was cawing and pre-
tending to be very much excited.
*j
" Why/' exclaimed one, " that
is the old nest of Redtail the
Hawk. I know all about that
nest/' And he looked at Blacky
as if he thought Blacky was play-
ing a joke on them.
BLACKY TRIES ANOTHER PLAN 43
" It was Redtail's, but it is
Booty's now. If you don't be-
lieve me, just look in it," retorted
Blacky.
At once they all began to fly
over the top of the tree where
they could look down into the
nest and there, sure enough, was
O 7
Mrs. Hooty, her great, round, yel-
low eyes glaring up at them an-
grily. Such a racket ! Right away
Hooty was forgotten, and the
whole crowd at once began to tor-
o
ment Mrs. Hooty. Only Blacky
sat watchful and silent, waiting
o
for Mrs. Hooty to lose her temper
and try to catch one of her tor-
mentors. He had hope, a great
hope, that he would get one of
those eggs.
CHAPTER VIII
HOOTY COMES TO MRS. BOOTY'S AID
No one can live just for self
alone. A lot of people think they
can, but they are very much mis-
taken. They are making one of
the greatest mistakes in the world.
Every teeny, weeny act, no matter
what it is, affects somebody else.
v
That is one of Old Mother Nature's
great laws. And it is just as true
among the little people of the
Green Forest and the Green
Meadows as with boys and girls
and grown people. It is Old
Mother Nature's way of making
each of us responsible for the good
AID COMES TO MRS. HOOTY 45
of all and of teaching us that always
we should help each other.
As you know, when Blacky the
Crow called all his relatives over
to the nest where Mrs. Hooty was
sitting on her eggs, they at once
stopped tormenting Hooty and left
him alone in a thick hemlock-tree
in the darkest part of the Green
Forest. Of course Hooty was very,
very glad to be left in peace, and
he might have spent the rest of
the day there sleeping in comfort.
But he didn't. No, Sir, he didn't.
At first he gave a great sigh of
relief and settled himself as if he
meant to stay. He listened to the
voices of those noisy Crows growing
fainter and fainter and was glad.
But it was only for a few minutes.
46 BLACKY THE CROW
Presently those voices stopped grow-
ing fainter. They grew more ex-
cited-sounding than ever, and they
came right from one place. Hooty
knew then that his tormentors had
found the nest where Mrs, Hooty
was, and that they were tormenting
her just as they had tormented him.
He snapped his bill angrily and
then more angrily.
" I guess Mrs. Hooty is quite
able to take care of herself," he
grumbled, " but she ought not to
be disturbed while she is sitting on
those eggs. I hate to go back
there in that bright sunshine. It
o
hurts my eyes, and I don't like it,
but I guess I'll have to go back
there. Mrs. Hooty needs my help.
I 'd rather stay here, but 7
AID COMES TO MRS. HOOTY 47
He didn't finish. Instead, he
spread his broad wings and flew
back towards the nest and Mrs.
Hooty. His great wings made no
noise, for they are made so that he
can fly without making a sound.
" If I once get hold of one of those
Crows ! ' he muttered to himself.
" If I once get hold of one of those
Crows, I'll " He didn't say
what he would do, but if you had
been near enough to hear the snap
of his bill, you could have guessed
the rest.
All this time the Crows were
having what they called fun with
Mrs. Hooty. Nothing is true fun
which makes others uncomfortable,
but somehow a great many people
seem to forget this. So, while
48 BLACKY THE CROW
Blacky sat watching, his relatives
made a tremendous racket around
Mrs. Hooty, and the more angry
she grew, the more they screamed
and called her names and darted
down almost in her face, as they
pretended that they were going
to fight her. They were so busy
doing this, and Blacky was so busy
watching them, hoping that Mrs.
Hooty would leave her nest and
give him a chance to steal the eggs
he knew were under her, that no
one gave Hooty a thought.
All of a sudden he was there,
right in the tree close to the nest !
No one had heard a sound, but
there he was, and in the claws of
one foot he held the tail feathers
of one of Blacky ? s relatives. It
ALL OF A SUDDEN HE WAS THERE, RIGHT IN THE
TREE CLOSE TO THE NEST! Page 48.
AID COMES TO MRS. HOOTY 49
was lucky, very lucky indeed for
that one that the sun was in Hooty's
eyes and so he had missed his aim.
Otherwise there would have been
one less Crow.
Now it is one thing to tease one
lone Owl and quite another to tease
two together. Besides, there were
o
those black tail feathers floating
o
down to the snow-covered ground.
Quite suddenly those Crows decided
that they had had fun enough for
one day, and in spite of all Blacky
could do to stop them, away they
flew, cawing loudly and talking it
all over noisily. Blacky was the
last to o-o, and his heart was sor-
O 7
rowful. However could he
those eggs?
CHAPTER IX
BLACKY THINKS OF FARMER BROWN'S
BOY
" SUCH luck ! " grumbled Blacky,
as he flew over to his favorite tree
to do a little thinking. " Such
luck ! Now all my neighbors
know about the nest of Hootv the
t
Owl, and sooner or later one of
them will find out that there are
eo-o-s in it. There is one thins;
~O O
about it, though, and that is that
if I can't get them, nobody can.
That is to say, none of my rela-
tives can. I 've tried every way I
i/ /
can think of, and those eggs are
still there. My, my, my, how I
would like one of them right now ! '
BLACKY HAS A NEW IDEA 51
Then Blacky the Crow did a
thing which disappointed scamps
often do, - began to blame the
ones he was trying to wrong be-
cause his plans had failed. To
have heard him talking to himself,
you would have supposed that
those eggs really belonged to him
and that Hooty and Mrs. Hooty
had cheated him out of them.
Yes, Sir, that is what you would
have thought if you could have
heard him muttering to himself
there in the tree-top. In his dis-
appointment over not getting those
eggs, he was so sorry for himself
OO ' <J
that he actually did feel that lie
was the one wronged, - that Hooty
and Mrs. Hooty should have let
him have those eggs.
52 BLACKY THE CROW
Of course, that was absolute
foolishness, but he made himself
believe it just the same. At least,
he pretended to believe it. And
the more he pretended, the angrier
he grew. This is often the way
with people who try to wrong
others. They grow angry with
the ones they have tried to wrong.
When at last Blacky had to con-
fess to himself that he could think
of no other way to get those eggs,
he began to wonder if there was
O
some way to make trouble for
Hooty and Mrs. Hooty. It was
right then that he thought of
Farmer Brown's boy.
Blacky' s eyes snapped. He
remembered how, once upon a
time, Farmer Brown's boy had
BLACKY HAS A NEW IDEA 53
delighted to rob nests. Blacky
had seen him take the eggs from
the nests of Blacky 's own rela-
tives and from many other feath-
ered people. What he did with
the eggs, Blacky had no idea.
Just now he did n't care. If
Farmer Brown's boy would just
happen to find Hooty's nest, he
would be sure to take those eggs,
and then he, Blacky, would feel
better. He would feel that he
was even with Hooty.
Right away he began to try to
think of some way to bring Farmer
Brown's boy over to the lonesome
corner of the Green Forest where
Hooty's nest was. If he could
once get him there, he felt sure
that Farmer Brown's boy would
54 BLACKY THE CROW
see the nest and climb up to it,
and then of course he would take
the eggs. If he couldn't have
those eggs himself, the next best
thing would be to see some one else
get them.
Dear me, dear me, such dreadful
thoughts ! I am afraid that Blacky' s
heart was as black as his coat.
And the worst of it was, he seemed
to get a lot of pleasure in his
wicked plans. Now right down in
his heart he knew that they were
wicked plans, but he tried to make
excuses to himself.
" Hooty the Owl is a robber,"
said he. "Everybody is afraid of
him. He lives on other people,
and so far as I know he does no
good in the world. He is big and
BLACKY HAS A NEW IDEA 55
fierce, and no one loves him. The
Green Forest would be better off
without him. If those eggs hatch,
there will be little Owls to be fed,
and they will grow up into big
fierce Owls, like their father and
mother. So if I show Farmer
Brown's boy that nest and he takes
those eggs, I will be doing a kind-
ness to my neighbors/'
So Blacky talked to himself and
tried to hush the still, small voice
down inside that tried to tell him
that what he was planning to do
was really a dreadful thing. And
all the time he watched for Farmer
Brow r n's boy.
CHAPTER X
FARMER BROWN'S BOY AND HOOTY
FAEMEE BEOWX'S boy had taken
it into his head to visit the Green
Forest. It was partly because he
had n't anything else to do, and
it was partly because now that
it was very near the end of winter
he wanted to see how things were
o
there and if there were anv signs
, o
of the coming of spring. Blacky
the Crow saw him coming, and
Blacky chuckled to himself. He
.'
had watched every day for a week
for just this thing. Now he
would tell Farmer Brown's boy
about that nest of Hooty the Owl.
He flew over to the lonesome
FARMER BROWN'S BOY 57
corner of the Green Forest where
Hooty and Mrs. Hooty had made
their home and at once began to
caw at the top of his voice and
pretend that he was terribly ex-
cited over something.
" Caw, caw, caw, caw, caw ! '
shouted Blacky. At once all his
relatives within hearing hurried
over to join him. [Tiey knew
that he was tormenting Hooty,
and they wanted to join in the
fun. It was n't long before there
was a great racket going on over
^j O <~J
in that lonesome corner of the
Green Forest.
Of course Farmer Brown's boy
heard it. He stopped and listened.
" Now I wonder what Blacky and
his friends have found this time/ 5
58 BLACKY THE CROW
said he. " Whenever they make
a fuss like that, there is usually
something to see there. I believe
o
I '11 go over and have a look/'
So he turned in the direction
of the lonesome corner of the
Green Forest, and as he drew
near, he moved very carefully, so
as to see all that he could with-
out frightening the Crows. He
knew that as soon as they saw
him, they would fly away, and
that might alarm the one they
were tormenting, for he knew
enough of Crow ways to know
that when they were making such
a noise as they were now making,
they were plaguing some one.
Blacky was the first to see
him because he was watchin for
FARMER BROWN'S BOY 59
him. But he didn't say any-
thing until Farmer Brown's boy
was so near that he couldn't
help but see that nest and Hooty
himself, sitting up very straight
and snapping his bill angrily at
his tormentors. Then Blacky gave
the alarm, and at once all the
Crows rose in the air and headed
for the Green Meadows, cawing
at the top of their lungs. Blacky
went with them a little way. The
first chance he got he dropped
out of the flock and silently flew
back to a place where he could
see all that might happen at the
nest of Hooty the Owl.
When Farmer Brown's boy first
caught sight of the nest and saw
the Crows darting down toward
60 BLACKY THE CROW
it and acting so excited, he was
puzzled.
" That ? s an old nest of Red-
tail the Hawk," thought he. "I
found that last spring. Now what
can there be there to excite those
Crows so ? '
Then he caught sight of Hooty
the Owl. " Ha, so that 's it ! " he
exclaimed. " Those scamps have
discovered Hooty and have been hav-
ing no end of fun tormenting him.
I wonder what he ? s doing there/ 3
He no longer tried to keep out
of sight, but walked right up to
the foot of the tree, all the time
looking up. Hooty saw him, but
instead of flying away, he snapped
his bill just as he had at the
Crows and hissed.
FARMER BROWN'S BOY 61
"That's funny," thought Far-
mer Brown's boy. " If I did n't
know that to be the old nest of
Redtail the Hawk, and if it
were n't still the tail-end of winter,
I would think that was Booty's
nest/ 3
He walked in a circle around the
tree, looking up. Suddenly he
gave a little start. Was that a
tail sticking over the edge of the
nest ? He found a stick and threw
it up. It struck the bottom of
the nest, and out flew a great
bird. It was Mrs. Hooty ! Blacky
the Crow chuckled.
CHAPTER XI
FARMER BROWN'S BOY IS TEMPTED
When you're tempted to do wrong
Is the time to prove you're strong.
Shut your eyes and clench each fist ;
It will help you to resist.
WHEN a bird is found sitting
o
on a nest, it is a pretty sure
sign that that nest holds some-
thing worth while. It is a sign
that that bird has set up
housekeeping. So when Farmer
Brown's boy discovered Mrs.
Hooty sitting so close on the old
nest of Redtail the Hawk, in the
most lonesome corner of the Green
Forest, he knew what it meant.
Perhaps I should say that he
knew what it ought to mean.
A GREAT TEMPTATION 03
It ought to mean that there were
eggs in that nest.
But it was hard for Farmer
Brown's boy to believe that.
Why, spring had not come yet!
There was still snow, and the
Smiling Pool was still covered
with ice. Who ever heard of
birds nesting: at this time of year ?
~ .7
Certainly not Farmer Brown's
boy. And yet Hooty the Owl
and Mrs. Hooty were acting for
all the world as feathered folks
do act when they have eggs arid
are afraid that something is going
to happen to them. It was very
puzzling.
" That nest was built by Red-
tail the Hawk, and it has n't
even been repaired," muttered
64 BLACKY THE CROW
Farmer Brown's boy, as he stared
up at it. "If Hooty and his
wife have taken it for their home,
they are mighty poor house-
keepers. And if Mrs. Hooty has
laid eggs this time of year, she
must be crazy. I suppose the
way to find out is to climb up
there. It seems foolish, but I ? m
going to do it. Those Owls
certainly act as if they are
mighty anxious about something,
and I 'm going to find out what
* i_ * 7?
it IS.
He looked at Hooty and Mrs.
Hooty, at their hooked bills and
great claws, and decided that he
would take a stout stick along with
him. He had no desire to feel
these reat claws. When he had
GREAT TEMPTATION 65
found a stick to suit him, he
began to climb the tree. Hooty
and Mrs. Hooty snapped their
bills and hissed fiercely. They
drew nearer. Farmer Brown's
boy kept a watchful eye on them.
They looked so big and fierce
that he was almost tempted to
give up and leave them in
peace. But he just had to find
out if there was anything in that
nest, so he kept on. As he drew
near it, Mrs. Hooty swooped
very near to him, and the snap
of her bill made an ugly sound.
He held his stick ready to strike
and kept on.
The nest was simply a great
platform of sticks. When Farmer
Brown's boy reached it, he found
66 BLACKY THE CROW
that he could not get where he
o
could look into it, so he reached
over and felt inside. Almost at
once his fingers touched something
that made him tingle all over.
c>
It was an ego; a great bio; egg !
oo 7 o o oo
There was no doubt about it.
It was just as hard for him to
believe as it had been for Blacky
the Crow to believe, when he first
saw those eggs. Farmer Brown's
Oo
boy's fingers closed over that
egg and took it out of the
nest. Mrs. Hooty swooped very
close, and Farmer Brown's boy
nearly dropped the egg as he
struck at her with his stick.
Then Mrs. Hooty and Hooty
seemed to lose courage and With-
er
drew to a tree near by, where
A GREAT TEMPTATION 67
they snapped their bills and
hissed.
Then Farmer Brown's boy
looked at the prize in his hand.
It was a big, dirty-white egg.
His eyes shone. What a splendid
prize to add to his collection of
birds' eggs ! It was the first egg
of the Great Horned Owl, the
largest of all Owls, that he ever
had seen.
Once more he felt in the nest
and found there was another egg
there. " 1 11 take both of them,"
said he. " It 's the first nest of
Hooty's that I 've ever found, and
perhaps 1 11 never find another.
Gee, I'm glad I came over here
to find out what those Crows
were makin such a fuss about.
68 BLACKY THE CROW
I wonder if I can get these down
without breaking them.'
o
Just at that very minute he
remembered something. He re-
membered that he had stopped
collecting eggs. He remembered
c? OO
that he had resolved never to
take another bird's ego*.
OO
"But this is different/ 3 whispered
the tempter. " This is n't like
taking the eggs of the little song
birds."
CHAPTER XII
A TREE-TOP BATTLE
As black is black and white is white,
So wrong is wrong and right is right.
THESE is n't any half way about
it. A thing is wrong or it is right.
o o o
and that is all there is to it.
But most people have hard work
to see this when they want very
much to do a thing that the still
small voice way down inside tells
them isn't right. They try to
compromise. To compromise is to
do neither one thing nor the other
but a little of both. But you
can't do that with right and wrong.
It is a queer thing, but a half
right never is as good as a whole
'
70 BLACKY THE CROW
right, while a half wrong often,
very often, is as bad as a whole
wrong.
Farmer Brown's boy, up in the
tree by the nest of Hooty the
Owl in the lonesome corner of
the Green Forest, was fighting a
battle. No, he was n't fighting
with Hooty or Mrs. Hooty. He
was fighting a battle right inside
<^) <^ O
himself. It was a battle between
right and wrong. Once upon a
time he had taken great delight
in collecting the eggs of birds, in
trying to see how many kinds he
could get. Then as he had come
to know the little forest and
meadow people better, he had seen
that taking the eggs of birds is
very, very wrong, and he had
A TREE-TOP BATTLE 71
stopped stealing them. He Lad
declared that never again would
he steal an egg from a bird.
But never before had he found
a nest of Hooty the Owl. Those
two bio; eo-o-s would add ever so
o <DO
much to his collection. " Take
'em/' said a little voice inside.
" Hooty is a robber. You will be
doing a kindness to the other birds
by taking them."
" Don't do it/' said another
little voice. " Hooty may be a
robber, but he has a place in the
Green Forest, or Old Mother
Nature never would have put
him here. It is just as much
stealing to take his eggs as to
take the eggs of any other bird.
He has just as much right to
72 BLACKY THE CROW
them as Jenny Wren has to
hers/'
" Take one and leave one/'
said the first voice.
"That will be just as much
stealing as if you took both/'
said the second voice. "Besides,
you will be breaking your own
word. You said that you never
would take another eo-o-."
oo
" I did n't promise anybody but
myself/' declared Farmer Brown's
boy right out loud. At the sound
of his voice, Hooty and Mrs. Hooty,
sitting in the next tree, snapped
their bills and hissed louder than
ever.
" A promise to yourself ought
to be just as good as a promise
to any one else. I don't wonder
A TREE-TOP BATTLE 73
Hooty hisses at you/' said the
good little voice.
" Think how fine those eggs
will look in your collection and
how proud you will be to show
them to the other fellows who
never have found a nest of
Hooty's," said the first little voice.
" And think how mean and
small and cheap you '11 feel every
time you look at them/' added the
good little voice. " You 11 get
a lot more fun if you leave them
to hatch out and then watch the
little Owls grow up and learn
all about their ways. Just think
what a stout, brave fellow Hooty
is to start housekeeping at this
time of year, and how wonderful
it is that Mrs. Hooty can keep
74 BLACKY THE CROW
these eo-o-s warm and when they
cjO *>
have hatched take care of the baby
Owls before others have even be-
gun to build their nests. Besides,
wrong is wrong and right is right,
always."
Slowly Farmer Brown's boy
reached over the edge of the nest
and put back the egg. Then he
beo-an to climb down the tree.
o
When he reached the ground he
went off a little way and watched.
Almost at once Mrs. Hooty flew
to the nest and settled down on
the eggs, while Hooty mounted
guard close by.
o /
"I'm dad I didn't take 'em/'
o
said Farmer Brown's boy. " Yes,
Sir, I'm glad I didn't take 'em."
o
As he turned back toward home,
A TREE-TOP BATTLE 75
he saw Blacky the Crow flying
over the Green Forest, and little
did he guess how he had upset
Blacky ? s plans.
CHAPTER XIII
BLACKY HAS A CHANGE OF HEART
BLACKY THE CKOW is n't all black.
No, indeed. His coat is black,
and sometimes it seems as if his
heart is all black, but this isn't
so. It certainly seemed as if his
heart was all black when he tried
so hard to make trouble for
Hooty the Owl. It would seem
as if only a black heart could
have urged him to try so hard
O -'
to steal the eggs of Hooty and
Mrs. Hooty, but this was n't really
so. You see, it did n't seem at
all wrong to try to get those
eggs. Blacky was hungry, and
those eggs would have given him
BLACKY'S CHANGE OF HEART 77
a good meal. He knew that
Hooty would n't hesitate to catch
him and eat him if he had the
chance, and so it seemed to him
perfectly right and fair to steal
Hooty's eggs if he was smart
enough to do so. And most of
the other little people of the
Green Forest and the Green
Meadows would have felt the same
way about it. You see, it is one
of the laws of Old Mother Nature
that each one must learn to look
out for himself.
But when Blacky showed that
nest of Booty's to Farmer Brown's
boy with the hope that Farmer
Brown's boy would steal those
eggs, there was blackness in his
heart. He was doing: something
o o
78 BLACKY THE CROW
then which was pure meanness.
He was just trying to make
trouble for Hooty, to get even
because Hooty had been too smart
for him. He had sat in the top
of a tall pine-tree where he could
see all that happened, and he had
chuckled wickedly as he had seen
Farmer Brown's boy climb to
Booty's nest and take out an
egg. He felt sure that he would
take both eggs. He hoped so,
anyway.
When he saw Farmer Brown's
boy put the eggs back and climb
down the tree without any, he
had to blink his eyes to make
sure that he saw straight. He
o
just could n't believe what he saw.
At first he was dreadfully dis-
BLACKY'S CHANGE OF HEART 79
appointed and angry. It looked
very much as if he were n't going
to get even with Hooty after all.
He flew over to his favorite tree
to think things over. Now some-
times it is a o-ood thimj to sit
o o
by oneself and think things over.
It gives the little small voice
deep down inside a chance to be
heard. It was just that way with
Blacky now.
The longer he thought, the
meaner his action in calling Far-
mer Brown's boy looked. It was
one thing to try to steal those
eggs himself, but it was quite
another matter to try to have
them stolen by some one against
whom Hooty had no protection
whatever.
80 BLACKY THE CROW
"If it had been any one but
Hooty, you would have done your
best to have kept Farmer Brown's
boy away/ 7 said the little voice
inside. Blacky hung his head.
He knew that it was true. More
than once, in fact many times,
he had warned other feathered
folks when Farmer Brown's boy
had been hunting for their nests,
and had helped to lead him away.
At last Blacky threw up his
head and chuckled, and this time
his chuckle was good to hear.
" I 'm glad that Farmer Brown's
boy did n't take those eggs," said
he right out loud. " Yes, sir,
I 'm o-lad. I '11 never do such a
o
thing as that again. I 'm ashamed
of what I did ; yet I 'm glad I
BLACKY'S CHANGE OF HEART 81
did it. I 'm glad because 1 've
learned some things. I 've learned
that Farmer Brown's boy is n't
as much to be feared as he used
to be. I've learned that Hooty
is n't as stupid as I thought he
was. I've learned that while it
may be all right for us people of
the Green Forest to try to out-
wit each other we ought to pro-
tect each other against common
dangers. And I've learned some-
o
thing I did n't know before, and
that is that Hooty the Owl is
the very first of us to set up
housekeeping. Now I think I'll
go hunt for an honest meal."
o
And he did.
CHAPTER XIV
BLACKY MAKES A CALL
Judge no one by his style of dress ;
Your ignorance you thus confess.
Blacky the Crow.
" CAW, caw, caw, caw. ' There
was no need of looking to see who
o
that was. Peter Rabbit knew with-
out looking. Mrs. Quack knew Avith-
out looking. Just the same, both
looked up. Just alighting in the
top of a tall tree was Blacky the
Crow. " Caw, caw, caw, caw,"
he repeated, looking down at Peter
and Mrs. Quack and Mr. Quack
and the six young Quacks. " I
hope I am not interrupting any
secret gossip."
I HOPE I AM NOT INTERRUPTING ANY SECRET
GOSSIP." Page 82.
BLACKY MAKES A CALL 83
" Not at all/ 7 Peter hastened
to say. " Mrs. Quack was just
telling me of the troubles and
o
dangers in bringing up a young
family in the Far North. How
did you know the Quacks had
arrived ? '
Blacky chuckled hoarsely. " I
did n't, " said he. " I simply
thought there might be something
on I didn't know about
over here in the pond of Paddy
the Beaver, so I came over to find
out. Mr. Quack, you and Mrs.
Quack are looking very fine this
fall. And those handsome young
Quacks, you don't mean to tell
me that they are your children ! '
Mrs. Quack nodded proudly.
"They are," said she.
84 BLACKY THE CROW
" You don't say so ! ' exclaimed
Blacky, as if he were very much
surprised, when all the time he
wasn't surprised at all. " They
are a credit to their parents,
Yes, indeed, they are a credit to
their parents. Never have I seen
finer young Ducks in all my life.
How glad the hunters with ter-
rible guns will be to see them/ 3
Mrs. Quack shivered at that,
and Blacky saw it. He chuckled
softly. You know he dearly loves
to make others uncomfortable. "I
saw three hunters over on the
edo^e of the Big; River early this
o O /
very morning/' said he.
/
Mrs. Quack looked more anx-
ious than ever. Blacky ? s sharp
eyes noted this.
BLACKY MAKES A CALL 85
" That is why I came over
here/' he added kindly. "I wanted
to give you warning."
" But you did n't know the
Quacks were here !" spoke up Peter.
" True enough, Peter. True
enough/' replied Blacky ? his eyes
twinkling. " But I thought they
might be. I had heard a rumor
that those who go south are travel-
ing earlier than usual this fall.
o
so I knew I might find Mr. and
Mrs. Quack over here any time
now. Is it true, Mrs. Quack, that
we are going to have a long, hard,
cold winter ? '
" That is what they say up in
the Far North/' replied Mrs.
Quack. " And it is true that
Jack Frost had started down
86 BLACKY THE CROW
earlier than usual. That is how
it happens we are here now.
But about those hunters over by
the Big River, do you suppose
they will come over here ? ; There
was an anxious note in Mrs.
Quack's voice.
" No," replied Blacky promptly.
" Farmer Brown's boy won't let
them. I know. I've been watch-
ing him and he has been watching
o o
those hunters. As long as you
stay here, you will be safe. What
a great world this would be if all
those two-legged creatures were
like Farmer Brown's boy."
" Would n't it ! ' cried Peter.
Then he added, " I wish they were."
" You don't wish it half as
much as I do," declared Mrs. Quack.
BLACKY MAKES A CALL 87
" Yet I can remember when he
used to hunt with a terrible gun
and was as bad as the worst of
them/' said Blacky.
" What changed him ? ' asked
o
Mrs. Quack, looking interested.
" Just getting really acquainted
with some of the little people of
the Green Forest and the Green
Meadows/' replied Blacky. " He
found them ready to meet him
more than halfway in friendship
and that some of them really
are his best friends."
"And now he is their best
friend/' spoke up Peter.
Blacky nodded. " Right, Peter/'
said he. " That is why the Quacks
are safe here and will be as
long as they stay."
CHAPTER XV
BLACKY DOES A LITTLE LOOKING
ABOUT
Do not take the word of others
That things are or are not so
When there is a chance that you may
Find out for yourself and know.
Blacky the Crow.
BLACKY THE CROW is a shrewd
fellow. He is one of the smartest
and shrewdest of all the little
people in the Green Forest and
on the Green Meadows. Every-
,'
body knows it. And because of
this, all his neighbors have a great
o o
deal of respect for him, despite his
mischievous ways.
Of course, Blacky had noticed
that Johnny Chuck had dug his
BLACKY LOOKS ABOUT 89
house deeper than usual and had
stuffed himself until he was fatter
than ever before. He had noticed
that Jerry Muskrat was making
the walls of his house thicker than
in other years, and that Paddy the
Beaver was doing the same thing
to his house. You know there is
very little that escapes the sharp
eyes of Blacky the Crow.
He had guessed what these
things meant. " They think we
are goino- to have a lono* hard.
c? O O 7
cold winter/' muttered Blacky to
himself. " Perhaps they know,
but I want to see some signs of
it for myself. They may be only
guessing. Anybody can do that,
and one guess is as good as
another.'
90 BLACKY THE CROW
Then he found Mr. and Mrs.
Quack, the Mallard Ducks, and
their children in the pond of
Paddy the Beaver and remembered
that they never had come down
from their home in the Far North
as early in the fall as this. Mrs.
Quack explained that Jack Frost
had already started south, and so
they had started earlier to keep
well ahead of him.
" Looks as if there may be some-
thing in this idea of a lom>\ hard,
o
cold winter/' thought Blacky, " but
perhaps the Quacks are only guess-
in^, too. I wouldn't take their
O 7
word for it any more than I would
the word of Johnny Chuck or Jerry
Muskrat or Paddy the Beaver. Ill
look about a little. 7
BLACKY LOOKS ABOUT 91
So after warning the Quacks to
remain in the pond of Paddy the
Beaver if they would be safe, Blacky
bade them good-by and flew away.
He headed straight for the Green
Meadows and Farmer Brown's corn-
field. A little of that yellow corn
would make a good breakfast.
When he reached the cornfield,
Blacky perched on top of a shock
of corn, for it already had been
cut and put in shocks in readiness
to be carted up to Farmer Brown's
barn. For a few minutes he sat
there silent and motionless, but
all the time his sharp eyes were
making sure that no enemy was
hiding: behind one of those brown
c5
shocks. When he was quite cer-
tain that things were as safe as
92 BLACKY THE CROW
they seemed, he picked out a plump
ear of corn and began to tear open
the husks, so as to get at the yellow
grains.
c>
" Seems to me these husks are
unusually thick," muttered Blacky,
as he tore at them with his stout
bill. " Don't remember ever hav-
ing seen them as thick as these.
o
Wonder if it just happens to be so
on this ear/'
Then, as a sudden thought
popped into his black head, he left
that ear and went to another. The
husks of this were as thick as
those on the first. He flew to
another shock and found the
husks there just the same. He
tried a third shock with the same
result.
BLACKY LOOKS ABOUT 93
" Huh, they are all alike/' said
he. Then he looked thoughtful
and for a few minutes sat perfectly
still like a black statue. " They
are right/' said he at last. " Yes,
Sir, they are right." Of course he
meant Johnny Chuck and Jerry
Muskrat and Paddy the Beaver
and the Quacks. " I don't know
how they know it, but they are
right ; we are going; to have a
O o O
long, hard, cold winter. I know
it myself now. I've found a sign.
Old Mother Nature has wrapped
this corn in extra thick husks, and
of course she has done it to protect
it. She doesn't do things without
a reason. We are going to have
a cold winter, or my name isn't
Blacky the Crow."
CHAPTER XVI
BLACKY FINDS OTHER SIGNS
A single fact may fail to prove you either right
or wrong ;
Confirm it with another and your proof will
then be strong.
Blacky the Crow.
AFTER his discovery that Old
Mother Nature had wrapped all the
ears of corn in extra thick husks,
Blacky had no doubt in his own
mind that Johnny Chuck and Jerry
Muskrat and Paddy the Beaver and
the Quacks were quite right in feel-
ing that the coming winter would
be long, hard and cold. But Blacky
long ago learned that it is n't wise or
wholly safe to depend altogether on
one thin.
BLACKY FINDS OTHER SIGNS 95
" Old Mother Nature never does
things by halves/ 3 thought Blacky,
as he sat on the fence post on the
Green Meadows, thinking over his
discovery of the thick husks on the
corn. " She would n't take care to
protect the corn that way and not
do as much for other things. There
must be other signs, if I am smart
enough to find them."
He lifted one black wing and
beo;an to set in order the feathers
o
beneath it. Suddenly he made
a funny little hop straight up.
" Well, I never ! ' he exclaimed,
as he spread his wings to regain
his balance. " I never did ! "
"Is that so?' piped a squeaky
little voice. " If you say you never
did, I suppose you never did,
96 BLACKY THE CROW
though I want the word of some
one else before I will believe it.
What is it you never did ? '
Blacky looked down. Peeping
up at him from the brown grass
were two bright little eyes.
" Hello, Danny Meadow Mouse ! "
exclaimed Blacky. " I have n't seen
you for a long time. I 've looked
for you several times lately."
"I don't doubt it. I don't
doubt it at all," squeaked Danny.
" You '11 never see me when you are
looking for me. That is, you won't
if I can help it. You won't if I
see you first."
Blacky chuckled. He knew what
Danny meant. When Blacky goes
looking for Danny Meadow Mouse,
it usually is in hope of having a
BLACKY FINDS OTHER SIGNS 97
Meadow Mouse dinner, and he
knew that Danny knew this. " I Ve
had my breakfast/' said Blacky,
"and it isn't dinner time yet."
"What is it you never did?'
persisted Danny, in his squeaky
voice.
" That was just an exclamation,"
explained Blacky. " I made a
discovery that surprised me so I
exclaimed right out/'
" What was it ? " demanded
Danny.
" It was that the feathers of my
coat are coming in thicker than I
ever knew them to before. I had n't
noticed it until I started to set
them in order a minute ago/
He buried his bill in the feathers
of his breast. "Yes, sir/' said he
98 BLACKY THE CROW
in a muffled voice, " they are
i/
coming in thicker than I ever knew
o
them to before. There is a lot of
down around the roots of them.
I am going to have the warmest
coat I Ve ever had/'
" Well, don't think you are the
only one/' retorted Danny. " My
fur never was so thick at this
time of year as it is now, and
,
it is the same way with Nanny
Meadow Mouse and all our children.
I suppose you know what it
means.'
" What does it mean ? ' asked
Blacky, just as if he did n't have
the least idea, although he had
guessed the instant he discovered
o
those extra feathers.
"It means we are going to have
BLACKY FINDS OTHER SIGNS 99
a long, hard, cold winter, and Old
Mother Nature is preparing us for
it," replied Danny, quite as if lie
knew all about it. " You '11 find
that everybody who does n't go south
or sleep all winter has a thicker
coat than usual. Hello! There is
old Roughleg the Hawk ! He has
come extra early this year. I
think 1 11 go back to warn Nanny."
Without another word Danny
disappeared in the brown grass.
Again Blacky chuckled. " More
sio;ns,' said he to himself. " More
o
There is n't a doubt that
we are going to have a hard
winter. I wonder if I can stand
it or if I 'd better go a little way
south, where it will be warmer/'
CHAPTER
BLACKY WATCHES A QUEER
PERFORMANCE
This much to me is very clear :
A thing not understood is queer.
Blacky the Crow.
BLACKY THE CBOW may be
right. Again lie may not be. If
he is right, it will account for a
o
lot of the queer people in the
world. They are not understood,
and so they are queer. At least,
that is what other people say, and
never once think that perhaps
they are the queer ones for not
understanding.
c5
But Blacky isn't like those
/
people who are satisfied not to
understand and to think other
A QUEER PERFORMANCE 101
people and things queer. He
does his best to understand. He
waits and watches and uses those
sharp eyes of his and those quick
wits of his until at last usually
he does understand.
The day of his discovery of Old
Mother Nature's si^ns that the
o
coming winter would be long, hard
and cold, Blacky paid a visit to
the Big River. Long ago he
discovered that many things are
to be seen on or beside the Big
River, things not to be seen else-
where. So there are few days in
which he does not get over there.
As he drew near the Big River,
he was very watchful and careful,
was Blacky, for this was the
season when hunters with terrible
102 BLACKY THE CROW
guns were abroad, and he had
discovered that they were likely
to be hiding along the Big River,
hoping to shoot Mr. or Mrs.
Quack or some of their relatives.
So he was very watchful as he
./
drew near the Big River, for he
had learned that it was danger-
ous to pass too near a hunter
with a terrible gun. More than
once he had been shot at. But
he had learned by these experi-
ences. Oh, yes, Blacky had
learned. For one thing, he had
learned to know a gun when he
saw it. For another thing, he had
learned just how far away one of
these dreadful <mns could be and
o
still hurt the one it was pointed
at, and to always keep just a
A QUEER PERFORMANCE 103
little farther away. Also he had
learned that a man or boy with-
out a terrible gun is quite harm-
less, and he had learned that
hunters with terrible guns are
tricky and sometimes hide from
those they seek to kill, so that
in the dreadful hunting season it
o
is best to look sharply before ap-
proaching any place.
On this afternoon, as he drew
near the Big River, he saw a
man who seemed to be very busy
on the shore of the Big River,
at a place where wild rice and
rushes grew for some distance out
in the water, for just there it was
shallow far out from the shore.
Blacky looked sharply for a
terrible gun. But the man had
o
104 BLACKY THE CROW
none with him and therefore was
not to be feared. Blacky boldly
drew near until he was able to
see what the man was doino*.
Then Blacky' s eves stretched
.' .
their widest and he almost cawed
right out with surprise. The
man was taking yellow corn from
o /
a bag, a handful at a time, and
throwing it out in the water.
o
Yes, Sir, that is what he was
doing, scattering nice yellow corn
among the rushes and wild rice
in the water !
" That 's a queer performance,"
muttered Blacky, as he watched.
/
" What is he throwing perfectly
good corn out in the water for ?
c?
He is n't planting it, for this is n't
the planting season. Besides, it
A QUEER PERFORMANCE 105
wouldn't grow in the water, any-
way. It is a shame to waste
nice corn like that. What is he
doing it for ? '
Blacky flew over to a tree
some distance away and alighted
in the top of it to watch the
queer performance. You know
Blacky has very keen eyes and
he can see a long distance. For
a while the man continued to
scatter corn and Blacky continued
to wonder what he was doing it
for. At last the man went away
in a boat. Blacky watched him
until he was out of sight. Then
he spread his wings and slowly
flew back and forth just above
the rushes and wild rice, at the
place where the man had been
106 BLACKY THE CROW
scattering the corn. He could
see some of the yellow grains
on the bottom. Presently he saw
something else. " Ha ! ' exclaimed
o
Blacky.
CHAPTER XVIII
BLACKY BECOMES VERY SUSPICIOUS
Of things you do not understand,
Beware !
They may be wholly harmless but
Beware !
You '11 find the older that you grow
That only things and folks you know
Are fully to be trusted, so
Beware !
Blacky the Crow.
THAT is one of Blacky' s wise
sayings, and he lives up to it.
It is one reason why he has come
to be regarded by all his neighbors
as one of the smartest of all who
live in the Green Forest and on
the Green Meadow. He seldom
gets into any real trouble because
O -'
he first makes sure there is no
108 BLACKY THE CROW
trouble to get into. When he dis-
covers something he does not un-
derstand, he is at once distrustful
of it.
As he watched a man scattering
o
yellow corn in the water from the
shore of the Big River he at once
became suspicious. He could n't
understand why a man should
throw good corn among the rushes
and wild rice in the water, and
because he could n't understand,
he at once began to suspect that
it was for no good purpose.
When the man left in a boat,
Blacky slowly flew over the rushes
*j .'
w T here the man had thrown the
corn, and presently his sharp eyes
made a discovery that caused him
to exclaim right out.
BLACKY BECOMES SUSPICIOUS 109
What was it Blacky had dis-
covered ? Only a few feathers. No
one with eyes less sharp than
Blacky' s would have noticed them.
And few would have o>iven them
o
a thought if they had noticed
them. But Blacky knew right
away that those were feathers
from a Duck. He knew that a
Duck, or perhaps a flock of Ducks,
had been resting or feeding in
there among those rushes, and
that in moving about they had
left those two or three downy
feathers.
" Ha ! " exclaimed Blacky. "Mr.
and Mrs. Quack or some of their
relatives have been here. It is
just the kind of a place Ducks
like. Also some Ducks like corn.
110 BLACKY THE CROW
If they should come back here
and find this corn, they would
have a feast, and they would be
sure to come again. That man
who scattered the corn here didn't
have a terrible gun, but that
does n't mean that he is n't a
hunter. He may come back again,
and then he may have a terrible
gun. I'm suspicious of that man.
I am so. I believe he put that
corn here for Ducks and I don't
believe he did it out of the kind-
ness of his heart. If it was
Farmer Brown's boy I would
know that all is well ; that he
was thinking of hungry 13 ticks,
with few places where they can
feed in safety, as they make the
long journey from the Far North
BLACKY BECOMES SUSPICIOUS 111
to the Sunny South. But it
was n't Farmer Brown's boy. I
don't like the looks of it. I don't
indeed. I'll keep watch of this
place and see what happens."
All the way to his favorite
perch in a certain big hemlock-
tree in the Green Forest, Blacky
kept thinking about that corn and
the man who had seemed to be
generous with it, and the more
he thought, the more suspicious
he became. He didn't like the
looks of it at all.
"I'll warn the Quacks to keep
away from there. I '11 do it the
very first thing in the morning,"
he muttered, as he prepared to
go to sleep. " If they have any
sense at all, they will stay in
112 BLACKY THE CROW
the pond of Paddy the Beaver.
But if they should go over to
the Big River, they would be
almost sure to find that corn,
and if they should once find it,
they would keep going back for
more. It may be all right, but
I don't like the looks of it."
And still full of suspicions,
Blacky went to sleep.
CHAPTER XIX
BLACKY MAKES MORE DISCOVERIES
Little things you fail to see
May important prove to be.
Blacky the Crow.
ONE of the secrets of Blacky 's
success in life is the fact that he
never fails to take note of little
things. Long ago he learned that
little things which in themselves
o
seem harmless and not worth no-
ticing may together prove the most
important things in life. So ? no
matter how unimportant a thing
may appear, Blacky examines it
closely with those sharp eyes of
his and remembers it.
The very first thing Blacky did,
114 BLACKY THE CROW
as soon as he was awake the
morning after he discovered the
man scattering corn in the rushes
at a certain place on the edge
of the Bio- River, was to fly over
<^ V
to the pond of Paddy the Beaver
and ao-ain warn Mr. and Mrs.
o
Quack to keep away from the
Big River, if they and their six
children would remain safe. Then
he p'ot some breakfast. He ate it
o
in a hurry and flew straight over
i/ O
to the Big River to the place
where he had seen that yellow
corn scattered.
Blacky was n't wholly surprised
to find Dusky the Black Duck,
own cousin to Mr. and Mrs.
Quack the Mallard Ducks, with
a number of his relatives in
MORE DISCOVERIES
amono; the rushes and wild rice
c
at the very place where that corn
had been scattered. They seemed
quite contented and in the best
of spirits. Blacky guessed why.
Not a single grain of that yellow
corn could Blacky see. He knew
the ways of Dusky and his rel-
atives. He knew that thev must
<u
have come in there just at dusk
the night before and at once had
found that corn. He knew that
they would remain hiding there
until frightened out, and that then
they would spend the day in
some little pond where they would
not be likely to be disturbed or
where at least no danger could
approach them without being seen
in plenty of time. There they
116 BLACKY THE CROW
would rest all day, and when the
Black Shadows came creeping out
from the Purple Hills, they would
return to that place on the Big
River to feed, for that is the
time when they like best to hunt
for their food.
Dusky looked up as Blacky
flew over him, but Blacky said
nothing, and Dusky said nothing.
But if Blacky did n't use his
tongue, he did use his eyes. He
saw just on the edge of the shore
what looked like a lot of small
bushes growing close together on
the very edge of the water. Mixed
in with them were a lot of the
brown rushes. They looked very
harmless and innocent. But Blacky
knew every foot of that shore
MORE DISCOVERIES 117
along the Big River, and lie knew
that those bushes hadn't been
there during the summer. He
knew that they hadn't grown
there.
He flew directly over them.
Just back of them were a couple
of logs. Those logs hadn't been
there when he passed that way a
few days before. He was sure of
it.
" Ha ! " exclaimed Blacky under
his breath. " Those look to me
as if they might be very handy,
very handy indeed, for a hunter
to sit on. Sitting there behind
those bushes, he would be hidden
from any Duck who might come
in to look for nice yellow corn
scattered out there among the
118 BLACKY THE CROW
rushes. It does n't look rio-ht to
o
me. No, Sir, it does n't look
right to me. I think 1 11 keep
an eye on this place."
So Blacky came back to the
Big River several times that day.
The second time back he found
that Dusky the Black Duck and
his relatives had left. When lie
returned in the afternoon, he saw
the same man he had seen there
the afternoon before, and he was
doing the same thing, - scattering
yellow corn out in the rushes.
And as before, he went away in
a boat.
"I don't like it," muttered
Blacky, shaking his black head.
"I don't like it."
CHAPTER XX
BLACKY DROPS A HINT
When you see another's danger
Warn him though he be a stranger.
Blacky the Crow.
EVERY day for a week a man
/
came in a boat to scatter corn in
the rushes at a certain point
along the bank of the Big River,
and every day Blacky the Crow
watched him and shook his black
head and talked to himself and
told himself that he did n't like
it, and that he was sure that it
was for no good purpose. Some-
times Blacky watched from a
distance, and sometimes he flew
riht over the man. But never
120 BLACKY THE CROW
once did the man have a gun
with him.
Every morning, very early,
Blacky flew over there, and every
morning he found Dusky the
Black Duck and his flock in the
rushes and wild rice at that par-
ticular place, and he knew that
they had been there all night. He
knew that they had come in
there just at dusk the night be-
fore, to feast on the yellow corn
the man had scattered there in
the afternoon.
"It is no business of mine
what those Ducks do/' muttered
Blacky to himself, " but as surely
as my tail feathers are black,
something is going to happen
to Borne of them one of these
BLACKY DROPS A HINT 121
days. That man may be fooling
them, but he isn't fooling me.
Not a bit of it. He hasn't had
a un with him once when I
o
have seen him, but just the same
he is a hunter. I feel it in my
bones. He knows those silly
Ducks come in here every night
for that corn he puts out.
He knows that after they have
been here a few times and noth-
ing has frightened them, they
will be so sure that it is a safe
place that they will not be the
least bit suspicious. Then he
will hide behind those bushes he
has placed close to the edge of the
water and wait for them with his
terrible gun. That is what he will
do, or my name is n't Blacky.' 3
BLACKY THE CROW
Finally Blacky decided to drop
a hint to Dusky the Black Duck.
%J
So the next morning he stopped
for a call. " Good morning/'
said he, as Dusky swam in
just in front of him. " I hope
you are feeling as fine as you
look/'
" Quack, quack/' replied Dusky.
" When Blacky the Crow flatters,
he hopes to gain something. What
is it this time ? :
" Not a thing/' replied Blacky.
" On my honor, not a thing.
There is nothing for me here,
o
though there seems to be plenty
for you and your relatives, to
/ /
judge by the fact that I find you
in this same place every morning.
What is it ? "
GOOD MORNING," SAID HE, AS DuSKY SWAM IN
JUST IN FRONT OF HIM. Page 122.
BLACKY DROPS A HINT 123
" Corn," replied Dusky in a
low voice, as if afraid some one
might overhear him. " Nice yel-
low corn/'
" Corn ! ' exclaimed Blacky, as
if very much astonished. " How
does corn happen to be way over
here in the water?'
Dusky shook his head. " Don't
ask me, for I can't tell you/ 3
said he. " I have n't the least
idea. All I know is that every
evening when we arrive, we find
o
it here. How it gets here, I
don't know, and furthermore I
don't care. It is enough for me
that it is here."
" I 've seen a man over here
every afternoon," said Blacky. " I
thought he mio;ht be a hunter."
o O
124 BLACKY THE CROW
" Did he have a terrible gun? '
asked Dusky suspiciously.
"No-o," replied Blacky.
" Then he is n't a hunter/' de-
clared Dusky, looking much re-
lieved.
"But perhaps one of these
days he Avill have one and will
wait for you to come in for your
dinner/ 3 suggested Blacky. " He
could hide behind these bushes,
you know/ 3
" Nonsense/' retorted Dusky,
tossing his head. " There has n't
been a sign of danger here since
o o
we have been here. I know you,
Blacky ; you are jealous because
we find plenty to eat here, and
you find nothing. You are try-
ing to scare us. But I '11 tell
BLACKY DROPS A HINT 125
you right now, you can't scare
us away from such splendid eat-
ing as we have had here. So
there ! "
XXI
AT LAST BLACKY IS SURE
Who for another conquers fear
Is truly brave, it is most clear.
Blacky the Crow.
IT was late in the afternoon,
and Blacky the Crow was on his
way to the Green Forest. As
usual, he went around by the Big
River to see if that man was scatter-
ing corn for the Ducks. He was n't
o
there. No one was to be seen along
the bank of the Big River.
" He has n't come to-day, or else
he came early and has left," thought
Blacky. And then his sharp eyes
caught sight of something that made
him turn aside and make straight
AT LAST BLACKY IS SURE 127
for a certain tree, from the top of
which he could see all that went
on for a lon; distance. What was
o
it Blacky saw ? It was a boat
coming down the Bio; River.
o o
Blacky sat still and watched.
Presently the boat turned in among
the rushes, and a moment later a
man stepped out on the shore. It
was the same man Blacky had
watched scatter corn in the rushes
every day for a week. There was n't
the least doubt about it, it was
the same man.
"Ha, ha!" exclaimed Blacky,
and nearly lost his balance in his
excitement. " Ha, ha ! It is just
as I thought ! " You see Blacky 7 s
sharp eyes had seen that the man
was carrying something, and that
128 BLACKY THE CROW
something was a gun, a terrible
gun. Blacky knows a terrible gun
as far as he can see it.
The hunter, for of course that
is what he was, tramped along the
shore until he reached the bushes
which Blacky had noticed close to
the water and which he knew had
not grown there. The hunter
looked out over the Bio; River.
o
Then he walked along where he
had scattered corn the day before.
Not a grain was to be seen. This
seemed to please him. Then he
went back to the bushes and sat
down on a log behind them, his
terrible gun across his knees.
" I was sure of it/ 3 muttered
Blacky. " He is going to wait
there for those Ducks to come in,
AT LAST BLACKY IS SURE 129
and then something dreadful will
happen. What terrible creatures
these hunters are ! They don't know
what fairness is. No, Sir, they
don't know what fairness is. He
has put food there day after day,
where Dusky the Black Duck and
his flock would be sure to find it,
and has waited until they have
become so sure there is no danger
that they are no longer suspicious.
He knows they will feel so sure
that all is safe that they will come
in without looking for danger.
Then he will fire that terrible gun
and kill them without giving them
any chance at all.
" Reddy Fox is a sly, clever
hunter, but he wouldn't do a thing
like that. Neither would Old Man
130 BLACKY THE CROW
Coyote or anybody else who wears
fur or feathers. They might hide
and try to catch some one by
surprise. That is all right, because
each of us is supposed to be on
the watch for things of that sort.
o
Oh, dear, what 's to be done ? It
is time I was getting home to the
& o
Green Forest. The Black Shadows
will soon come creeping out from
the Purple Hills, and I must be
safe in my hemlock-tree by then.
I would be scared to death to be
out after dark. Yet those Ducks
ought to be warned. Oh, dear,
what shall I do?"
Blacky peered over at the Green
Forest and then over toward the
Purple Hills, behind which jolly,
round, red Mr. Sun would go to
AT LAST BLACKY IS SUliE 131
bed very shortly. He shivered as
he thought of the Black Shadows
o
that soon would come swiftly out
from the Purple Hills across the
Bio; River and over the Green
o
Meadows. With them might come
Hooty the Owl, and Hooty would n't
object in the least to a Crow dinner.
He wished he was in that hemlock-
tree that very minute.
Then Blacky looked at the hunter
with his terrible gun and thought
of what might happen, what would
be almost sure to happen, unless
those Ducks were warned. " I '11
wait a little while longer." muttered
o
Blacky, and tried to feel brave.
But instead he shivered.
CHAPTER XXII
BLACKY GOES HOME HAPPY
No greater happiness is won
Than through a deed for others done.
Blacky the Crow.
BLACKY sat in the top of a
tree near the bank of the Bio;
o
River and could n't make up his
mind what to do. He wanted to
get home to the big, thick hem-
lock-tree in the Green Forest
before dusk, for Blacky is afraid
of the dark. That is, he is
afraid to be out after dark.
" Go aloiio; home/ 5 said a voice
o
inside him, " there is hardly
time now for you to get there
before the Black Shadows arrive.
BLACKY GOES HOME HAPPY 133
Don't waste any more time here.
What may happen to those silly
Ducks is no business of yours,
and there is nothing you can do,
anyway. Go along home/ 3
" Wait a few minutes," said
another little voice down inside
him. " Don't be a coward. You
ought to warn Dusky the Black
Duck and his flock that a hunter
with a terrible gun is waiting for
them. Is it true that it is no
business of yours what happens
to those Ducks ? Think again,
Blacky ; think again. It is the
duty of each one who sees a
common danger to warn his
o
neighbors. If something dreadful
should happen to Dusky because
you were afraid of the dark, you
134 BLACKY THE CROW
never would be comfortable in
your own mind. Stay a little
/ /
while and keep watch/'
Not five minutes later Blacky
saw something that made him, oh,
so glad he had kept watch. It
was a swiftly moving black line
just above the water far down
the Bio; River, and it was coming
o o
up. He knew what that black
line was. He looked over at the
hunter hiding behind some bushes
close to the edge of the water.
The hunter was crouching with
o
his terrible <mii in his hands and
o
was peeping over the bushes,
watching: that black line. He.
o
too, knew what it was. It was
a flock of Ducks flying.
Blacky was all ashake again,
BLACKY GOES HOME HAPPY 135
but tins time it was n't with fear
of being caught away from home
in the dark ; it was with excite-
ment, lie knew that those Ducks
had become so eager for more of
that corn, that delicious yellow
corn which every night for a week
they had found scattered in the
rushes just in front of the place
where that hunter was now hiding,
that they could n't Avait for the
comino* of the Black Shadows.
o
They were so sure there was no
danger that they were coining in
to eat without waiting for the
Black Shadows, as they usually
did. And Blacky was glad. Per-
haps now he could give them
warning*.
o
Up the middle of the Big
136 BLACKY THE CROW
River, flying just above the water,
swept the flock with Dusky at its
head. How swiftly they flew, those
nine big birds ! Blacky envied
them their swift wings. On past
the hidden hunter but far out
over the Big River they swept.
For just a minute Blacky thought
they were going on up the river
and not coming in to eat, after
all. Then they turned toward
the other shore, swept around in
a circle and headed straight in to-
ward that hidden hunter. Blacky
glanced at him and saw that he
o
was ready to shoot.
Almost without thinking, Blacky
spread his wings and started out
from that tree. " Caw, caw, caw,
caw, caw ! ' he shrieked at the top
BLACKY GOES HOME HAPPY 137
of his lungs. " Caw, caw, caw,
caw, caw ! ' It was his danger
cry that everybody on the Green
Meadows and in the Green Forest
knows.
Instantly Dusky turned and
began to climb up, up, up, the
other Ducks following him until,
as they passed over the hidden
hunter, they were so high it was
useless for him to shoot. He did
put up his gun and aim at them,
but he did n't shoot. You see, he
did n't want to frighten them so
that they would not return. Then
the flock turned and started off
in the direction from which they
had come, and in a few minutes
they were merely a black line dis-
appearing far down the Big River.
138 BLACKY THE CROW
Blacky headed straight for the
Green Forest, chuckling as he flew.
He knew that those Ducks would
not return until after dark. He
had saved them this time, and he
was so happy he did n't even
notice the Black Shadows. And
the hunter stood up and shook
his fist at Blacky the Crow.
CHAPTER XXIII
BLACKY CALLS FARMER BROWN'S BOY
BLACKY awoke in the best of
spirits. Late the afternoon before
he had saved Dusky the Black
Duck and his flock from a hunter
with a terrible gun. He wasn't
quite sure whether he was most
happy in having saved those
Ducks by warning them just in
time, or in having spoiled the
plans of that hunter. He hates
a hunter with a terrible gun, does
Blacky. For that matter, so do
all the little people of the Green
Forest and the Green Meadows.
So Blacky started out for his
breakfast in high spirits. After
140 BLACKY THE CROW
breakfast, lie flew over to the Big
River to see if Dusky the Black
Duck was feeding in the rushes
o
along the shore. Dusky was n't,
and Blacky guessed that he and
J o
his flock had been so frightened
o
by that warning that they had
kept away from there the night
before.
" But they 11 come back after
a night or so/' muttered Blacky,
as he alighted in the top of a
tree, the same tree from which he
had watched the hunter the after-
noon before. " They '11 come back,
and so will that hunter. If he
sees me around again, he '11 try
to shoot me. I 've done all I
can do. Anyway, Dusky ought
to have sense enough to be sus-
BLACKY CALLS AID 141
picious of this place after that
warning. Hello, who is that ? I
do believe it is Farmer Brown's
boy. I wish he would come over
here. If he should find out about
that hunter, perhaps he would do
something to drive him away.
I'll see if I can call him over
here/'
Blacky began to call in the
way he does when he has dis-
covered something and wants
others to know about it. " Caw,
caw, caaw, caaw, caw, caw, caaw ! '
screamed Blacky, as if greatly
excited.
Now Farmer Brown's boy,
having no work to do that morn-
ing, had started for a tramp over
the Green Meadows, hoping to
142 BLACKY THE CROW
see some of his little friends in
feathers and fur. He heard the
excited cawing of Blacky and at
once turned in that direction.
" That black rascal has found
something over on the shore of
~
the Bio* River/' said Farmer
o
Brown's boy to himself. " I '11 go
over there to see what it is.
There is n't much escapes the
sharp eyes of that black busybody.
He has led me to a lot of in-
teresting things, one time and
another. There he is on the top
of that tree over by the Big
River."
As Farmer Brown's boy drew
near, Blacky flew down and dis-
appeared below the bank. Farmer
Brown's boy chuckled. " What-
HE LOOKED EAGERLY ALONG THE SHORE. Page 143.
BLACKY CALLS AID 143
ever it is, it is right down there/'
he muttered.
He walked forward rapidly but
quietly, and presently he reached
the edge of the bank. Up flew
Blacky cawing wildly, and pre-
tending to be scared half to death.
Again Farmer Brown's boy
chuckled. " You 're just making
believe," he declared. " You 're
trying to make me believe that
I have surprised you, when all
the time you knew I was coming
and have been waiting for me.
Now, what have you found over
here ? "
He looked eagerly along the
shore, and at once he saw a row
of low bushes close to the edge
o
of the water. He knew what it
144 BLACKY THE CROW
was instantly. " A Duck blind ! "
/
he exclaimed. " A hunter has
built a blind over here from which
to shoot Ducks. I wonder if he
has killed any yet. I hope not/ 3
He went down to the blind,
for that is what a Duck hunter's
hiding-place is called, and looked
about. A couple of grains of
corn just inside the blind caught
his eyes, and his face darkened.
" That fellow has been baiting
Ducks," thought he. " He has
been putting out corn to get them
to come here regularly. My, how
O v v '
I hate that sort of thing ! It is
bad enough to hunt them fairly,
but to feed them and then kill
them - ugh ! I wonder if he has
shot any yet."
BLACKY CALLS AID 145
He looked all about keenly, and
his face cleared. He knew that
if that hunter had killed any
Ducks, there would be tell-tale
feathers in the blind, and there
were none.
CHAPTER XXIV
FARMER BROWN'S BOY DOES SOME
THINKING
FARMER BROWN'S boy sat on
the bank of the Bio- River in a
o
brown study. That means that
he was thinking very hard.
Blacky the Crow sat in the top
of a tall tree a short distance
away and watched him. Blacky
was silent now, and there was a
knowing look in his shrewd little
eyes. In calling Farmer Brown's
boy over there, he had done all
lie could, and he was quite sat-
isfied to leave the matter to
Farmer Brown's boy.
" A hunter has made that blind
FARMER BROWN'S BOY THINKS 147
to shoot Black Ducks from/'
thought Farmer Brown's boy,
" and he has been baiting them
in here by scattering corn for
them. Black Ducks are about
the smartest Ducks that fly, but
if they have been coming in here
every evening and finding corn
and no sign of danger, they prob-
ably think it perfectly safe here
and come straight in without being
at all suspicious. To-night, or
some night soon, that hunter will
be waiting for them.
66 1 guess the law that permits
hunting Ducks is all right, but
there ought to be a law against
baiting them in. That is n't hunt-
ing. No, Sir, that is n't hunting.
If this land were my father's, I
148 BLACKY THE CROW
would know what to do. I would
put up a sign saying that this
was private property and no
shooting was allowed. But it is n't
my father's land, and that hunter
has a perfect right to shoot here.
He has just as much right here
as I have. I wish I could stop
him, but I don't see how I can."
A frown puckered the freckled
face of Farmer Brown's boy.
You see, he was thinking very
hard, and when he does that he
is very apt to frown.
" I suppose," he muttered, " I
can tear down his blind. He
would n't know who did it. But
that would n't do much good ; he
would build another. Besides, it
would n't be right. He has a
FARMER BROWN'S BOY THINKS 149
perfect right to make a blind
here, and having made it, it is
his and I haven't any right to
touch it. I won't do a thing I
have n't a right to do. That
would n't be honest. I 've got to
think of some other way of saving
those Ducks."
The frown on his freckled face
grew deeper, and for a long time
he sat without moving. Suddenly
his face cleared, and he jumped
to his feet. He began to chuckle.
" I have it ! " he exclaimed. " I '11
do a little shooting myself!"
Then he chuckled again and
started for home. Presently he
began to whistle, a way he has
when he is in good spirits.
Blacky the Crow watched him
150 BLACKY THE CROW
go, and Blacky was well satisfied.
He didn't know what Farmer
Brown's boy was planning to do,
but he had a feeling that he
was planning to do something,
and that all would be well.
Perhaps Blacky would n't have
felt so sure could he have under-
stood what Farmer Brown's boy
had said about doing a little
shooting himself.
o
As it was, Blacky flew off
about his own business, quite
satisfied that now all would be
well, and he need worry no more
about those Ducks. None of the
little people of the Green Forest
and the Green Meadows knew
Farmer Brown's boy better than
did Blacky the Crow. None knew
FARMER BROWN'S BOY THINKS 151
better than he that Farmer
Brown's boy was their best friend.
"It is all right now/' chuckled
Blacky. "It is all right now.' 5
And as the cheery whistle of
Farmer Brown's boy floated back
to him on the Merry Little
Breezes, he repeated it : "It is
all right now."
CHAPTER XXV
BLACKY GETS A DREADFUL SHOCK
When friends prove false, whom may we trust?
The springs of faith are turned to dust.
Blacky the Crow.
BLACKY THE CEOW was in the top
of his favorite tree over near the
Big River early this afternoon. He
did n't know what was going to
happen, but he felt in his bones
that something was, and he meant
to be on hand to see. For a long
time he sat there, seeing nothing
unusual. At last he spied a tiny
figure far away across the Green
Meadows. Even at that distance
he knew who it was ; it was Farmer
A DREADFUL SHOCK 153
Brown's boy, and he was coming
toward the Bi River.
" I thought as much/' chuckled
Blacky. " He is coming over here
to drive that hunter away."
The tiny figure grew larger. It
was Farmer Brown's boy beyond
a doubt. Suddenly Blacky's eyes
opened so wide that they looked as
if they were in danger of popping
out of his head. He had discovered
that Farmer Brown's boy was carry-
ing something and that that some-
thing was a <mn ! Yes. Sir. Farmer
O O
Brown's boy was carrying a terrible
gun ! If Blacky could have rubbed
his eyes, he would have done so, just
to make sure that there was nothing
o
the matter with them.
" A gun ! ' croaked Blacky.
154 BLACKY THE CROW
" Farmer Brown's boy with a
terrible gun ! What does it mean ? "
Nearer came Farmer Brown's
bov, and Blacky could see that
terrible gun plainly now. Suddenly
an idea popped into his head.
" Perhaps he is going to shoot that
hunter ! " thought Blacky, and
somehow he felt better.
Farmer Brown's boy reached the
t/
Big River at a point some distance
below the blind built bv the hunter.
,
He laid his gun down on the bank
and went down to the edo a e of the
o
water. The rushes grew very thick
there, and for a while Farmer
Brown's boy was very busy amono*
/ / . o
them. Blacky from his high perch
could watch him, and as he
watched, he grew more and more
A DREADFUL SHOCK 155
puzzled. It looked very much as
if Farmer Brown's bov was building
j
a blind much like that of the
hunter's. At last he carried an
old loo; down there, got his gun.
O 7 O o
and sat down just as the hunter
had done in his blind the afternoon
before. He was quite hidden there,
excepting from a place high up like
Blacky" s perch.
" I I I do believe he is going
to try to shoot those Ducks himself,"
gasped Blacky. " I would n't have
believed it if any one had told me.
No, Sir, I would n't have believed
it. I I can't believe it now.
Farmer Brown's boy hunting with
a terrible gun ! Yet I 've got to
believe my own eyes."
A noise up river caught his
156 BLACKY THE CROW
attention. It was the noise of oars
in a boat. There was the hunter,
rowing down the Big River. Just
a> he had done the dav before, he
,
came ashore above his blind and
walked down to it.
" This is no place for me."
muttered Blacky. " He'll remember
*.
that I scared those Ducks vest er dav,
i .' '
and as likelv as not he '11 try to
i/ t
shoot me."
Blacky spread his black wings
i/ e?
and hurriedly left the tree-top,
heading for another tree farther
back on the Green Meadows where
he would be safe, but from which
lie could not see as well. There he
sat until the Black Shadows warned
him that it was high time for him to
o
be getting back to the Green Forest.
A DREADFUL SHOCK 157
He had to hurry, for it was
i/
later than usual, and he was afraid
to be out after dark. Just as he
reached the Green Forest he heard
a faint " bang, bang ' from over
by the Big River, and he knew
that it came from the place where
Farmer Brown's boy was hiding in
.' O
the rushes.
" It is true," croaked Blacky.
" Farmer Brown's boy has turned
e'
hunter." It was such a dreadful
shock to Blacky that it was a lono-
/
time before he could go to sleep.
CHAPTER XXVI
WHY THE HUNTER GOT NO DUCKS
THE hunter who had come
down the Bii>' River in a boat
c^
and landed near the place where
Dusky the Black Duck and his
flock had found nice yellow corn
.
scattered in the rushes nio-lit after
^_
nio'ht saw Blacky the Crow leave
t
the top of a certain tree as he
approached.
" It is well for you that you did n't
C. I
wait for me to o-et nearer." said the
o
hunter. " You are smart enough
o
to know that you can't play the
same trick on me twice. You
frightened those Ducks away last
WHY THE HUNTER FAILED 159
night, but if you try it again,
you '11 be shot as surely as your
coat is black."
Then the hunter went to his
blind which, you know, was the
hiding-place he had made of
bushes and rushes, and behind
this he sat down with his terrible
gun to wait and watch for Dusky
the Black Duck and his flock.
Now you remember that far-
ther along the shore of the Big
o
River was Farmer Brown's boy,
hiding in a blind he had made
that afternoon. The hunter
could n't see him at all. He
didn't have the least idea that
any one else was anywhere near.
" With that Crow out of the way,
I think I will get some Ducks
160 BLACKY THE CROW
to-night ," thought the hunter and
looked at his gun to make sure
that it was ready.
Over in the West, jolly, round,
red Mr. Sun started to 2:0 to bed
o
behind the Purple Hills, and the
Black Shadows came creeping out.
Far down the Big River the hunter
saw a swiftly moving black line
just above the water. " Here
they come/ 3 he muttered, as he
eagerly watched that black line
^
draw nearer.
Twice those big black birds
circled around over the Big River
opposite where the hunter was
crouching behind his blind. It
was plain that Dusky, their leader,
remembered Blacky' s warning the
night before. But this time
WHY THE HUNTER FAILED 161
there was no warning. Every-
thing appeared safe. Once more
the flock circled and then headed
straight for that place where they
hoped to find more corn. The
hunter crouched lower. They
were almost near enough for him
o
to shoot when " bang, bang '
went a gun a short distance
away.
Instantly Dusky and his flock
turned and on swift wings swung;
o o
off and up the river. If ever
there was a disappointed hunter,
it was the one crouching in that
blind. " Somebody else is hunt-
ing, and he spoiled my shot that
time/' he muttered. " He must
have a blind farther down. Prob-
ably some other Ducks I didn't
162 BLACKY THE CROW
see came in to him. I wonder
if he got them. Here 's hoping
that next time those Ducks come
in here first."
He once more made himself
comfortable and settled down for
a long wait. The Black Shadows
crept out from the farther bank
of the Big River. Jolly, round
red Mr. Sun had gone to bed,
and the first little star was twin-
kling high overhead. It was very
still and peaceful. From out in
the middle of the Big River
sounded a low "quack"; Dusky
and his flock were swimming in
this time. Presently the hunter
could see a silver line on the
water, and then he made out
nine black spots. In a few min-
WHY THE HUNTER FAILED 163
utes those Ducks would be where
he could shoot them.
66 Bano;, bans; ' went that ffun
cV O O
below him again. With a roar
of wings, Dusky and his flock
were in the air and away. That
hunter stood up and said things,
and they were not nice things.
He knew that those Ducks would
not come back again that night,
and that once more he must go
home empty-handed. But first he
would find out who that other
hunter was and what luck he had
had, so he tramped down the
shore to where that gun had
seemed to be. He found the
blind of Farmer Brown's boy, but
there was no one there. You
see, as soon as he had fired his
164 BLACKY THE CROW
gun the last time, Farmer Brown's
boy had slipped out and away.
And as he tramped across the
Green Meadows toward home with
his gun, he chuckled. " He did n't
get those Ducks this time/ said
c5
Farmer Brown's boy.
CHAPTER XXVII
THE HUNTER GIVES UP
BLACKY THE CEOW did n't know
what to think. He could n't make
himself believe that Farmer Brown's
boy had really turned hunter, yet
what else could he believe ? Had n't
he with his own eyes seen Farmer
Brown's boy with a terrible gun
hide in rushes along the Big River
and wait for Dusky the Black Duck
and his flock to come in ? And
hadn't he with his own ears heard
the " bang, bang " of that very gun ?
The very first thing the next
morning Blacky had hastened over
to the place where Farmer Brown's
166 BLACKY THE CROW
boy had hidden in the rushes. With
sharp eyes he looked for feathers,
that would tell the tale of a
Duck killed. But there were
no feathers. There wasn't a
thing to show that anything so
dreadful had happened. Perhaps
Farmer Brown's boy had missed
when he shot at those Bucks.
Blacky shook his head and decided
to say nothing to anybody about
Farmer Brown's boy and that
terrible im.
o
You may be sure that early in
. t/
the afternoon he was perched in
the top of his favorite tree over
by the Big River. His heart sank,
just as on the afternoon before,
when he saw r Farmer Brown's boy
with his terrible gun trudging across
THE HUNTER GIVES UP 167
the Green Meadows to the Big
River. Instead of going to the
same hiding place he made a new
one farther down.
Then came the hunter a little
earlier than usual. Instead of
stopping at his blind, he walked
straight to the blind Farmer Brown's
c)
boy had first made. Of course,
there was no one there. The
hunter looked both glad and dis-
appointed. He went back to his
own blind and sat down, and while
he watched for the coming of the
Ducks, he also watched that other
blind to see if the unknown hunter
of the night before would appear.
Of course he did n't, and when at
last the hunter saw the Ducks
comin he was sure that this
168 BLACKY THE CROW
time he would get some of
them.
But the same thing happened
as on the night before. Just as
o
those Ducks were almost near
enough, a gun went " bang, bang,"
and away went the Ducks. They
did n't come back again, and once
more a disappointed hunter went
home without any.
The next afternoon he was on
hand very early. He was there
before Farmer Brown's boy arrived,
and when he did come, of course
the hunter saw him. He walked
down to where Farmer Brown's boy
was hiding in the rushes. " Hello ! '
said he. " Are you the one who
was shooting here last night and
the night before ? 5
THE HUNTER GIVES UP 169
Farmer Brown's boy grinned.
"Yes," said he.
" What luck did you have ? '
asked the hunter.
" Fine/' replied Farmer Brown's
boy.
" How many Ducks did you
get ? ' asked the hunter.
Farmer Brown's boy grinned
more broadly than before. " None,"
said he. "I guess I 'm not a very
good shot.' 3
" Then what did you mean by
saying you had fine luck ? ' de-
manded the hunter.
" Oh, ' replied Farmer Brown's
boy, "I had the luck to see those
Ducks and the fun of shooting,"
and he grinned again.
The hunter lost patience. He
170 BLACKY THE CROW
tried to order Farmer Brown's boy
away. But the latter said he had
as much right there as the hunter
o
had, and the hunter knew that this
was so. Finally he gave up, and
muttering angrily, he went back to
his blind. Again the gun of Farmer
Brown's boy frightened away the
Ducks just as they were coming
in.
The next afternoon there was
no hunter nor the next, though
Farmer Brown's boy was there.
The hunter had decided that it
was a waste of time to hunt there
while Farmer Brown's boy was
about.
CHAPTER XXVIH
BLACKY HAS A TALK WITH DUSKY
THE BLACK DUCK
Doubt not a friend, but to the last
Grip hard on faith and hold it fast.
Blacky the Crow.
EVERY morning Blacky the
Crow visited the rushes along
the shore of the Big River, hop-
ing to find Dusky the Black
Duck. He was anxious, was
Blacky. He feared that Dusky
or some of his flock had been
killed, and he wanted to know.
You see, he knew that Farmer
Brown's boy had been shoot-
ing over there. At last, early
one morning, he found Dusky
and his flock in the rushes
172 BLACKY THE CROW
and wild rice. Eagerly he counted
them. There were nine. Not
one was missing. Blacky sighed
with relief and dropped down on
the shore close to where Dusky
was taking a nap.
" Hello ! " said Blacky.
Dusky awoke with a start.
" Hello, yourself," said he.
" I 've heard a terrible gun
banging over here, and I was
afraid you or some of your flock
had been shot," said Blacky.
" We have n't lost a feather,"
declared Dusky. " That gun
was n't fired at us, anyw T ay."
" Then who was it fired at ? '
demanded Blacky.
*" I have n't the least idea,"
replied Dusky.
BLACKY TALKS WITH DUSKY 173
" Have you seen any other Ducks
about here ? ' inquired Blacky.
" Not one/' was Dusky's prompt
reply. " If there had been any,
I guess we would have known it."
" Did you know that when
that terrible gun was fired there
was another terrible gun right
over behind those bushes ? ; asked
Blacky.
Dusky shook his head. " No/'
said he, "but I learned long ago
that where there is one terrible
gun there is likely to be more,
and so when I heard that one
bang, I led my flock away from
here in a hurry. We did n't
want to take any chances."
"It is a lucky thing you did/'
replied Blacky. " There was a
174 BLACKY THE CROW
hunter hiding behind those bushes
all the time. I warned you of
him once/'
"That reminds me that I
have n't thanked you/ 5 said
Dusky. " I knew there was
something wrong over here, but
o o
I did n't know what. So it was
a hunter. I guess it is a good
thing that I heeded your warn-
" I guess it is/' retorted Blacky
dryly. "Do you come here in
daytime instead of night now ? '
"No/' replied Dusky. "We
come in after dark and spend
the night here. There is nothing
to fear from hunters after dark.
We've given up coming here un-
til late in the evening. And
BLACKY TALKS WITH DUSKY 175
L
since we did that, we have n't
heard a gun/'
Blacky gossiped a while longer,
then flew off to look for his
breakfast ; and as he flew his
heart was light. His shrewd
little eyes twinkled.
" I ought to have known Farmer
o
Brown's boy better than even to
suspect him/ 3 thought he. " I
know now why he had that terri-
ble gun. It was to frighten those
Ducks away so that the hunter
would not have a chance to shoot
them. He wasn't shooting at
anything. He just fired in the
air to scare those Ducks away.
I know it just as well as if I
had seen him do it. I '11 never
doubt Farmer Brown's boy again.
176 BLACKY THE CROW
And I 'm glad I did n't say a
word to anybody about seeing
him with a terrible gun.'
o
Blacky was right. Farmer
Brown's boy had taken that way
of making sure that the hunter
who had first baited those Ducks
with yellow corn scattered in the
rushes in front of his hiding
o
place should have no chance to
kill any of them. While appear-
ing to be an enemy, he really
had been a friend of Dusky the
Black Duck and his flock.
CHAPTER XXIX
BLACKY DISCOVERS AN EGG
BLACKY is fond of eggs, as
you know. In this he is a great
deal like other people, Farmer
Brown's boy for instance. But
as Blacky cannot keep hens, as
Farmer Brown's boy does, he is
obliged to steal eggs or else go
without. If you come right
down to plain, everyday truth, I
suppose Blacky is n't so far wrong-
when he insists that he is no
more of a thief than Farmer
Brown's boy. Blacky says that
the eggs which the hens lay be-
long to the hens, and that he,
Blacky has just as much right to
178 BLACKY THE CROW
take them as Farmer Brown's
boy. He quite overlooks the
fact that Farmer Brown's boy
feeds the biddies and takes the
eggs as pay. Anyway, that is
what Farmer Brown's boy says,
but I do not know whether or
not the biddies understand it that
way.
So Blacky the Crow cannot
see why he should not help him-
self to an egg when he gets the
chance. He does n't o i et the
o
chance very often to steal eggs
from the hens, because usually
they lay their eggs in the hen-
house, and Blacky is too suspicious
to venture inside. The eggs he
Oo
does get are mostly those of his
neighbors in the Green Forest
BLACKY DISCOVERS AN EGG 179
and the Old Orchard. But once
in a great while some foolish hen
o
will make a nest outside the hen-
house somewhere, and if Blacky
happens to find it the black
scamp watches every minute he
can spare from other mischief for
a chance to steal an egg.
Now Blacky knows just what
a rogue Farmer Brown's boy
thinks he is, and for this reason
Blacky is very careful about ap-
proaching Farmer Brown or any
other man until he has made
sure that he runs no risk of
being shot. Blacky knows quite
as well as any one what a gun
looks like. He also knows that
without a terrible gun, there is
little Farmer Brown or any one
180 BLACKY THE CROW
else can do to him. So when he
sees Farmer Brown out in his
fields, Blacky often will fly right
over him and shout " Caw, caw,
caw, ca-a-w ! ' in the most pro-
voking way, and Farmer Brown's
boy insists that he has seen
Blacky wink when he was doing
it.
But Blacky does n't do any-
thing of this kind around the
buildings of Farmer Brown. You
see, he has learned that there are
doors and windows in buildings,
c>
and out of one of these a terrible
gun may bang at any time.
Though he has suspected that
Farmer Brown's boy would not
now try to harm him, Blacky is
naturally cautious and takes no
BLACKY DISCOVERS AN EGG 181
chances. So when he comes
spying around Farmer Brown's
house and barn, he does it when
he is quite sure that no one is
about, and he makes no noise
about it. First he sits in a tall
tree from which he can watch
Farmer Brown's home. When he
is quite sure that the way is
clear, he flies over to the Old
Orchard, and from there he in-
spects the barnyard, never once
making a sound. If he is quite
sure that no one is about, he
sometimes drops down into the
henyard and helps himself to
corn, if any happens to be there.
It was on one of these silent
visits that Blacky spied something
which he could n't foret. It was
182 BLACKY THE CROW
a box just inside the henhouse
door. In the box was some hay
and in that hay he was sure that
he had seen an ego;. In fact, he
oo
was sure that he saw two eggs
there. He might not have noticed
them but for the fact that a hen
had jumped down from that box,
making a terrible fuss. She
o
did n't seem frightened, but very
proud. What under the sun she
had to be proud about Blacky
could n't understand, but he did n't
stay to find out. The noise she
was making made him nervous.
o
He was afraid that it would bring
some one to find out what was
going on. So he spread his black
wings and flew away as silently
as he had come.
BLACKY DISCOVERS AN EGG 183
As he was flying away he saw
those eggs. You see, as he rose
into the air, he managed to pass
that open door in such a way
that he could glance in. That
one glance was enough. You
o o
know Blacky 7 s eyes are very
sharp. He saw the hay in the
box and the two eggs in the hay,
and that was enough for him.
From that instant Blacky the Crow
began to scheme and plan to get
one or both of those eggs. It
seemed to him that he never,
never, had wanted anything quite
so much, and he was sure that
he would not and could not be
happy until he succeeded in get-
ting one.
CHAPTER XXX
BLACKY SCREWS UP HIS COURAGE
IF out of sight, then out of
mind. This is a saying which
you often hear. It may be true
sometimes, but it is very far from
true at other times. Take the
case of Blacky. He had had
only a glance into that nest just
inside the door of Farmer Brown's
henhouse, but that o-lance had
o
been enough to show him two
eggs there. Then, as he flew
away toward the Green Forest,
those eggs were out of sight, of
course. But do you think they
were out of mind ? Not much !
No, indeed ! In fact, those eggs
SCREWS UP HIS COURAGE 185
were very much in Blacky's mind.
He could n't think of anything else.
/ o
He flew straight to a certain tall
pine-tree in a lonely part of the
Green Forest. Whenever Blacky
wants to think or to plan mis-
chief, he seeks that particular
tree, and in the shelter of its
broad branches he keeps out of
sight of curious eyes, and there
he sits as still as still can be.
" I want one of those eggs/'
muttered Blacky, as he settled
himself in comfort on a certain
particular spot on a certain par-
ticular branch of that tall pine-
tree. Indeed, that particular
branch might well be called the
o
" mischief branch," for on it
Blacky has thought out and
186 BLACKY THE CROW
planned most of the mischief he
is so famous for. " Yes, sir,"
he continued, " I want one of
those eggs, and what is more, I
am going to have one/'
o o
He half closed his eyes and
tipped his head back and swal-
lowed a couple of times, as if he
already tasted one of those eggs.
" There is more in one of those
eggs than in a whole nestful of
oo
Welcome Robin's eggs. It is a
very long time since I have been
lucky enough to taste a hen's
egg, and now is my chance. I
don't like having to go inside
that henhouse, even though it is
barely inside the door. I'm sus-
picious of doors. They have a
way of closing most unexpectedly.
SCREWS UP HIS COURAGE 187
I might see if I cannot get Unc'
Billy Possum to bring one of
those eggs out for me. But that
plan won't do, come to think of
it, because I can't trust Unc' Billy.
The old sinner is too fond of
eggs himself. I would be willing
to divide with him, but he would
be sure to eat his first, and I
fear that it would taste so good
that he would eat the other.
No. I Ve got to get one of those
eggs myself. It is the only way
I can be sure of it.
" The thing to do is to make
sure that Farmer Brown's boy
and Farmer Brown himself are
nowhere about. They ought to
be down in the cornfield pretty
soon. With them down there, I
188 BLACKY THE CROW
have only to watch my chance
and slip in. It won't take but
a second. Just a little courage.
O '
Blacky, just a little courage !
Nothing in this world worth
having is gained without some
risk. The thing to do is to
make sure that the risk is as
small as possible."
Blacky shook out his feathers
and then flew out of the tall
pine-tree as silently as he had
flown into it. He headed straight
O
toward Farmer Brown's cornfield.
When he was near enough to see
o
all over the field, he dropped
down to the top of a fence post,
and there he waited. He did n't
have long to wait. In fact, he
had been there but a few minutes
SCREWS UP HIS COURAGE 189
when lie spied two people coming
down the Long Lane toward the
cornfield. He looked at them
sharply, and then gave a little
sigh of satisfaction. They were
Farmer Brown and Farmer
Brown's boy. Presently they
reached the cornfield and turned
into it. Then they went to work,
and Blacky knew that so far as
/
they were concerned, the way
was clear for him to visit the
henyard.
He did n't fly straight there.
Oh, my, no ! Blacky is too
clever to do anything like that.
He flew toward the Green Forest.
When he knew that he was out
of sio4it of those in the cornfield,
o
he turned and flew over to the
190 BLACKY THE CROW
Old Orchard, and from the top
of one of the old apple-trees he
studied the henyard and the
barnyard and Farmer Brown's
house and the barn, to make ab-
solutely sure that there was no
danger near. When he was quite
sure, he silently flew down into
the henyard as he had done
many times before. He pretended
to be looking for scattered grains
o o
of corn, but all the time he was
edging nearer and nearer to the
open door of the henhouse. At
last he could see the box with
the hay in it. He walked right
up to the open door and peered
inside. There was nothing to be
o
afraid of that he could see. Still
he hesitated. He did hate to o-o
SCREWS UP HIS COURAGE 191
inside that door, even for a min-
ute, and that is all it would take
to fly up to that nest and get
one of those eggs.
Blacky closed his eyes for just
a second, and when he did that
he seemed to see himself eating
one of those eggs. " What are
you afraid of ? ' he muttered to
himself as he opened his eyes.
Then with a hurried look in all
directions, he flew up to the edge
of the box. There lay the two
eggs !
CHAPTER XXXI
AN EGG THAT WOULDN'T BEHAVE
If you had an egg and it wouldn't behave
Just what would you do with that egg, may
I ask ?
To make an egg do what it don't want to do
Strikes me like a difficult sort of a task.
ALL of which is pure nonsense.
Of course. Who ever heard of an
egg either behaving or misbehaving?
Noboclv. That is, nobodv that I
. ?.
know, unless it be Blackv. It is
fc
best not to mention eggs in Blacky' s
presence these days. They are a
forbidden topic when he is about.
Blacky is apt to be a little resent-
ful at the mere mention of an eo-o-.
so
I don't know as I wholly blame
EGG THAT WOULDN'T BEHAVE 193
him. How would you feel if you
knew you knew all there was to
know about a thing, and then found
out that you did n't know anything
at all ? Well, that is the way it
is with Blacky the Crow.
If any one had told Blacky that
V v
he did n't know all there is to know
about eggs, he would have laughed
at the idea. Was n't he, Blacky,
hatched from an egg himself?
And had n't he, ever since he was
big enough, hunted eggs and stolen
eggs and eaten eggs ? If he did n't
know about eggs, who did ? That
is the way he would have talked
t/
before his visit to Farmer Brown's
henhouse. It is since then that it
has been unwise to mention eggs
when Black v is about.
194 BLACKY THE CROW
When Blacky saw the two eggs
in the nest in Fanner Brown's hen-
house how Blaekv did wish that he
c
could take both. But he could n't.
One would be all that he could
manage. He must take his choice
c^
and go away while the going was
o'ood. Which should he take ?
i
It often happens in this life
that thino-s which seem to be imini-
o
portant, mere trifles in themselves,
prove to be just the opposite.
Now. so tar as Blacky could see.
it did n't make the least difference
which eo'o- lie took, excepting that
i!: > ~ 1 O
one was a little biffffer than the
oCr^
other. As a matter of fact, it made
all the difference in the world.
One was brown and verv o-ood to
*
look at. The other, the larger of
EGG THAT WOULDN'T BEHAVE 195
the two, was white and also very
o-ood to look at. In fact, Blacky
thought it the better of the two
c5
to look at, for it was very smooth
and shiny. So, partly on this
account, and partly because it was
the largest, Blacky chose the
white ego-. He seized it in his
claws and started to fly with it,
but somehow he could not seem
to get a good grip on it. lie
fluttered to the ground just outside
the door, and there lie got a
better grip. Just as old Dandy-
cock the Rooster, with head down
and all the feathers on his neck
standing out with anger, came
charging at him, Blacky rose into
the air and started over the Old
Orchard toward the Green Forest.
196 BLACKY THE CROW
Never had Blacky felt more like
cawing at the top of his lungs.
You see, he felt that he had been
very smart, and I suspect that he
also felt that he had been very
brave. He would have liked to
boast a little. But he did n't. He
wisely held his tongue. It would
be time enough to do his boast-
ing after he had reached a place
of safety and had eaten that
egg-
was halfway across the Old
Orchard when he felt that egg
beginning to slip. Now at best it
isn't easy to carry an egg without
breaking it. You know how very
careful you have to be. Just
imagine how Blacky felt when that
egg began to slip. Do what he
STRIPED CHIPMUNK SAW SOMETHING WHITE DROP
FROM BLACKY'S CLAWS. Page 197.
EGG THAT WOULDN'T BEHAVE 197
would, he could n't get a better grip
on it. It slipped a wee bit more.
Blacky started down towards the
ground. But he wasn't quick
enough. Striped Chipmunk, watch-
ing Blacky from the old stone wall,
saw something white drop from
Blacky' s claws. He saw Blacky
dash after it and clutch at it only
to miss it. Then the white thing
struck a branch of an old apple
tree, bounced off and fell to the
ground. Blacky followed it.
Striped Chipmunk stole very
softly through the grass to see
what Blacky was doing. Blacky
was standing close beside a white
thing that looked very much like
an eg-p*. He was looking at it
OO <->
with the queerest expression.
198 BLACKY THE CROW
Now and then he would reach
out and rap it sharply with his
bill, and then look as if he did n't
know what to make of it. He
did n't. That egg was n't behaving
right. It should have broken when
it hit the branch of the apple tree.
Certainly it should have broken
c
when he struck it that way with
his bill. However was he to eat
that egg, if he could n't break the
shell ? Black v did n't know.
CHAPTER XXXII
WHAT BLACKY DID WITH THE STOLEN
EGG
BLACKY was puzzled. He did n't
know what to make of that egg
he had stolen from Farmer Brown's
henhouse. It was n't like anv e^^
i. ^~^- ***
he ever had seen or even heard
of. It was a beautiful-looking egg,
and he had been sure that it would
taste as good, quite as good as
it looked. Even now he wasn't
sure that if he could onlv taste it.
c
it would be all that he had hoped.
But how could he taste it. when
he couldn't break that shell? He
never had heard of such a shell.
He doubted if anvbodv else ever
200 BLACKY THE CROW
had, either. He had hammered at
it with his stout bill until he was
afraid that he would break that,
instead of the egg. The more he
tried to break into it and couldn't,
the hungrier he grew, and the more
certain that notning else in all the
o
world could possibly taste so good.
But the Old Orchard was not
the place for him to work on that
egg. In the first place, it was too
near Farmer Brown's house. This
made Blacky uneasy. You see, he
had something of a guilty con-
science. Not that he felt at all
a sense of having done wrong. To
his way of thinking, if he were
smart enough to get that egg, he
had just as much right to it as
any one else, particularly Farmer
WHAT BLACKY DID WITH EGG 201
Brown's boy. Yet he wasn't at
all sure that Farmer Brown's boy
would look at the matter quite
that way. In fact, he had a feeling
that Farmer Brown's boy would
call him a thief if he should be
discovered with that egg. Then,
too, there were too many sharp eyes
in the Old Orchard. He wanted
to get away where he could be
sure of being alone. Then if he
could n't break that shell, no one
would be the wiser. So he picked
up the egg and flew straight over
to the Green Forest, and this time
he managed to get there without
dropping it.
Now you would never suspect
Blacky the Crow, he of the sharp
wits and crafty ways, of being
202 BLACKY THE CROW
amused by bright things, would
you ? But he is. In fact, Blacky
is quite like a little child in this
matter. Anything that is bright
and shiny interests Blacky right
away. If he finds anything of this
kind, he will take it away to a
certain secret place, and there he
will admire it and play with it
and finally hide it. If I did n't
know that it isn't so, because it
couldn't possibly be so, I should
think that Blacky was some rela-
tion to certain small boys I know.
Always their pockets are filled with
all sorts of useless odds and ends
which they have picked up here
and there. Blacky has no pockets,
so *he keeps his treasures of this
kind in a secret hiding-place, a
WHAT BLACKY DID WITH EGG 203
sort of treasure storehouse. He
visits this secretly every day, un-
covers his treasures, and gloats
over them and plays with them,
then carefully covers them up again.
First Blacky took this egg over
near his home, and there he once
more tried and tried and tried to
break the shell. But the shell
wouldn't break, not even when
Blacky quite lost his temper and
hammered at it for all he was
worth. Then he gave the thing
up as a bad matter and flew up
to his favorite roost in the top of
a tall pine-tree, leaving the egg
on the ground. But from where
he sat on his favorite roost in the
tall pine-tree he could see that
provoking egg, a little spot of
204 BLACKY THE CROW
shining white. When a Jolly Little
Sunbeam found it and rested on
it, it was so very bright and shiny
that Blacky could n't keep his eyes
off it.
Little by little he forgot that it
was an ego;. At least, he forgot
Oo O
that he wanted to eat it. He began
to find pleasure in just looking at
it. It might not satisfy his stomach,
o /
but it certainly was very satisfying
to his eyes. He forgot to think of
it as a thing to eat, but began to
think of it wholly as a thing to look
at and admire. He was glad he
had n't been able to break that shell.
Once more he spread his black
wings and flew down to the egg.
He cocked his head to one side
and looked at it. He cocked his
WHAT BLACKY DID WITH EGG 205
head to the other side and looked
at it. He walked all around It,
chuckling and saying to himself,
" Pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty and
all mine, mine, mine, mine ! Pretty,
pretty, and all mine ! '
Than he craftily looked all about
to make sure that no one was watch-
ing him. Having made quite sure,
he rolled the egg over and turned
it around and admired it to his
heart's content. At last he picked
it up and carried it to his treasure-
house and covered it over very
carefully. And there that china
nest-egg, for that is what he had
stolen, is still his chief treasure to
this day, and Blacky still some-
times wonders what kind of a hen
laid such a hard-shelled egg.
206 BLACKY THE CROW
Blacky has had very many
other adventures, but it would
take another book to tell about
all of them. That would be
hardly fair to some of the other
little people who also have had
adventures and want them told
to you. One of these is a beau-
tiful little fellow who lives in
the Green Forest, and so the
next book will be Whitefoot the
Wood Mouse.
THE BURGESS BIRD BOOK
FOR CHILDREN
By THORNTON W. BURGESS
With full-color illustrations of 58 birds from drawings by
Louis Agassiz Fuertes
Crown 8vo. Cloth. $3.00 net.
"For a number of years parents have been asking me, 'What
is the best book about birds for little children?' And that ques-
tion has given me much trouble. Now, 'The Burgess Bird Book
for Children' is the answer. In fact, it is the very book that
'Anxious Mother,' the children and the booksellers have been
awaiting, for twenty years or more." Dr. William T. Harnaday,
Director, New York Zoological Society.
A companion volume
THE BURGESS ANIMAL BOOK
FOR CHILDREN
With 32 full-page illustrations in color and 16 full-page illustrations
in black and white by
Louis Agassiz Fuertes
Crown 8vo. Cloth. $3.00 net.
This companion volume to "The Burgess Bird Book for
Children" is written in the same vein, a story book which is at
the same time an authoritative handbook on the land animals of
America, so describing them and their habits that they will be
instantly recognized when seen.
LITTLE, BROWN & CO., PUBLISHERS
34 BEACON STREET, BOSTON
GREEN MEADOW
SERIES
By THORNTON W. BURGESS
With eight illwtrations in full cvlor by Harrison Cody
Crown 8ve. Cloth. ivols. $1. 7 J net each
The first volume in this new series is
HAPPY JACK
Mr Burgess is well acquainted with Happy Jack Squirrel's
thrifty habits, and tells all about them in this first book.
The second volume is
MRS. PETER RABBIT
Mr. Burgess tells how Little Miss Fuzzytail became Mrs.
Peter Rabbit, and set up housekeeping in the Old Briar Patch.
The third volume is
BOWSER THE HOUND
In this book Mr. Burgess tells how Bowser the Hound lost
his way while following the trail of Old Man Coyote.
The fourth volume is
OLD GRANNY FOX
In this new book Mr. Burgess tells how Old Granny Fox
shows little Reddy Fox how to obtain food during the long,
cold winter.
LITTLE, BROWN & CO., PUBLISHERS
34 Beacon St., Boston
CoLibri
COVER BOOK SYSTI
