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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/16663-0.txt b/16663-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..7237b6f --- /dev/null +++ b/16663-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,2336 @@ +The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Tale of Solomon Owl, by Arthur Scott Bailey + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and +most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions +whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms +of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at +www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you +will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before +using this eBook. + +Title: The Tale of Solomon Owl + +Author: Arthur Scott Bailey + +Release Date: September 26, 2005 [eBook #16663] +[Most recently updated: May 18, 2021] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: UTF-8 + +Produced by: Roger Frank and and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team + +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE TALE OF SOLOMON OWL *** + + + + +The Tale of Solomon Owl + +by Arthur Scott Bailey + +Author of “The Tale of Sandy Chipmunk,” “The Tale of Tommy +Fox,” etc. + +Illustrated by Harry L. Smith + +New York +Grosset & Dunlap +1917 + + +[Illustration: ] +Solomon Owl Sat Up And Listened. + + +Contents + + Chapter I. Scaring Johnny Green + Chapter II. A Newcomer + Chapter III. Solomon Likes Frogs + Chapter IV. An Odd Bargain + Chapter V. The Cold Weather Coat + Chapter VI. Solomon Needs a Change + Chapter VII. The Blazing Eyes + Chapter VIII. Watching The Chickens + Chapter IX. Hallowe’en + Chapter X. A Troublesome Wishbone + Chapter XI. Cured At Last + Chapter XII. Benjamin Bat + Chapter XIII. The Lucky Guest + Chapter XIV. Hanging By The Heels + Chapter XV. Disputes Settled + Chapter XVI. Nine Fights + Chapter XVII. Cousin Simon Screecher + Chapter XVIII. A Cousinly Quarrel + Chapter XIX. The Sleet Storm + Chapter XX. A Pair Of Red-Heads + Chapter XXI. At Home In The Haystack + Chapter XXII. It Was Solomon’s Fault + + +Illustrations + + Solomon Owl Sat Up And Listened + Solomon Found Mr. Frog’s Shop Was Closed + Benjamin Bat Asked Solomon’s Advice + “It’s All Right!” Said Solomon + + + + +The Tale of Solomon Owl + + + + +I +Scaring Johnny Green + + +When Johnnie Green was younger, it always scared him to hear Solomon +Owl’s deep-toned voice calling in the woods after dark. + +“_Whoo-whoo-whoo, whoo-whoo, to-whoo-ah!_” That weird cry was enough to +send Johnnie Green hurrying into the farmhouse, though sometimes he +paused in the doorway to listen—especially if Solomon Owl happened to +be laughing. His “_haw-haw-hoo-hoo_,” booming across the meadow on a +crisp fall evening, when the big yellow moon hung over the fields of +corn-shocks and pumpkins, sounded almost as if Solomon were laughing at +the little boy he had frightened. There was certainly a mocking, +jeering note in his laughter. + +Of course, as he grew older, Johnnie Green no longer shivered on +hearing Solomon’s rolling call. When Solomon laughed, Johnnie Green +would laugh, too. But Solomon Owl never knew that, for often he was +half a mile from the farm buildings. + +A “hoot owl,” Johnnie Green termed him. And anyone who heard Solomon +hooting of an evening, or just before sunrise, would have agreed that +it was a good name for him. But he was really a _barred_ owl, for he +had bars of white across his feathers. + +If you had happened to catch Solomon Owl resting among the thick +hemlocks near the foot of Blue Mountain, where he lived, you would have +thought that he looked strangely like a human being. He had no “horns,” +or ear-tufts, such as some of the other owls wore; and his great pale +face, with its black eyes, made him seem very wise and solemn. + +In spite of the mild, questioning look upon his face whenever anyone +surprised him in the daytime, Solomon Owl was the noisiest of all the +different families of owls in Pleasant Valley. There were the barn +owls, the long-eared owls, the short-eared owls, the saw-whet owls, the +screech owls—but there! there’s no use of naming them all. There wasn’t +one of them that could equal Solomon Owl’s laughing and hooting and +shrieking and wailing—at night. + +During the day, however, Solomon Owl he was quiet about it. One reason +for his silence then was that he generally slept when the sun was +shining. And when most people were sleeping, Solomon Owl was as wide +awake as he could be. + +He was a night-prowler—if ever there was one. And he could see a mouse +on the darkest night, even if it stirred ever so slightly. + +That was unfortunate for the mice. But luckily for them, Solomon Owl +couldn’t be in more than one place at a time. Otherwise, there wouldn’t +have been a mouse left in Pleasant Valley—if he could have had _his_ +way. + +And though he didn’t help the mice, he helped Farmer Green by catching +them. If he did take a fat pullet once in a while, it is certain that +he more than paid for it. + +So, on the whole, Farmer Green did not wood-lot. And for a long time +Solomon raised no objection to Farmer Green’s living near Swift River. + +But later Solomon Owl claimed that it would be a good thing for the +forest folk if they could get rid of the whole Green family—and the +hired man, too. + + + + +II +A Newcomer + + +Upon his arrival, as a stranger, in Pleasant Valley, Solomon Owl looked +about carefully for a place to live. What he wanted especially was a +good, _dark_ hole, for he thought that sunshine was very dismal. + +Though he was willing to bestir himself enough to suit anybody, when it +came to _hunting_, Solomon Owl did not like to work. He was no busy +nest-builder, like Rusty Wren. In his search for a house he looked +several times at the home of old Mr. Crow. If it had suited him better, +Solomon would not have hesitated to take that it was altogether _too +light_ to please him. + +That was lucky for old Mr. Crow. And the black rascal knew it, too. He +had noticed that Solomon Owl was hanging about the neighborhood. And +several times he caught Solomon examining his nest. + +But Mr. Crow did not have to worry long. For as it happened, Solomon +Owl at last found exactly what he wanted. In an old, hollow hemlock, he +came across a cozy, dark cavity. As soon as he saw it he knew that it +was the very thing! So he moved in at once. And except for the time +that he spent in the meadow—which was considerably later—he lived there +for a good many years. + +Once Fatty Coon thought that he would drive Solomon out of his snug +house and live in it himself. But he soon changed Solomon Owl—so Fatty +discovered—had sharp, strong claws and a sharp, strong beak as well, +which curled over his face in a cruel hook. + +It was really a good thing for Solomon Owl—the fight he had with Fatty +Coon. For afterward his neighbors seldom troubled him—except when +Jasper Jay brought a crowd of his noisy friends to tease Solomon, or +Reddy Woodpecker annoyed him by rapping on his door when he was asleep. + +But those rowdies always took good care to skip out of Solomon’s reach. +And when Jasper Jay met Solomon alone in the woods at dawn or dusk he +was most polite to the solemn old chap. _Then_ it was “How-dy-do, Mr. +Owl!” and “I hope you’re well to-day!” And when Solomon Jasper, that +bold fellow always felt quite uneasy; and he was glad when Solomon Owl +looked away. + +If Solomon Owl chanced to _hoot_ on those occasions, Jasper Jay would +jump almost out of his bright blue coat. Then Solomon’s deep laughter +would echo mockingly through the woods. + +You see, though not nearly so wise as he appeared, Solomon Owl knew +well enough how to frighten some people. + + + + +III +Solomon Likes Frogs + + +It was a warm summer’s evening—so warm that Mr. Frog, the tailor, had +taken his sewing outside his tailor’s shop and seated himself +cross-legged upon the bank of the brook, where he sang and sewed +without ceasing—except to take a swim now and then in the cool water, +“to stretch his legs,” as he claimed. + +He was making a new suit of blue clothes for Jasper Jay. And since +Jasper was a great dandy, and very particular Mr. Frog was taking +special pains with his sewing. + +Usually he did his work quickly. But now after every five stitches that +he put into his work he stopped to take out ten. And naturally he was +not getting on very fast. He had been working busily since early +morning; and Jasper Jay’s suit was further than ever from being +finished. + +Since he was a most cheerful person, Mr. Frog did not mind that. +Indeed, he was more than pleased, because the oftener he took a swim +the fewer stitches he lost. So he sang the merriest songs he knew. + +The light was fast fading when a hollow laugh startled Mr. Frog. It +seemed to come from the willow tree right over his head. And he knew +without looking up that it was Solomon Owl’s deep voice. + +Mr. Frog tried to leap into the brook. But when he uncrossed his legs, +in his haste he tangled them up in his sewing. And all he could do was +to turn a somersault backward among some bulrushes, hoping that Solomon +Owl had not seen him. + +It is no secret that Mr. Frog was terribly afraid of Solomon Owl. Some +of Mr. Frog’s friends had mysteriously disappeared. And they had last +been seen in Solomon’s company. + +As it happened, Mr. Frog had hoped in vain. For Solomon Owl only +laughed more loudly than before. And then he said: + +“What are you afraid of, Mr. Frog?” + +The tailor knew at once that he was caught. So he hopped nimbly to his +feet and answered that there was nothing to be afraid of, so far as he +could see. + +It was a true statement, too; because Mr. Frog had not yet discovered +Solomon Owl’s exact whereabouts. + +But he learned them soon; for Solomon immediately dropped down from the +big willow and alighted on the bank near Mr. Frog—altogether _too near_ +him, in fact, for the tailor’s comfort. + +Solomon looked at Mr. Frog very solemnly. And he thought that he +shivered. + +“What’s the matter? Are you ill?” Solomon Owl inquired. “You seem to be +shaking.” + +“Just a touch of chills and fever, probably!” replied Mr. Frog with an +uneasy smile. “You know it’s very damp here.” + +“You don’t look in the best of health—that’s a fact!” Solomon Owl +remarked. “You appear to me to be somewhat green in the face.” And he +laughed once more—that same hollow, mirthless laugh. + +Mr. Frog couldn’t help jumping, because the sound alarmed him. + +“Don’t be disturbed!” said Solomon Owl. “I like all the Frog family.” + +At that remark, Mr. Frog started violently That was exactly the +trouble! Solomon Owl was _altogether too fond_ of frogs, whether they +were old or young, big or little. + +It was no wonder that Mr. Frog swallowed rapidly sixteen times before +he could say another word. + + + + +IV +An Odd Bargain + + +While Mr. Frog was swallowing nothing rapidly, he was thinking rapidly, +too. There was something about Solomon Owl’s big, staring eyes that +made Mr. Frog feel uncomfortable. And if he had thought he had any +chance of escaping he would have dived into the brook and swum under +the bank. + +But Solomon Owl was too near him for that. And Mr. Frog was afraid his +caller would pounce upon him any moment. So he quickly thought of a +plan to save himself. “No doubt——” he began. But Solomon Owl +interrupted him. + +“There!” cried Solomon. “You can speak, after all. I supposed you’d +swallowed your tongue. And I was just waiting to see what you’d do +next. I thought maybe you would swallow your _head_.” + +Mr. Frog managed to laugh at the joke, though, to tell the truth, he +felt more nervous than ever. He saw what was in Solomon Owl’s mind, for +Solomon was thinking of swallowing Mr. Frog’s head himself. + +“No doubt—” Mr. Frog resumed—“no doubt you’ve come to ask me to make +you a new suit of clothes.” + +Now, Solomon Owl had had no such idea at all. But when it was mentioned +to him, he rather liked it. + +“Will you?” he inquired, with a highly interested air. + +“Why, certainly!” the tailor replied. And for the first time since he +had turned his backward somersault into the bulrushes, he smiled +widely. “I’ll tell you what I’ll do!” he said. “First, I’ll make you a +coat free. And second, if you like it I will then make you a waistcoat +and trousers, at double rates.” + +Solomon Owl liked the thought of getting a coat for nothing. But for +all that, he looked at the tailor somewhat doubtfully. + +“Will it take you long?” he asked. + +“No, indeed!” Mr. Frog told him. “I’ll make your coat while you wait.” + +“Oh, I wasn’t going away,” Solomon assured him with an odd look which +made Mr. Frog shiver again. “Be quick, please! Because I have some +important business to attend to.” + +Mr. Frog couldn’t help wondering if it wasn’t he himself that Solomon +Owl was going to attend to. In spite of his fears, to work to cut up +some cloth that hung just outside his door. + +“Stop!” Solomon Owl cried in a voice that seemed to shake the very +ground. “You haven’t measured me yet!” + +“It’s not necessary,” Mr. Frog explained glibly. “I’ve become so +skilful that one look at an elegant figure like yours is all that I +need.” + +Naturally, Mr. Frog’s remark pleased Solomon Owl. And he uttered ten +rapid hoots, which served to make Mr. Frog’s fingers fly all the +faster. Soon he was sewing Solomon’s coat with long stitches; and +though his needle slipped now and then, he did not pause to take out a +single stitch. For some reason, Mr. Frog was in a great hurry. + +Solomon Owl did not appear to notice that the tailor was not taking +much pains with his sewing. Perhaps Mr. Frog worked so fast that +Solomon could not see what he was doing. + +Anyhow, he was delighted when Mr. Frog suddenly cried: + +“It’s finished!” And then he tossed the coat to Solomon. “Try it on!” +he said. “I want to see how well it fits you.” + +Solomon Owl held up the garment and looked at it very carefully. And as +he examined it a puzzled look came over his great pale face. + +There was something about his new coat that he did not understand. + + + + +V +The Cold Weather Coat + + +Yes! As he held up his new coat and looked at it, Solomon Owl was +puzzled. He turned his head toward Mr. Frog and stared at him for a +moment. And then he turned his head away from the tailor and gazed upon +the coat again. + +Mr. Frog was most uncomfortable—especially when Solomon looked at +_him_. + +“Everything’s all right, isn’t it?” he inquired. + +Solomon Owl slowly shook his head. + +“This is a queer coat!” he said. “What’s this bag at the top of it?” + +“Oh!” exclaimed Mr. Frog. “That’s the hood! Knowing that you spend your +winters here in Pleasant Valley, I made a hood to go over your head.... +You’ll find it very comfortable in cold weather—and it’s the latest +style, too. All the winter coats this year will have hoods, with holes +to see through, you know.” + +Solomon Owl looked relieved at Mr. Frog’s explanation. But there was +still something more that appeared to trouble him. + +“How shall I get into the coat?” he inquired. “It doesn’t open in +front, as it should.” + +“Another cold-weather style!” Mr. Frog assured him. “It’s wind-proof! +And instead of buttoning the coat, you pull it on over your head.” + +Solomon Owl said he didn’t like that style very well. + +“Then I can easily change it,” the tailor told him. “But just try it +on!” he urged. “It may please you, after all.” + +So Solomon Owl pulled the coat over his head. And it fell down about +him, almost reaching his feet. But the coat did not seem to suit him at +all, for he began to splutter and choke. + +“What’s the matter now?” Mr. Frog asked him. + +“I can’t see—that’s what’s the matter!” Solomon Owl cried in a voice +that sounded hollower than ever, because it was muffled by the hood, +which covered his head. + +“I declare—I haven’t cut the holes for your eyes!” the tailor +exclaimed. “Just wait a moment and I’ll make everything satisfactory.” +He clinked his shears together sharply as he spoke. + +But Solomon Owl told him that he wouldn’t _think_ of letting anybody +use shears so near his eyes. + + +[Illustration: ] Solomon Found Mr. Frog’s Shop Was Closed + + +“I’ll take off the coat,” he said. “And I know now that you’re a very +poor tailor, or you wouldn’t have made such a mistake.” He began to tug +at the coat. But he soon found that taking it off was not so easy as +putting it on. Solomon’s sharp claws caught in the cloth; and his +hooked beak, too, fastened itself in the hood the moment he tried to +pull the coat over his head. “Here!” he cried to Mr. Frog. “Just lend +me a hand! I can’t see to help myself.” + +But Mr. Frog did not even answer him. + +“Don’t you hear me?” Solomon Owl shouted, as he struggled with his new +coat, only to become tangled in it more than ever. + +Still, the tailor said never a word, though something very like a +giggle, followed by a splash, caught Solomon’s ear. + +“He’s left me!” Solomon Owl groaned. + +“Mr. Frog has left me to get out of this coat alone. And goodness knows +how I’m ever a-going to do it.” He threshed about so vigorously that he +tripped himself and fell upon the bank of the brook, rolling over and +over toward the water. + +He had a very narrow escape. If he hadn’t happened to bring up against +an old stump he would certainly have tumbled into the stream. + +Though Solomon couldn’t see, he knew that he was in danger. So he lay +on his back on the ground and carefully tore his new coat into strings +and ribbons. + +At last he was free. And he rose to his feet feeling very sheepish, for +he knew that Mr. Frog had played a sly trick on him. + +“Nevermind!” said Solomon Owl, as he flew way. “I’ll come back +to-morrow and ask Mr. Frog to make me a waistcoat and trousers. And +then——” He did not finish what he was saying. But there is no doubt +that whatever it was, it could not have been very pleasant for Mr. +Frog. + +Just as he had planned, Solomon Owl returned to the brook the next day. +And he was both surprised and disappointed at what he found. + +The door of Mr. Frog’s tailor’s shop was shut and locked. And on it +there was a sign, which said: + +TO LET + + +“He’s moved away!” cried Solomon Owl. And he went off feeling that he +had been cheated out of a good dinner—to say nothing of a new +waistcoat—and new trousers, too. + +He had not been gone long when the door opened. And Mr. Frog leaped +nimbly outside. He took the sign off the door; and sitting down +cross-legged upon the bank, he began to sew upon Jasper Jay’s new blue +suit, while his face wore a wider smile than ever. + +He had suddenly decided not to let his shop, after all. + + + + +VI +Solomon Needs a Change + + +For some time Solomon Owl had known that a queer feeling was coming +over him. And he could not think what it meant. He noticed, too, that +his appetite was leaving him. Nothing seemed to taste good any more. + +So at last, one fine fall evening he went to see Aunt Polly Woodchuck, +who was an herb doctor; for he had begun to worry about his health. + +“It’s lucky you came to-day,” said Aunt Polly. “Because to-night I’m +going to begin my winter’s nap. And you couldn’t have seen me again +till spring—unless you happened to come here on ground-hog day, next +February.... What appears to be your trouble?” she inquired. + +“It’s my appetite, partly,” Solomon Owl said. “Nothing tastes as it did +when I was a youngster. And I keep longing for something, though what +it is I can’t just tell.” + +Aunt Polly Woodchuck nodded her head wisely. + +“What have you been eating lately?” she asked. + +Solomon Owl replied that he hadn’t eaten anything but mice since the +leaves began to turn. + +“H-m—the leaves are nearly all off the trees now,” the old lady +remarked. “How many mice have you eaten in that time?” + +Solomon said that as nearly as he could remember he had eaten +twenty-seven—or a hundred and twenty-seven. He couldn’t say which—but +one of those numbers was correct. + +Aunt Polly Woodchuck threw up her hands. + +“Sakes alive!” she cried. “It’s no wonder you don’t feel well! What you +need is a change of food. And it’s lucky you came to me now. If you’d +gone on like that much longer I’d hate to say what might have happened +to you. You’d have had dyspepsia, or some other sort of misery in your +stomach.” + +“What shall I do?” asked Solomon Owl. “Insects are scarce at this +season of the year. Of course, there are frogs—but I don’t seem to care +for them. And there are fish—but they’re not easy to get, for they +don’t come out of the water and sit on the bank, as the frogs do.” + +“How about pullets?” Aunt Polly inquired. + +At that Solomon Owl let out a long row of hoots, because he was +pleased. + +“The very thing!” he cried. “That’s what I’ve been wanting all this +time. And I never guessed it.... I’ll pay you for your advice the next +time I see you,” he told Aunt Polly. And Solomon Owl hurried away +before she could stop him. Since he had no intention of visiting her on +ground-hog day, he knew it would be spring before he saw Aunt Polly +Woodchuck again. + +The old lady scolded a bit. And it did not make her feel any pleasanter +to hear Solomon’s mocking laughter, which grew fainter and fainter as +he left the pasture behind him. Then she went inside her house, for she +was fast growing sleepy. And she wanted to set things to rights before +she began her long winter’s nap. + +Meanwhile, Solomon Owl roamed restlessly through the woods. There was +only one place in the neighborhood where he could get a pullet. That +was at Farmer Green’s chicken house. And for some reason he did not +care to visit the farm buildings until it grew darker. + +So he amused himself by making the woods echo with his strange cry, +“_Whoo-whoo-whoo, whoo-whoo, to-whoo-ah!_” And now and then he threw in +a few “_wha-whas_,” just for extra measure. + +Many of the forest folk who heard him remarked that Solomon Owl seemed +to be in extra fine spirits. + +“Probably it’s the hunter’s moon that pleases him!” Jimmy Rabbit +remarked to a friend of his. “I’ve always noticed that old Solomon +makes more noise on moonlight nights than at any other time.” + +The hunter’s moon, big and yellow and round, was just rising over Blue +Mountain. But for once it was not the moon that made Solomon Owl so +talkative. He was in fine feather, so to speak, because he was hoping +to have a fat pullet for his supper. And as for the moon, he would have +been just as pleased had there been none at all that night. For Solomon +Owl never cared to be seen when he visited Farmer Green’s chicken +house. + + + + +VII +The Blazing Eyes + + +It was some three hours after sunset when Solomon Owl at last reached +Farmer Green’s place. All was quiet in the chicken house because the +hens and roosters and their families had long since gone to roost. And +except for a light that shone through a window, the farmhouse showed +not a sign of life. + +Everything was as Solomon Owl wished it—or so he thought, at least, as +he alighted in a tree in the yard to look about him. He wanted no one +to interrupt him when he should go nosing around the chicken house, to +find an opening. + +To his annoyance, he had not sat long in the tree when the wood-shed +door opened. And Solomon stared in amazement at the strange sight he +saw. + +A great head appeared, with eyes and mouth—yes! and nose, too—all a +glaring flame color. Solomon had never seen such a horrible face on man +or bird or beast. But he was sure it was a man, for he heard a laugh +that was not to be mistaken for either a beast’s or a bird’s. And the +worst of it was, those blazing eyes were turned squarely toward Farmer +Green’s chicken house! + +Solomon Owl was too wary to go for his fat pullet just then. He decided +that he would wait quietly in the tree for a time, hoping that the man +would go away. + +While Solomon watched him the stranger neither moved nor spoke. And, of +course, Solomon Owl was growing hungrier every minute. So at last he +felt that he simply _must_ say something. + +“Who-who-who-are-you?” he called out from his tree. + +But the strange man did not answer. He did not even turn his head. + +“He must be some city person,” Solomon Owl said to himself. “He thinks +he’s too good to speak to a countryman like me.” + +Then Solomon sat up and listened. He heard a scratching sound. And soon +he saw a plump figure crawl right up into his tree-top. + +It was Fatty Coon! + +“What are you doing here?” Solomon Owl asked in a low voice, which was +not any too pleasant. + +“I’m out for an airing,” Fatty answered. “Beautiful night—isn’t it?” + +But Solomon Owl was not interested in the weather. “I don’t suppose +you’ve come down here to get a chicken, have you?” he inquired. + +Fatty Coon seemed greatly surprised at the question. + +“Why—no!” he exclaimed. “But now that you speak of it, it reminds me +that Farmer Green’s saving a pullet for me. He was heard to say not +long ago that he would like to catch me taking one of his hens. So he +must have one for me. And I don’t want to disappoint him.” + +At first Solomon Owl didn’t know what answer to make. But at last he +turned his head toward Fatty. + +“Why don’t you go and get your pullet now?” he asked. + +“There’s that man down below, with the glaring eyes—” said Fatty Coon. +“I’ve been waiting around here for quite a long time and he hasn’t +looked away from the chicken house even once.... Do you know him?” + +“No! And I don’t want to!” said Solomon Owl. + +“S-sh!” Fatty Coon held up a warning hand. “Who’s that?” he asked, +peering down at a dark object at the foot of their tree. + +Then both he and Solomon saw that it was Tommy Fox, sitting on his +haunches and staring at the big head, with its blazing eyes and nose +and mouth. + +“Not looking for chickens, I suppose?” Solomon Owl called in a low +tone, which was hardly more than a whisper. + +But Tommy Fox’s sharp ears heard him easily. And he looked up, licking +his chops as if he were very hungry indeed. And all the while the +stranger continued to stare straight at the chicken house, as if he did +not intend to let anybody go + +prowling about that long, low building to steal any of Farmer Green’s +poultry. + +It was no wonder that the three chicken-lovers (two in the tree and one +beneath it) hesitated. If the queer man had only spoken they might not +have been so timid. But he said never a word. + + + + +VIII +Watching The Chickens + + +Solomon Owl and Fatty Coon couldn’t help laughing at what Tommy Fox +said to them, as they sat in their tree near the farmhouse, looking +down at him in the moonlight. + +“I’m here to watch Farmer Green’s chickens for him—” said he—“to see +that no rat—or anybody else—runs away with a pullet.” + +“Farmer Green has someone else watching for him to-night,” said Solomon +Owl, when he had stopped laughing. “There’s that strange man! You can +see how he keeps his glaring eyes fixed on the chicken house. And +unless I’m mistaken, he’s on the lookout for _you_.” + +“No such thing!” Tommy Fox snapped. And he looked up at Solomon as if +he wished that he could climb the tree. + +“Here comes somebody else!” Fatty Coon exclaimed suddenly. His keen +eyes had caught sight of Jimmy Rabbit, hopping along on his way to the +vegetable garden, to see if he couldn’t find a stray cabbage or a +turnip. + +Solomon Owl called to him. Whereupon, Jimmy Rabbit promptly sat up and +looked at the odd trio. If it hadn’t been for Tommy Fox he would have +drawn nearer. + +“Do you know that stranger?” Solomon Owl asked him, pointing out the +horrible head to Jimmy. + +“I haven’t the pleasure,” said Jimmy Rabbit, after he had taken a good +look. + +“Well,” said Solomon, “won’t you kindly speak to him; and ask him to go +away?” + +“Certainly!” answered Jimmy Rabbit, who always tried to be obliging. + +“I hope the stranger won’t eat him,” remarked Tommy Fox, “because I +hope to do that some day, myself.” + +It was queer—but Jimmy Rabbit was the only one of the four that wasn’t +afraid of those glaring features. He hopped straight up to the big +round head, which was just a bit higher than one of the fence posts, +against which the stranger seemed to be leaning. And after a moment or +two Jimmy Rabbit called to Solomon and Fatty and Tommy Fox: + +“He won’t go away! He’s going to stay right where he is!” + +“Come here a minute!” said Tommy. + +Jimmy Rabbit shook his head. + +“You come over here!” he answered. And he did not stir from the side of +the stranger. He knew very well that Tommy Fox was afraid of the man +with the head with the glaring eyes. + +As for Tommy Fox, he did not even reply—that is, to Jimmy Rabbit. But +he spoke his mind freely enough to his two friends in the tree. + +“It seems to me one of you ought to do something,” said he. “We’ll eat +no pullets to-night if we can’t get rid of this meddlesome stranger.” + +Fatty Coon quite agreed with him. + +“The one who was here first is the one to act!” Fatty declared. “That’s +_you!_” he told Solomon Owl. + +So Solomon Owl felt most uncomfortable. + +“I don’t know what I can do,” he said. “I spoke to the stranger—asked +him who he was. And he wouldn’t answer me.” + +“Can’t you frighten him away?” Tommy Fox inquired. “Fly right over his +head and give him a blow with your wing as you pass!” + +Solomon Owl coughed. He was embarrassed, to say the least. + +“He’s afraid!” Fatty Coon cried. And both he and Tommy Fox kept +repeating, over and over again, “He’s afraid! He’s afraid! He’s +afraid!” + +It was really more than Solomon Owl could stand. + +“I’m not!” he retorted angrily. “Watch me and you’ll see!” And without +another word he darted out of the tree and swooped down upon the +stranger, just brushing the top of his head. Solomon Owl knew at once +that he had knocked something off the top of that dreadful +head—something that fell to the ground and made Jimmy Rabbit jump +nervously. + +Then Solomon returned to his perch in the tree. + +“He hasn’t moved,” he said. “But I knocked off his hat.” + +“You took off the top of his head!” cried Fatty Coon in great +excitement. “Look! The inside of his head is afire.” + +And peering down from the tree-top, Solomon Owl saw that Fatty Coon had +told the truth. + + + + +IX +Hallowe’en + + +Solomon Owl was afraid of fire. And when he looked down from his perch +in the tree and saw, through the hole in the stranger’s crown, that all +was aglow inside his big, round head, Solomon couldn’t help voicing his +horror. He “_whoo-whooed_” so loudly that Tommy Fox, at the foot of the +tree, asked him what on earth was the matter. + +“His head’s all afire!” Solomon Owl told him. “That’s what makes his +eyes glare so. And that’s why the fire shines through his mouth and his +nose, too. It’s no wonder he didn’t answer my question—for, of course, +his tongue must certainly be burned to a cinder.” + +“Then it ought to be safe for anybody to enter the chicken house,” +Tommy Fox observed. “What could the stranger do, when he’s in such a +fix?” + +“He could set the chicken house afire, if he followed you inside,” +replied Solomon Owl wisely. “And I, for one, am not going near the +pullets to-night.” + +“Nor I!” Fatty Coon echoed. “I’m going straight to the cornfield. The +corn is still standing there in shocks; and I ought to find enough ears +to make a good meal.” + +But Solomon Owl and Tommy Fox were not interested in corn. They never +ate it. And so it is not surprising that they should be greatly +disappointed. After a person has his mouth all made up for chicken it +is hard to think of anything that would taste even half as good. + +“It’s queer he doesn’t go and hold his head under the pump,” said +Solomon Owl. “That’s what I should do, if I were he.” + +“Jimmy Rabbit had better not go too near him, or he’ll get singed,” +said Tommy Fox, anxiously. “I don’t want anything to happen to _him_.” + +“Jimmy Rabbit is very careless,” Solomon declared. “I don’t see what +he’s thinking of—going so near a fire! It makes me altogether too +nervous to stay here. And I’m going away at once.” + +Tommy Fox said that he felt the same way. And the moment Fatty Coon, +with his sharp claws, started to crawl down the tree on his way to the +cornfield, Tommy Fox hurried off without even stopping to say good-bye. + +“_Haw-haw-haw-hoo!_” laughed Solomon Owl. “Tommy Fox is afraid of you!” +he told Fatty Coon. + +But Fatty didn’t seem to hear him. He was thinking only of the supper +of corn that he was going to have. + +“Better come away!” Solomon Owl called to Jimmy Rabbit, turning his +head toward the fence where Jimmy had been lingering near the +hot-headed stranger. + +But Jimmy Rabbit didn’t answer him, either. He was no longer there. The +moment he had seen Tommy Fox bounding off across the meadow Jimmy had +started at once for Farmer Green’s vegetable garden. + +So Solomon Owl was the last to leave. + +“There’s really nothing else I can do,” he remarked to himself. “I +don’t know what Aunt Polly Woodchuck would say if she knew that I +didn’t follow her advice to-night and eat a pullet for my supper.... +But I’ve tried my best.... And that’s all anybody can do.” + +Solomon Owl was upset all the rest of that night. And just before +daybreak he visited the farmyard again, to see whether the strange man +with the flaring head still watched the chicken house. And Solomon +found that he had vanished. + +So Solomon Owl alighted on the fence. There was nothing there except a +hollowed-out pumpkin, with a few holes cut in it, which someone had +left on one of the fence-posts. + +“Good!” said he. “Maybe I can get my pullet after all!” He turned to +fly to the chicken house. But just then the woodshed door opened again. +And Farmer Green stepped outside, with a lantern in his hand. He was +going to the barn to milk the cows. But Solomon Owl did not wait to +learn anything more. + +He hurried away to his house among the hemlocks. And having quickly +settled himself for a good nap, he was soon fast asleep. + +That was how Johnnie Green’s jack-o’-lantern kept Tommy Fox and Fatty +Coon and Solomon Owl from taking any chickens on Hallowe’en. + + + + +X +A Troublesome Wishbone + + +Solomon Owl had pains—sharp pains—underneath his waistcoat. And not +knowing what else to do, he set off at once for Aunt Polly Woodchuck’s +house under the hill, in the pasture, which he had not visited since +the previous fall. Luckily, he found the old lady at home. And quickly +he told her of his trouble. + +“What have you been eating?” she inquired. + +“I’ve followed your advice. I’ve been eating chickens,” said he—“very +small chickens, because they were all I could get.” + +Aunt Polly Woodchuck, who was an herb doctor—and a good one—regarded +him through her spectacles. + +“I’m afraid,” said she, “you don’t chew your food properly. Bolting +one’s food is very harmful. It’s as bad as not eating anything at all, +almost.” + +Solomon Owl showed plainly that her remark surprised him. + +“Why,” he exclaimed, “I always swallow my food whole—when it isn’t too +big!” + +“Gracious me!” cried Aunt Polly, throwing up both her hands. “It’s no +wonder you’re ill. It’s no wonder you have pains; and now I know +exactly what’s the matter with you. You have a wishbone inside you. I +can feel it!” she told him, as she prodded him in the waistcoat. + +“I wish you could get it out for me!” said Solomon with a look of +distress. + +“All the wishing in the world won’t help you,” she answered, “unless we +can find some way of removing the wishbone so you can wish on that. +Then I’m sure you would feel better at once.” + +“This is strange,” Solomon mused. “All my life I’ve been swallowing my +food without chewing it. And it has never given me any trouble +before.... What shall I do?” + +“Don’t eat anything for a week,” she directed. “And fly against +tree-trunks as hard as you can. Then come back here after seven days.” + +Solomon Owl went off in a most doleful frame of mind. It seemed to him +that he had never seen so many mice and frogs and chipmunks as he came +across during the following week. But he didn’t dare catch a single +one, on account of what Aunt Polly Woodchuck had said. + +His pains, however, grew less from day to day—at least, the pains that +had first troubled him. But he had others to take their place. Hunger +pangs, these were! And they were almost as bad as those that had sent +him hurrying to see Aunt Polly Woodchuck. + +On the whole, Solomon passed a very unhappy week. Flying head foremost +into tree-trunks (as Aunt Polly had instructed him to do) gave him many +bumps and bruises. So he was glad when the time came for him to return +to her house in the pasture. + +Solomon’s neighbors had been so interested in watching him that they +were all sorry when he ceased his strange actions. Indeed, there was a +rumor that Solomon had become very angry with Farmer Green and that he +was trying to knock down some of Farmer Green’s trees. Before the end +of that unpleasant week Solomon had often noticed as many as +twenty-four of the forest folk following him about, hoping to see a +tree fall. + +But they were all disappointed. However, they enjoyed the sight of +Solomon hurling himself against tree-trunks. And the louder he groaned, +the more people gathered around him. + + + + +XI +Cured At Last + + +“How do you feel now?” Aunt Polly Woodchuck asked Solomon Owl, when he +had come back to her house after a week’s absence. + +“No better!” he groaned. “I still have pains. But they seem to have +moved and scattered all over me.” + +“Good!” she exclaimed with a smile. “You are much better, though you +didn’t know it. The wishbone is broken. You broke it by flying against +the trees. And you ought not to have any more trouble. But let me +examine you!” she said, prodding him in the waistcoat once more. + +“This is odd!” she continued a bit later. “I can feel the wishbone more +plainly than ever.” + +“That’s my own wishbone!” Solomon cried indignantly. “I’ve grown so +thin through not eating that it’s a wonder you can’t feel my backbone, +too.” + +Aunt Polly Woodchuck looked surprised. + +“Perhaps you’re right!” said she. “Not having a wishbone of my own, I +forgot that you had one.” + +A look of disgust came over Solomon Owl’s face. + +“You’re a very poor doctor,” he told her. “Here you’ve kept me from +eating for a whole week—and I don’t believe it was necessary at all!” + +“Well, you’re better, aren’t you?” she asked him. + +“I shall be as soon as I have a good meal,” replied Solomon Owl, +hopefully. + +“You ought not to eat anything for another week,” Aunt Polly told him +solemnly. + +“Nonsense!” he cried. + +“I’m a doctor; and I ought to know best,” she insisted. + +But Solomon Owl hooted rudely. + +“I’ll never come to you for advice any more,” he declared. “I firmly +believe that my whole trouble was simply that I’ve been eating too +sparingly. And I shall take good care to see that it doesn’t happen +again.” + +No one had ever spoken to Aunt Polly in quite that fashion—though old +Mr. Crow had complained one time that she had cured him _too quickly_. +But she did not lose her temper, in spite of Solomon’s jeers. + +“You’ll be back here again the very next time you’re ill,” she +remarked. “And if you continue to swallow your food whole——” + +But Solomon Owl did not even wait to hear what she said. He was so +impolite that he flew away while she was talking. And since it was then +almost dark, and a good time to look for field mice, he began his +night’s hunting right there in Farmer Green’s pasture. + +By morning Solomon was so plump that Aunt Polly Woodchuck would have +had a good deal of trouble finding his wishbone. But since he did not +visit her again, she had no further chance to prod him in the +waistcoat. + +Afterward, Solomon heard a bit of gossip that annoyed him. A friend of +his reported that Aunt Polly Woodchuck was going about and telling +everybody how she had saved Solomon’s life. + +“Mice!” he exclaimed (he often said that when some would have said +“Rats!”). “There’s not a word of truth in her claim. And if people in +this neighborhood keep on taking her advice and her catnip tea they’re +going to be sorry some day. For they’ll be really ill the first thing +they know. And then what will they do?” + + + + +XII +Benjamin Bat + + +Solomon Owl was by no means the only night-prowler in Pleasant Valley. +He had neighbors that chose to sleep in the daytime, so they might roam +through the woods and fields after dark. One of these was Benjamin Bat. +And furthermore, he was the color of night itself. + +Now, Benjamin Bat was an odd chap. When he was still he liked to hang +by his feet, upside down. And when he was flying he sailed about in a +zigzag, helter-skelter fashion. He went in so many different +directions, turning this way and that, one could never tell where he +was going. One might say that his life was just one continual +dodge—when he wasn’t resting with his heels where his head ought to be. + +A good many of Benjamin Bat’s friends said he certainly must be crazy, +because he didn’t do as they did. But that never made the slightest +difference in Benjamin Bat’s habits. He continued to zigzag through +life—and hang by his heels—just the same. Perhaps he thought that all +other people were crazy because they didn’t do likewise. + +Benjamin often dodged across Solomon Owl’s path, when Solomon was +hunting for field mice. And since Benjamin was the least bit like a +mouse himself—except for his wings—there was a time, once, when Solomon +tried to catch him. + +But Solomon Owl soon found that chasing Benjamin Bat made him dizzy. If +Benjamin hadn’t been used to hanging head downward, maybe he would have +been dizzy, too. + +Though the two often saw each other, Benjamin Bat never seemed to care +to stop for a chat with Solomon Owl. One night, however, Benjamin +actually called to Solomon and asked his advice. He was in trouble. And +he knew that Solomon Owl was supposed by some to be the wisest old +fellow for miles around. + +It was almost morning. And Solomon Owl was hurrying home, because a +terrible storm had arisen. The lightning was flashing, and peals of +thunder crashed through the woods. Big drops of rain were already +pattering down. But Solomon Owl did not care, for he had almost reached +his house in the hollow hemlock near the foot of Blue Mountain. + +It was different with Benjamin Bat. That night he had strayed a long +distance from his home in Cedar Swamp. And he didn’t know what to do. +“I want to get under cover, somewhere,” he told Solomon Owl. “You don’t +know of a good place near-by, do you, where I can get out of the storm +and take a nap?” + +“Why, yes!” answered Solomon Owl. “Come right along to my house and +spend the day with me!” + +But Benjamin Bat did not like the suggestion at all. + +“I’m afraid I might crowd, you,” he said. He was thinking of the time +when Solomon Owl had chased him. And sleeping in Solomon Owl’s house +seemed far from a safe thing to do. + + +[Illustration: ] Benjamin Asked Solomon’s Advice + + +Solomon was wise enough to guess what was going on inside Benjamin’s +head. + +“Come along!” he said. “We’ll both be asleep before we know it. I’m +sorry I can’t offer you something to eat. But I haven’t a morsel of +food in my house. No doubt, though, you’ve just had a good meal. _I_ +ate seven mice to-night. And I certainly couldn’t eat anything more.” + +When Solomon Owl told him that, Benjamin Bat thought perhaps there was +no danger, after all. And since the rain was falling harder and harder +every moment, he thanked Solomon and said he would be glad to accent +his invitation. + +“Follow me, then!” said Solomon Owl. And he led the way to his home in +the hemlock. + +For once, Benjamin Bat flew in a fairly straight line, though he did a +little dodging, because he couldn’t help it. + +There was more room inside Solomon’s house than Benjamin Bat had +supposed. While Benjamin was looking about and telling Solomon that he +had a fine home, his host quickly made a bed of leaves in one corner of +the room—there was only one room, of course. + +“That’s for you!” said Solomon Owl. “I always sleep on the other side +of the house.” And without waiting even to make sure that his guest was +comfortable, Solomon Owl lay down and began to snore—for he was very +sleepy. + +It was so cozy there that Benjamin Bat was glad, already, that he had +accepted Solomon’s invitation. + + + + +XIII +The Lucky Guest + + +In the middle of the day Solomon Owl happened to awake. He was sorry +that he hadn’t slept until sunset, because he was very hungry. Knowing +that it was light outside his hollow tree, he didn’t want to leave home +to find something to eat. + +Then, suddenly, he remembered that he had brought Benjamin Bat to his +house early that morning, so Benjamin might escape the storm.... Why +not eat Benjamin Bat? + +As soon as the thought occurred to him, Solomon Owl liked it. And he +moved stealthily over to the bed of leaves he had made for his guest +just before daybreak. + +But Benjamin Bat was not there. Though Solomon looked in every nook and +cranny of his one-room house, he did not find him. + +“He must have left as soon as it stopped raining,” said Solomon Owl to +himself. “He might at least have waited to thank me for giving him a +day’s lodging. It’s the last time I’ll ever bring any worthless +vagabond into my house. And I ought to have known better than to have +anything to do with a crazy person like Benjamin Bat.” + +Anybody can see that Solomon Owl was displeased. But it was not at all +astonishing, if one stops to remember how hungry he was, and that he +had expected to enjoy a good meal without the trouble of going away +from home to get it. + +Solomon Owl went to the door of his house and looked out. The sun was +shining so brightly that after blinking in his doorway for a few +minutes he decided that he would go to bed again and try to sleep until +dusk. He never liked bright days. “They’re so dismal!” he used to say. +“Give me a good, dark night and I’m happy, for there’s nothing more +cheering than gloom.” + +In spite of the pangs of hunger that gnawed inside him, Solomon at last +succeeded in falling asleep once more. And he dreamed that he chased +Benjamin Bat three times around Blue Mountain, and then three times +back again, in the opposite direction. But he never could catch him, +because Benjamin Bat simply wouldn’t fly straight. His zigzag course +was so confusing that even in his dream Solomon Owl grew dizzy. + +Now, Benjamin Bat was in Solomon’s house all the time. And the reason +why Solomon Owl hadn’t found him was a very simple one. It was merely +that Solomon hadn’t looked in the right place. + +Benjamin Bat was hidden—as you might say—where his hungry host never +once thought of looking for him. And being asleep all the while, +Benjamin didn’t once move or make the slightest noise. + +If he had snored, or sneezed, or rustled his wings, no doubt Solomon +Owl would have found him. + +When Benjamin awakened, late in the afternoon, Solomon was still +sleeping. And Benjamin crept through the door and went out into the +gathering twilight, without arousing Solomon. + +“I’ll thank him the next time I meet him,” Benjamin Bat decided. And he +staggered away through the air as if he did not quite know, himself, +where he was going. But, of course, that was only his queer way of +flying. + +When he told his friends where he had spent the day they were +astonished. + +“How did you ever dare do anything so dangerous as sleeping in Solomon +Owl’s house?” they all asked him. + +But Benjamin Bat only said, “Oh! There was nothing to be afraid of.” +And he began to feel quite important. + + + + +XIV +Hanging By The Heels + + +It was several nights before Solomon Owl and Benjamin Bat chanced to +meet again in the forest. + +“Hullo!” said Solomon. + +“Hullo!” said Benjamin Bat. “I’m glad to see you, because I want to +thank you for letting me spend the day in your house, so I wouldn’t +have to stay out in the storm.” + +“You must be a light sleeper,” Solomon observed. (He did not tell +Benjamin that he was welcome!) + +“What makes you think that?” Benjamin Bat inquired. + +“Why—you left my house before noon,” Solomon told him. + +“Oh, no!” said Benjamin. “I slept soundly until sunset. When I came +away the crickets were chirping. And I was surprised that you hadn’t +waked up yourself.” + +“You were gone before midday,” Solomon Owl insisted. And they had +something very like a dispute, while Solomon Owl sat in one tree and +Benjamin Bat hung head downward from another. “I ought to know,” said +Solomon. “I was awake about noon; and I looked everywhere for you.” + +“What for?” asked Benjamin. + +Naturally, Solomon didn’t like to tell him that he had intended to eat +him. So he looked wise—and said nothing. + +“You didn’t look on the ceiling, did you?” Benjamin Bat inquired. + +“No, indeed!” Solomon Owl exclaimed. + +“Well, that’s where I was, hanging by my feet,” Benjamin Bat informed +him. + +Solomon Owl certainly was surprised to hear that. + +“The idea!” he cried. “You’re a queer one! I never once thought of +looking _on the ceiling_ for a _luncheon!_” He was so astonished that +he spoke before he thought how oddly his remark would sound to another. + +When he heard what Solomon Owl said, Benjamin Bat knew at once that +Solomon had meant to eat him. And he was so frightened that he dropped +from the limb to which he was clinging and flew off as fast as he could +go. For once in his life he flew in a straight line, with no zigzags at +all, he was in such a hurry to get away from Solomon Owl, who—for all +he knew—might still be very hungry. + +But Solomon Owl had caught so many mice that night that he didn’t feel +like chasing anybody. So he sat motionless in the tree, merely turning +his head to watch Benjamin sailing away through the dusky woods. He +noticed that Benjamin didn’t dodge at all—except when there was a tree +in his way. And he wondered what the reason was. + +“Perhaps he’s not so crazy as I supposed,” said Solomon Owl to himself. +And ever afterward, when he happened to awake and feel hungry, Solomon +Owl used to look up at the ceiling above him and wish that Benjamin Bat +was there. + +But Benjamin Bat never cared to have anything more to do with Solomon +Owl. + +He said he had a good reason for avoiding him. + +And ever afterward he passed for a very brave person among his friends. +They often pointed him out to strangers, saying, “There’s Benjamin Bat! +_He_ doesn’t know what fear is. Why, once he even spent a whole day +asleep in Solomon Owl’s house! And if you don’t think _that_ was a bold +thing to do, then I guess you don’t know Solomon Owl.” + + + + +XV +Disputes Settled + + +Solomon Owl looked so wise that many of his neighbors fell into the +habit of going to him for advice. If two of the forest folk chanced to +have a dispute which they could not settle between them they frequently +visited Solomon and asked him to decide which was in the right. And in +the course of time Solomon became known far and wide for his ability to +patch up a quarrel. + +At last Jimmy Rabbit stopped Solomon Owl one night and suggested that +he hang a sign outside his house, so that there shouldn’t be anybody in +the whole valley that wouldn’t know what to do in case he found himself +in an argument. + +Solomon decided on the spot that Jimmy Rabbit’s idea was a good one. So +he hurried home and before morning he had his sign made, and put out +where everyone could see it. It looked like this: + +DISPUTES SETTLED WITHIN + + +There was only one objection to the sign. As soon as Jimmy Rabbit saw +it he told Solomon that it should have said: + +DISPUTES SETTLED WITHOUT + + +“Without what?” Solomon Owl inquired. + +“Why, without going into your house!” said Jimmy Rabbit. “I can’t climb +a tree, you know. And neither can Tommy Fox. We might have a dispute +to-night; and how could you ever settle it?” + +“Oh, I shall be willing to step outside,” Solomon told him. And he +refused to change the sign, declaring that he liked it just as it was. + +Now, there was only one trouble with Solomon Owl’s settling of +disputes. Many of the forest folk wanted to see him in the daytime. And +_night_ was the only time _he_ was willing to see them. But he heard so +many objections to that arrangement that in the end Solomon agreed to +meet people at dusk and at dawn, when it was neither very dark nor very +light. On the whole he found that way very satisfactory, because there +was just enough light at dusk and at dawn to make him blink. And when +Solomon blinked he looked even wiser than ever. + +Well, the first disputing pair that came to Solomon’s tree after he +hung out his new sign were old Mr. Crow and Jasper Jay. They reached +the hemlock grove soon after sunset and squalled loudly for Solomon. +“Hurry!” Mr. Crow cried, as soon as Solomon Owl stepped outside his +door. “It will be dark before we know it; and it’s almost our bedtime.” + +“What’s your difficulty?” Solomon asked them. + +Mr. Crow looked at Jasper Jay. And then he looked at Solomon again. + +“Maybe you won’t like to hear it,” he said. And he winked at Jasper. +“But you’ve put out this sign—so we’ve come here.” + +“You’ve done just right!” exclaimed Solomon Owl. “And as for my not +liking to hear the trouble, it’s your dispute and not mine. So I don’t +see how it concerns me—except to settle it.” + +“Very Well,” Mr. Crow answered. “The dispute, then, is this: Jasper +says that in spite of your looking so wise, you’re really the stupidest +person in Pleasant Valley.” + +“He does, eh?” cried Solomon Owl, while Jasper Jay laughed loudly. “And +you, of course, do not agree with him,” Solomon continued. + +“I do not!” Mr. Crow declared. + +“Good!” said Solomon, nodding his head approvingly. + +“No, I do not agree with Jasper Jay,” Mr. Crow said. “I claim that +there’s one other person more stupid than you are—and that’s Fatty +Coon.” + +Well, Solomon Owl certainly was displeased. And it didn’t make him feel +any happier to hear Jasper Jay’s boisterous shouts, or the hoarse +“_haw-haw_” of old Mr. Crow. + +“I hope you can decide which one of us is right,” Mr. Crow ventured. + +“I am, of course!” cried Jasper Jay. + +“You’re not!” Mr. Crow shouted. And to Solomon Owl he said, “We’ve been +disputing like this all day long.” + +Solomon Owl didn’t know what to say. If he announced that Jasper was +right it would be the same as admitting that he was the stupidest +person in the whole neighborhood. And if he said that old Mr. Crow’s +opinion was correct he would not be much better off. Naturally he +didn’t want to tell either of them that he was right. + +“I’ll have to think about this,” Solomon observed at last. + +“We don’t want to wait,” said Mr. Crow. “If we keep on disputing we’re +likely to have a fight.” + +Now, Solomon Owl hoped that they would have a fight. So he was +determined to keep them waiting for his decision. + +“Come back to-morrow at this time,” he said. + + + + +XVI +Nine Fights + + +The next evening, just at dusk, Jasper Jay and old Mr. Crow returned to +Solomon Owl’s house, looking much bedraggled. One of Mr. Crow’s eyes +was almost closed; and Jasper Jay’s crest seemed to have been torn half +off his head. + +“What’s the matter?” asked Solomon, as soon as he saw them. + +“We’ve had three fights,” said Jasper Jay. + +“Yes! And I’ve whipped him each time!” cried Mr. Crow. “So I must be in +the right. And you’d better decide our dispute in my favor at once.” + +But Solomon Owl was still in no hurry. + +“It’s a difficult question to settle,” said he. “I don’t want to make +any mistake. So I shall have to ask you to come back here to-morrow at +this time.” + +Both Jasper and Mr. Crow seemed disappointed. Although Mr. Crow had won +each fight, he was very weary, for he was older than Jasper Jay. + +As they went off, Solomon Owl began to feel much pleased with himself. + +The following evening, at sunset, old Mr. Crow and Jasper Jay visited +Solomon Owl once more. And they looked more battered than ever. + +“We’ve had three more fights,” said Mr. Crow. + +“Yes! And I won each time!” Jasper Jay piped up. “So I must be in the +right. And you’d better decide in my favor without any further delay.” + +Solomon Owl thought deeply for some time. + +“Maybe I ought to wait until to-morrow——” he began. + +But his callers both shouted “No!” + +“Well,” said Solomon, “Mr. Crow has won three fights; and Jasper Jay +has won three. So it is certain that each must be in the wrong.” + +But that announcement did not satisfy Jasper and Mr. Crow. And they +left the hemlock grove, disputing more loudly than ever. + +And the next day, at dusk, they came back again. + +“We’ve had three more fights; and I won!” they both cried at the same +time. + +“That proves my claim,” said Solomon Owl. “You’re both wrong.” + +They whispered together for a few minutes. + +“We don’t like your way of settling disputes,” Mr. Crow remarked +shortly. “But we’ve decided to stop quarreling.” + +“Good!” said Solomon Owl. “That shows that you are sensible.” + +“Yes!” replied Jasper. “We’ve decided to stop quarreling and fight +_you!_” + +“Wait a moment!” said Solomon Owl hastily, as they drew nearer. “I +don’t want my new suit spoiled.” And he ducked inside the hollow tree +before they could reach him. + +Jasper and Mr. Crow waited and waited. But Solomon Owl did not +reappear. And since his two visitors did not dare follow him into the +dark cavern where he lived, they decided at last that they would go +home—and get into bed. + +“Let’s take away his sign, anyhow!” Jasper Jay suggested. + +So they pulled down Solomon’s sign, which said “Disputes Settled +Within,” and they carried it off with them and hid it in some bushes. + +That same night Solomon Owl hunted for it for a long time. But he never +found it. + +He decided not to hang out another, for he saw that settling disputes +was a dangerous business. + + + + +XVII +Cousin Simon Screecher + + +Solomon Owl had a small cousin named Simon Screecher. He was unlike +Solomon in some respects, because he always wore ear-tufts, and his +eyes were yellow instead of black. But in some other ways he was no +different from Solomon Owl, for he was a noisy chap and dearly loved +mice—to eat. + +It happened that the two met in the woods one fine fall evening; and +they agreed to go hunting mice together. + +Now, being so much smaller than Solomon, Simon Screecher was all the +spryer. In fact, he was so active that he could catch mice faster than +Solomon Owl could capture them. And they had not hunted long before +Solomon discovered that Simon had succeeded in disposing of six mice to +his three. + +That discovery did not please Solomon at all. + +“Look here!” he said. “Since we are hunting together it’s only fair to +divide what we catch, half and half.” + +Simon Screecher hesitated. But after reflecting that his cousin was +very big and very strong, he agreed to Solomon’s suggestion. + +So they resumed their hunting. And every time one of them caught two +mice, he gave one mouse to his cousin. + +Still Solomon Owl was not satisfied. + +“Wait a moment!” Solomon called to Simon Screecher. “It has just +occurred to me that I am more than twice as big as you are; so I ought +to have twice as many mice as you.” + +This time Simon Screecher hesitated longer. He did not like the second +suggestion even as well as the first. And in the end he said as much, +too. + +But Solomon Owl insisted that it was only fair. + +“You surely ought to be glad to please your own cousin,” he told Simon. + +“It’s not that,” said Simon Screecher. “It seems to me that since I’m +not half your size, I ought to have twice as many mice to eat, so I’ll +grow bigger.” + +Well, Solomon Owl hadn’t thought of that. He was puzzled to know what +to say. And he wanted time in which to ponder. + +“I’ll think over what you say,” he told Simon Screecher. “And now, +since it’s almost dawn, we’d better not hunt any longer to-night. But +I’ll meet you again at dusk if you’ll come to my house.” + +“Very well, Cousin Solomon!” Simon answered. “I’m sure that after +you’ve had a good sleep you’ll be ready to agree with me.” + +“If that’s the case, I may not take any nap at all,” Solomon replied. + +“Oh! You ought to have your rest!” his cousin exclaimed. Simon knew +that if Solomon went all day without sleep he would be frightfully +peevish by nightfall. + +“Well—I’ll try to get forty winks,” Solomon promised. “But I don’t +believe I can get more than that, because I have so much on my mind +that I’m sure to be wakeful.” + +Simon Screecher was somewhat worried as they parted. His wailing, +tremulous whistle, which floated through the shadowy woods, showed that +he was far from happy. + + + + +XVIII +A Cousinly Quarrel + + +It proved to be just as Solomon Owl had told his cousin, Simon +Screecher. Solomon had so much on his mind that he had no sooner fallen +asleep than he awoke again, to study over the question that perplexed +him. He certainly did not want Simon to have twice as many mice as he. +But Simon’s argument was a good one. He had said that since Solomon was +more than twice his size, it was proper that he should have a chance to +grow. And everybody knew—Solomon reflected—everybody knew that _eating_ +made one larger. + +The longer Solomon pondered, the farther he seemed from any answer that +he liked. And he had begun to fear that he would not succeed in getting +more than thirty-nine winks all day—instead of forty—when all at once +an idea came into his mind. + +Solomon knew right away that he had nothing more to worry about. He +dropped into a sound sleep with a pleasant smile upon his usually +solemn face. And when he opened his eyes again it was time for Simon +Screecher to arrive. + +Yes! Solomon could hear his cousin’s whistle even then. So he hurried +to his door; and there was Simon, sitting on a limb of the big hemlock +waiting for him! + +“It’s all right!” said Solomon to his cousin. “I agree to your +suggestion. We’ll hunt together again to-night; and if you will give me +one-third of all the mice you catch, I promise to give you two-thirds +of all the mice that I capture.” + +“Good!” said Simon Screecher. And he looked vastly relieved. “Just hoot +when you have any mice for me!” + +“Whistle when you have any for me!” Solomon Owl replied. + +And at that they started out for their night’s sport. It was not long +before Simon Screecher’s well known whistle brought Solomon hurrying to +him. Simon already had three mice, one of which he gave to Solomon, +according to their agreement. + +That same thing happened several times; until at last Simon Screecher +began to grumble. + +“What’s the matter?” he asked his cousin. “You are not hooting, as you +promised you would.” + +“But I haven’t caught any mice yet!” Solomon Owl replied. + + +[Illustration: ] “It’s All Right,” Said Solomon + + +Again and again and again Simon’s call summoned Solomon. But not once +did Solomon’s summon Simon. And all the time Simon Screecher grew more +discontented. Toward the end of the night he declared flatly that he +wasn’t going to hunt any more with his cousin. + +“I’ve done exactly as I agreed!” Solomon Owl protested. + +“You’re altogether too slow and clumsy,” Simon Screecher told him +bluntly. “If I’m going to hunt with anybody after this I’m going to +choose someone that’s as spry as I am. There’s no sense in my working +for you. Here I’ve toiled all night long and I’m still hungry, for I’ve +given you a third of my food.” + +They parted then—and none too pleasantly. + +In Simon’s whistle, as he flew away toward his home, there was +unmistakable anger. But Solomon Owl’s answering hoots—while they were +not exactly sweet—seemed to carry more than a hint of laughter. + +One would naturally think that Solomon might have been even hungrier +than his small cousin. But it was not so. He had had more to eat than +usual; for he had been very busy catching locusts and katydids—and +frogs, too. Solomon Owl had not tried to catch a single mouse that +night. + +You know now the idea that had come to him while he was lying awake in +his house during the daytime. He had made up his mind that he would not +hunt for mice. And since he had not promised Simon to give him anything +else, there was no reason why he should not eat all the frogs and +katydids and locusts that he could find. + +Perhaps it was not surprising that Simon Screecher never guessed the +truth. But he seemed to know that there was something queer about that +night’s hunting, for he never came to Solomon Owl’s house again. + + + + +XIX +The Sleet Storm + + +It was winter. And for several days a strong south wind had swept up +Pleasant Valley. That—as Solomon Owl knew very well—that meant a thaw +was coming. He was not sorry, because the weather had been bitterly +cold. + +Well, the thaw came. And the weather grew so warm that Solomon Owl +could stay out all night without once feeling chilled. He found the +change so agreeable that he strayed further from home than was his +custom. Indeed, he was far away on the other side of Blue Mountain at +midnight, when it began to rain. + +Now, that was not quite so pleasant. But still Solomon did not mind +greatly. It was not until later that he began to feel alarmed, when he +noticed that flying did not seem so easy as usual. + +Solomon had grown heavy all at once—and goodness knows it was not +because he had overeaten, for food was scarce at that season of the +year. Moreover, Solomon’s wings were strangely stiff. When he moved +them they _crackled_. + +“It must be my joints,” he said to himself. “I’m afraid this wetting +has given me rheumatism.” So he started home at once—though it was only +midnight. But the further he went, the worse he felt—and the harder it +was to fly. + +“I’ll have to rest a while,” he said to himself at last. So he alighted +on a limb; for he was more tired than he had ever been in all his life. + +But he soon felt so much better that he was ready to start on again. +And then, to his dismay, Solomon Owl found that he could hardly stir. +The moment he left his perch he floundered down upon the ground. And +though he tried his hardest, he couldn’t reach the tree again. + +The rain was still beating down steadily. And Solomon began to think it +a bad night to be out. What was worse, the weather was fast turning +cold. + +“I’m afraid I’ll have to stay in bed a week after this,” he groaned. +“If I sit here long, as wet as I am, while the thaw turns into a +_freeze_, I shall certainly be ill.” + +Now, if it hadn’t been for the rain, Solomon Owl would have had no +trouble at all. Or if it hadn’t been for the freezing cold he would +have been in no difficulty. Though he didn’t know it, his trouble was +simply this: The rain froze upon him as + +fast as it fell, covering him with a coating of ice. It was no wonder +that he felt strangely heavy—no wonder that he couldn’t fly. + +There he crouched on the ground, while the rain and sleet beat upon +him. And the only comforting thought that entered his head was that on +so stormy a night Tommy Fox and Fatty Coon would be snug and warm in +their beds. _They_ wouldn’t go out in such weather. + +And Solomon Owl wished that he, too, had stayed at home that night. + +From midnight until almost dawn Solomon Owl sat there. Now and then he +tried to fly. But it was no use. He could scarcely raise himself off +the ground. + +At last he decided he would have to _walk_ home. Fortunately, a hard +crust covered the soft snow. So Solomon started off on his long +journey. + +Flying, Solomon could have covered the distance in a few minutes. But +he was a slow walker. By the time he reached his home among the +hemlocks the sun was shining brightly—for the rain had stopped before +daybreak. + +Solomon wondered how he would ever succeed in reaching his doorway, +high up in the hollow tree. He gazed helplessly upward. And as he sat +there mournfully the bright sunshine melted the ice that bound his +wings. After a time he discovered that he could move freely once more. +And then he rose quickly in the air and in a twinkling he had +disappeared into the darkness of his home—that darkness which to him +was always so pleasant. + + + + +XX +A Pair Of Red-Heads + + +In the woods there was hardly one of Solomon Owl’s neighbors that +couldn’t point out the big hemlock tree where he lived. And mischievous +fellows like Reddy Woodpecker sometimes annoyed Solomon a good deal by +rapping loudly on his door. When he thrust his head angrily out of his +house and blinked in the sunlight, his tormentors would skip away and +laugh. They laughed because they knew that they had awakened Solomon +Owl. And they dodged out of his reach because he was always +ill-tempered when anybody disturbed his rest in the daytime. + +Solomon Owl did not mind so _very_ much so long as that trick was not +played on him too often. But after a time it became one of Reddy +Woodpecker’s favorite sports. Not only once, but several times a day +did he go to the hemlock grove to hammer upon Solomon’s hollow tree. +And each time that he brought Solomon Owl to his door Reddy Woodpecker +laughed more loudly than ever before. + +Once Solomon forgot to take off his nightcap (though he wore it in the +daytime, it really was a nightcap). And Reddy Woodpecker was so amused +that he shouted at the top of his lungs. + +“What’s the joke?” asked Solomon Owl in his deep, rumbling voice. He +tried to look very severe. But it is hard to look any way except funny +with a nightcap on one’s head. + +As luck had it, Jasper Jay came hurrying up just then. He had heard +Reddy Woodpecker’s laughter. And if there was a joke he wanted to enjoy +it, too. + +Jasper Jay, alighting in a small hemlock near Reddy Woodpecker, asked +the same question that Solomon Owl had just put to his rude caller. + +“What’s the joke?” inquired Jasper Jay. + +Reddy could not speak. He was rocking back and forth upon a limb, +choking and gasping for breath. But he managed to point to the big tree +where Solomon Owl lived. + +And when Jasper looked, and saw Solomon’s great, round, pale, +questioning face, all tied up in a red nightcap, he began to scream. + +They were no ordinary screams—those shrieks of Jasper Jay’s. That +blue-coated rascal was the noisiest of all the feathered folk in +Pleasant Valley. And now he fairly made the woods echo with his hoarse +cries. + +“This is the funniest sight I’ve ever seen!” Jasper Jay said at last, +to nobody in particular. “I declare, there’s a pair of them!” + +At that, Reddy Woodpecker suddenly stopped laughing. + +“A pair of what?” he asked. + +“A pair of red-heads, of course!” Jasper Jay replied. “You’ve a red +cap—and so has he!” Jasper pointed at Solomon Owl (a very rude thing to +do!). + +Then two things happened all at once. Solomon Owl snatched off his red +night-cap—which he had quite forgotten. And Reddy Woodpecker dashed at +Jasper Jay. He couldn’t pull off _his_ red cap, for it grew right on +his head. + +“So that’s what you’re laughing at, is it?” he cried angrily. And then +nobody laughed any more—that is, nobody but Solomon Owl. + +Solomon was so pleased by the fight that followed between Jasper Jay +and Reddy Woodpecker that his deep, rumbling laughter could be heard +for half an hour—even if it _was_ midday. “_Wha-wha! Whoo-ah!_” The +sound reached the ears of Farmer Green, who was just crossing a +neighboring field, on his way home to dinner. + +“Well, well!” he exclaimed. “I wonder what’s happened to that old owl! +Something must have tickled him—for I never heard an owl laugh in broad +daylight before.” + + + + +XXI +At Home In The Haystack + + +After what happened when he came to his door without remembering to +take off his red nightcap, Solomon Owl hoped that Reddy Woodpecker +would stop teasing him. + +But it was not so. Having once viewed Solomon’s red cap, Reddy +Woodpecker wanted to see it some more. So he came again and again and +knocked on Solomon’s door. + +Solomon Owl, however, remembered each time to remove his nightcap +before sticking his head out. And it might be said that neither of them +was exactly pleased. For Reddy Woodpecker was disappointed; and Solomon +Owl was angry. + +Not a day passed that Reddy Woodpecker didn’t disturb Solomon’s rest at +least a dozen times. Perhaps if Solomon had just kept still inside his +house Reddy would have grown tired of bothering him. But Solomon +Owl—for all he looked so wise—never thought of that. + +But he saw before a great while that he would have to make a change of +some sort—if he wanted to enjoy a good, quiet sleep again. + +For a long time Solomon Owl pondered. It was a great puzzle—to know +just how to outwit Reddy Woodpecker. And Solomon almost despaired of +finding a way out of the difficulty. But at last an idea came to him, +all in a flash. He would take his daytime naps somewhere else! + +Solomon spent several nights looking for a good place to pass his days. +And in the end he decided on the meadow. It would be convenient, he +thought, when he was hunting meadow mice at dawn, if he could stay +right there, without bothering to go into the woods to sleep. + +Since there were no trees in the meadow, but only a few scrubby bushes +along the stone wall, one might naturally make the mistake of thinking +that there could not possibly be a nook of any kind that would suit +Solomon Owl, who could never sleep soundly unless his bedroom was quite +dark. + +But there was one hiding place that Solomon liked almost as well as his +home in the hollow hemlock. And that was Farmer Green’s haystack. He +burrowed into one side of it and made himself a snug chamber, which was +as dark as a pocket—and ever so much quieter. What pleased Solomon +most, however, was this: Nobody knew about that new retreat except +himself. + +Even if Reddy Woodpecker should succeed in finding it, he never could +disturb Solomon by drumming upon the haystack. If Reddy tried that +trick, his bill would merely sink noiselessly into the hay. + +So Solomon Owl at last had a good day’s rest. And when he met Reddy +Woodpecker just after sunset, Solomon was feeling so cheerful that he +said “Good-evening!” quite pleasantly, before he remembered that it was +Reddy who had teased him so often. + +“Good-evening!” Reddy Woodpecker replied. He seemed much surprised that +Solomon Owl should be so agreeable. “Can you hear me?” Reddy asked him. + +“Perfectly!” said Solomon. + +“That’s strange!” Reddy Woodpecker exclaimed. “I was almost sure you +had suddenly grown deaf.” And he could not understand why Solomon Owl +laughed loud and long. + +“_Wha-wha! Whoo-ah!_” Solomon’s deep-voiced laughter rolled and echoed +through the woodland. + +But Reddy Woodpecker did not laugh at all. + + + + +XXII +It Was Solomon’s Fault + + +Reddy Woodpecker had a very good reason for not laughing when he met +Solomon Owl. Of course, he knew nothing whatever of Solomon’s new +hiding place in the haystack. And that very morning Reddy had invited a +party of friends to go with him to the hemlock grove where Solomon Owl +had always lived, “to have some fun,” as Reddy had explained. + +For a long time he had knocked and hammered and pounded at Solomon +Owl’s door. But for once Solomon’s great pale face did not appear. + +“Where’s the fun?” Reddy’s friends had wanted to know, after they had +waited until they were impatient. + +And Reddy Woodpecker could only shake his head and say: + +“I can’t understand it! It’s never happened like this before. I’m +afraid Solomon Owl has lost his hearing.” + +Reddy Woodpecker’s friends were no more polite than he. And they began +to jeer at him. + +“You didn’t hammer loud enough,” one of them told him. + +So he set to work again and rapped and rapped until his head felt as if +it would fly off, and his neck began to ache. + +Still, Solomon Owl did not appear. And the party broke up in something +very like a quarrel. For Reddy Woodpecker lost his temper when his +friends teased him; and a good many unpleasant remarks passed back and +forth. + +Somehow, Reddy felt that it was all Solomon Owl’s fault, because he +hadn’t come to the door. + +Of course, Reddy had no means of knowing that all that time Solomon Owl +was sleeping peacefully in Farmer Green’s haystack in the meadow, a +quarter of a mile away. + +It was a good joke on Reddy Woodpecker. And though no one had told +Solomon Owl about it, he was not so stupid that he couldn’t guess at +least _a little_ that had happened. + +Solomon Owl continued to have a very pleasant time living in the +meadow. Since there were many mice right close at hand, little by +little he visited the woods less and less. And there came a time at +last when he hardly left the meadow at all. + +Not flying any more than he could help, and eating too much, and +sleeping very soundly each day, he grew stouter than ever, until his +friends hardly knew him when they saw him. + +“Solomon Owl is a sight—he’s so fat!” people began to say. + +But his size never worried Solomon Owl in the least. When he became too +big for his doorway in the haystack, it was a simple matter to make the +opening larger—much simpler than it would have been to make himself +_smaller_. And that was another reason why he was delighted with his +new home. + +At last, however, something happened to put an end to his lazy way of +living. One day the sound of men’s voices awakened him, when he was +having a good nap in the haystack. And he felt his bedroom quiver as if +an earthquake had shaken it. + +Scrambling to his doorway and peeping slyly out, Solomon saw a sight +that made him very angry. A hayrack stood alongside the stack; and on +it stood Farmer Green and his hired man. Each had a pitchfork in his +hands, with which he tore great forkfuls of hay off the stack and piled +it upon the wagon. + +Solomon Owl knew then that his fine hiding place was going to be +spoiled. As soon as the horses had pulled the load of hay away, with +Farmer Green and the hired man riding on top of it, Solomon Owl crept +out of his snug bedroom and hurried off to the woods. + +He was so fat that it was several days before he could squeeze inside +his old home in the hollow hemlock. And for the time being he had to +sit on a limb and sleep in the daylight as best he could. + +But to his surprise, Reddy Woodpecker troubled him no more. Reddy had +drummed so hard on Solomon’s door, in the effort to awake him when he +wasn’t there, that Aunt Polly Woodchuck told him he would ruin his +bill, if he didn’t look out. And since the warning thoroughly alarmed +him, Reddy stopped visiting the hemlock grove. + +In time Solomon Owl grew to look like himself again. And people never +really knew just what had happened to him. But they noticed that he +always hooted angrily whenever anybody mentioned Farmer Green’s name. + +THE END + + + + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE TALE OF SOLOMON OWL *** + +***** This file should be named 16663-0.txt or 16663-0.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + https://www.gutenberg.org/1/6/6/6/16663/ + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will +be renamed. + +Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright +law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, +so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the +United States without permission and without paying copyright +royalties. 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You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms +of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online +at <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you +are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the +country where you are located before using this eBook. +</div> +<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: The Tale of Solomon Owl</div> +<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: Arthur Scott Bailey</div> +<div style='display:block;margin:1em 0'>Release Date: September 26, 2005 [eBook #16663]<br /> +[Most recently updated: May 18, 2021]</div> +<div style='display:block;margin:1em 0'>Language: English</div> +<div style='display:block;margin:1em 0'>Character set encoding: UTF-8</div> +<div style='display:block; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Produced by: Roger Frank and and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team</div> +<div style='margin-top:2em;margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE TALE OF SOLOMON OWL ***</div> + +<h1>The Tale of Solomon Owl</h1> + +<h2 class="no-break">by Arthur Scott Bailey</h2> + +<p class="center"> +Author of “The Tale of Sandy Chipmunk,” “The Tale of Tommy +Fox,” etc. +</p> + +<p class="center"> +Illustrated by Harry L. Smith +</p> + +<p class="center"> +New York<br /> +Grosset & Dunlap<br /> +1917 +</p> + +<hr /> + +<div class="fig" style="width:100%;"> +<a name="illus01"></a> +<img src="images/image-fp.jpg" width="300" height="450" alt="[Illustration: ]" /> +<p class="caption">Solomon Owl Sat Up And Listened.</p> +</div> + +<h3>Contents</h3> + +<table summary="" style=""> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap01">Chapter I. Scaring Johnny Green</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap02">Chapter II. A Newcomer</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap03">Chapter III. Solomon Likes Frogs</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap04">Chapter IV. An Odd Bargain</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap05">Chapter V. The Cold Weather Coat</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap06">Chapter VI. Solomon Needs a Change</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap07">Chapter VII. The Blazing Eyes</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap08">Chapter VIII. Watching The Chickens</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap09">Chapter IX. Hallowe’en</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap10">Chapter X. A Troublesome Wishbone</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap11">Chapter XI. Cured At Last</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap12">Chapter XII. Benjamin Bat</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap13">Chapter XIII. The Lucky Guest</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap14">Chapter XIV. Hanging By The Heels</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap15">Chapter XV. Disputes Settled</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap16">Chapter XVI. Nine Fights</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap17">Chapter XVII. Cousin Simon Screecher</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap18">Chapter XVIII. A Cousinly Quarrel</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap19">Chapter XIX. The Sleet Storm</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap20">Chapter XX. A Pair Of Red-Heads</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap21">Chapter XXI. At Home In The Haystack</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#chap22">Chapter XXII. It Was Solomon’s Fault</a></td> +</tr> + +</table> + +<h3>Illustrations</h3> + +<table summary="" style=""> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#illus01">Solomon Owl Sat Up And Listened</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#illus02">Solomon Found Mr. Frog’s Shop Was Closed</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#illus03">Benjamin Bat Asked Solomon’s Advice</a></td> +</tr> + +<tr> +<td> <a href="#illus04">“It’s All Right!” Said Solomon</a></td> +</tr> + +</table> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2>The Tale of Solomon Owl</h2> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap01"></a>I<br /> +Scaring Johnny Green</h2> + +<p> +When Johnnie Green was younger, it always scared him to hear Solomon +Owl’s deep-toned voice calling in the woods after dark. +</p> + +<p> +“<i>Whoo-whoo-whoo, whoo-whoo, to-whoo-ah!</i>” That weird cry was +enough to send Johnnie Green hurrying into the farmhouse, though sometimes he +paused in the doorway to listen—especially if Solomon Owl happened to be +laughing. His “<i>haw-haw-hoo-hoo</i>,” booming across the meadow +on a crisp fall evening, when the big yellow moon hung over the fields of +corn-shocks and pumpkins, sounded almost as if Solomon were laughing at the +little boy he had frightened. There was certainly a mocking, jeering note in +his laughter. +</p> + +<p> +Of course, as he grew older, Johnnie Green no longer shivered on hearing +Solomon’s rolling call. When Solomon laughed, Johnnie Green would laugh, +too. But Solomon Owl never knew that, for often he was half a mile from the +farm buildings. +</p> + +<p> +A “hoot owl,” Johnnie Green termed him. And anyone who heard +Solomon hooting of an evening, or just before sunrise, would have agreed that +it was a good name for him. But he was really a <i>barred</i> owl, for he had +bars of white across his feathers. +</p> + +<p> +If you had happened to catch Solomon Owl resting among the thick hemlocks near +the foot of Blue Mountain, where he lived, you would have thought that he +looked strangely like a human being. He had no “horns,” or +ear-tufts, such as some of the other owls wore; and his great pale face, with +its black eyes, made him seem very wise and solemn. +</p> + +<p> +In spite of the mild, questioning look upon his face whenever anyone surprised +him in the daytime, Solomon Owl was the noisiest of all the different families +of owls in Pleasant Valley. There were the barn owls, the long-eared owls, the +short-eared owls, the saw-whet owls, the screech owls—but there! +there’s no use of naming them all. There wasn’t one of them that +could equal Solomon Owl’s laughing and hooting and shrieking and +wailing—at night. +</p> + +<p> +During the day, however, Solomon Owl he was quiet about it. One reason for his +silence then was that he generally slept when the sun was shining. And when +most people were sleeping, Solomon Owl was as wide awake as he could be. +</p> + +<p> +He was a night-prowler—if ever there was one. And he could see a mouse on +the darkest night, even if it stirred ever so slightly. +</p> + +<p> +That was unfortunate for the mice. But luckily for them, Solomon Owl +couldn’t be in more than one place at a time. Otherwise, there +wouldn’t have been a mouse left in Pleasant Valley—if he could have +had <i>his</i> way. +</p> + +<p> +And though he didn’t help the mice, he helped Farmer Green by catching +them. If he did take a fat pullet once in a while, it is certain that he more +than paid for it. +</p> + +<p> +So, on the whole, Farmer Green did not wood-lot. And for a long time Solomon +raised no objection to Farmer Green’s living near Swift River. +</p> + +<p> +But later Solomon Owl claimed that it would be a good thing for the forest folk +if they could get rid of the whole Green family—and the hired man, too. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap02"></a>II<br /> +A Newcomer</h2> + +<p> +Upon his arrival, as a stranger, in Pleasant Valley, Solomon Owl looked about +carefully for a place to live. What he wanted especially was a good, +<i>dark</i> hole, for he thought that sunshine was very dismal. +</p> + +<p> +Though he was willing to bestir himself enough to suit anybody, when it came to +<i>hunting</i>, Solomon Owl did not like to work. He was no busy nest-builder, +like Rusty Wren. In his search for a house he looked several times at the home +of old Mr. Crow. If it had suited him better, Solomon would not have hesitated +to take that it was altogether <i>too light</i> to please him. +</p> + +<p> +That was lucky for old Mr. Crow. And the black rascal knew it, too. He had +noticed that Solomon Owl was hanging about the neighborhood. And several times +he caught Solomon examining his nest. +</p> + +<p> +But Mr. Crow did not have to worry long. For as it happened, Solomon Owl at +last found exactly what he wanted. In an old, hollow hemlock, he came across a +cozy, dark cavity. As soon as he saw it he knew that it was the very thing! So +he moved in at once. And except for the time that he spent in the +meadow—which was considerably later—he lived there for a good many +years. +</p> + +<p> +Once Fatty Coon thought that he would drive Solomon out of his snug house and +live in it himself. But he soon changed Solomon Owl—so Fatty +discovered—had sharp, strong claws and a sharp, strong beak as well, +which curled over his face in a cruel hook. +</p> + +<p> +It was really a good thing for Solomon Owl—the fight he had with Fatty +Coon. For afterward his neighbors seldom troubled him—except when Jasper +Jay brought a crowd of his noisy friends to tease Solomon, or Reddy Woodpecker +annoyed him by rapping on his door when he was asleep. +</p> + +<p> +But those rowdies always took good care to skip out of Solomon’s reach. +And when Jasper Jay met Solomon alone in the woods at dawn or dusk he was most +polite to the solemn old chap. <i>Then</i> it was “How-dy-do, Mr. +Owl!” and “I hope you’re well to-day!” And when Solomon +Jasper, that bold fellow always felt quite uneasy; and he was glad when Solomon +Owl looked away. +</p> + +<p> +If Solomon Owl chanced to <i>hoot</i> on those occasions, Jasper Jay would jump +almost out of his bright blue coat. Then Solomon’s deep laughter would +echo mockingly through the woods. +</p> + +<p> +You see, though not nearly so wise as he appeared, Solomon Owl knew well enough +how to frighten some people. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap03"></a>III<br /> +Solomon Likes Frogs</h2> + +<p> +It was a warm summer’s evening—so warm that Mr. Frog, the tailor, +had taken his sewing outside his tailor’s shop and seated himself +cross-legged upon the bank of the brook, where he sang and sewed without +ceasing—except to take a swim now and then in the cool water, “to +stretch his legs,” as he claimed. +</p> + +<p> +He was making a new suit of blue clothes for Jasper Jay. And since Jasper was a +great dandy, and very particular Mr. Frog was taking special pains with his +sewing. +</p> + +<p> +Usually he did his work quickly. But now after every five stitches that he put +into his work he stopped to take out ten. And naturally he was not getting on +very fast. He had been working busily since early morning; and Jasper +Jay’s suit was further than ever from being finished. +</p> + +<p> +Since he was a most cheerful person, Mr. Frog did not mind that. Indeed, he was +more than pleased, because the oftener he took a swim the fewer stitches he +lost. So he sang the merriest songs he knew. +</p> + +<p> +The light was fast fading when a hollow laugh startled Mr. Frog. It seemed to +come from the willow tree right over his head. And he knew without looking up +that it was Solomon Owl’s deep voice. +</p> + +<p> +Mr. Frog tried to leap into the brook. But when he uncrossed his legs, in his +haste he tangled them up in his sewing. And all he could do was to turn a +somersault backward among some bulrushes, hoping that Solomon Owl had not seen +him. +</p> + +<p> +It is no secret that Mr. Frog was terribly afraid of Solomon Owl. Some of Mr. +Frog’s friends had mysteriously disappeared. And they had last been seen +in Solomon’s company. +</p> + +<p> +As it happened, Mr. Frog had hoped in vain. For Solomon Owl only laughed more +loudly than before. And then he said: +</p> + +<p> +“What are you afraid of, Mr. Frog?” +</p> + +<p> +The tailor knew at once that he was caught. So he hopped nimbly to his feet and +answered that there was nothing to be afraid of, so far as he could see. +</p> + +<p> +It was a true statement, too; because Mr. Frog had not yet discovered Solomon +Owl’s exact whereabouts. +</p> + +<p> +But he learned them soon; for Solomon immediately dropped down from the big +willow and alighted on the bank near Mr. Frog—altogether <i>too near</i> +him, in fact, for the tailor’s comfort. +</p> + +<p> +Solomon looked at Mr. Frog very solemnly. And he thought that he shivered. +</p> + +<p> +“What’s the matter? Are you ill?” Solomon Owl inquired. +“You seem to be shaking.” +</p> + +<p> +“Just a touch of chills and fever, probably!” replied Mr. Frog with +an uneasy smile. “You know it’s very damp here.” +</p> + +<p> +“You don’t look in the best of health—that’s a +fact!” Solomon Owl remarked. “You appear to me to be somewhat green +in the face.” And he laughed once more—that same hollow, mirthless +laugh. +</p> + +<p> +Mr. Frog couldn’t help jumping, because the sound alarmed him. +</p> + +<p> +“Don’t be disturbed!” said Solomon Owl. “I like all the +Frog family.” +</p> + +<p> +At that remark, Mr. Frog started violently That was exactly the trouble! +Solomon Owl was <i>altogether too fond</i> of frogs, whether they were old or +young, big or little. +</p> + +<p> +It was no wonder that Mr. Frog swallowed rapidly sixteen times before he could +say another word. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap04"></a>IV<br /> +An Odd Bargain</h2> + +<p> +While Mr. Frog was swallowing nothing rapidly, he was thinking rapidly, too. +There was something about Solomon Owl’s big, staring eyes that made Mr. +Frog feel uncomfortable. And if he had thought he had any chance of escaping he +would have dived into the brook and swum under the bank. +</p> + +<p> +But Solomon Owl was too near him for that. And Mr. Frog was afraid his caller +would pounce upon him any moment. So he quickly thought of a plan to save +himself. “No doubt——” he began. But Solomon Owl +interrupted him. +</p> + +<p> +“There!” cried Solomon. “You can speak, after all. I supposed +you’d swallowed your tongue. And I was just waiting to see what +you’d do next. I thought maybe you would swallow your <i>head</i>.” +</p> + +<p> +Mr. Frog managed to laugh at the joke, though, to tell the truth, he felt more +nervous than ever. He saw what was in Solomon Owl’s mind, for Solomon was +thinking of swallowing Mr. Frog’s head himself. +</p> + +<p> +“No doubt—” Mr. Frog resumed—“no doubt +you’ve come to ask me to make you a new suit of clothes.” +</p> + +<p> +Now, Solomon Owl had had no such idea at all. But when it was mentioned to him, +he rather liked it. +</p> + +<p> +“Will you?” he inquired, with a highly interested air. +</p> + +<p> +“Why, certainly!” the tailor replied. And for the first time since +he had turned his backward somersault into the bulrushes, he smiled widely. +“I’ll tell you what I’ll do!” he said. “First, +I’ll make you a coat free. And second, if you like it I will then make +you a waistcoat and trousers, at double rates.” +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl liked the thought of getting a coat for nothing. But for all that, +he looked at the tailor somewhat doubtfully. +</p> + +<p> +“Will it take you long?” he asked. +</p> + +<p> +“No, indeed!” Mr. Frog told him. “I’ll make your coat +while you wait.” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh, I wasn’t going away,” Solomon assured him with an odd +look which made Mr. Frog shiver again. “Be quick, please! Because I have +some important business to attend to.” +</p> + +<p> +Mr. Frog couldn’t help wondering if it wasn’t he himself that +Solomon Owl was going to attend to. In spite of his fears, to work to cut up +some cloth that hung just outside his door. +</p> + +<p> +“Stop!” Solomon Owl cried in a voice that seemed to shake the very +ground. “You haven’t measured me yet!” +</p> + +<p> +“It’s not necessary,” Mr. Frog explained glibly. +“I’ve become so skilful that one look at an elegant figure like +yours is all that I need.” +</p> + +<p> +Naturally, Mr. Frog’s remark pleased Solomon Owl. And he uttered ten +rapid hoots, which served to make Mr. Frog’s fingers fly all the faster. +Soon he was sewing Solomon’s coat with long stitches; and though his +needle slipped now and then, he did not pause to take out a single stitch. For +some reason, Mr. Frog was in a great hurry. +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl did not appear to notice that the tailor was not taking much pains +with his sewing. Perhaps Mr. Frog worked so fast that Solomon could not see +what he was doing. +</p> + +<p> +Anyhow, he was delighted when Mr. Frog suddenly cried: +</p> + +<p> +“It’s finished!” And then he tossed the coat to Solomon. +“Try it on!” he said. “I want to see how well it fits +you.” +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl held up the garment and looked at it very carefully. And as he +examined it a puzzled look came over his great pale face. +</p> + +<p> +There was something about his new coat that he did not understand. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap05"></a>V<br /> +The Cold Weather Coat</h2> + +<p> +Yes! As he held up his new coat and looked at it, Solomon Owl was puzzled. He +turned his head toward Mr. Frog and stared at him for a moment. And then he +turned his head away from the tailor and gazed upon the coat again. +</p> + +<p> +Mr. Frog was most uncomfortable—especially when Solomon looked at +<i>him</i>. +</p> + +<p> +“Everything’s all right, isn’t it?” he inquired. +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl slowly shook his head. +</p> + +<p> +“This is a queer coat!” he said. “What’s this bag at +the top of it?” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh!” exclaimed Mr. Frog. “That’s the hood! Knowing +that you spend your winters here in Pleasant Valley, I made a hood to go over +your head.... You’ll find it very comfortable in cold weather—and +it’s the latest style, too. All the winter coats this year will have +hoods, with holes to see through, you know.” +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl looked relieved at Mr. Frog’s explanation. But there was +still something more that appeared to trouble him. +</p> + +<p> +“How shall I get into the coat?” he inquired. “It +doesn’t open in front, as it should.” +</p> + +<p> +“Another cold-weather style!” Mr. Frog assured him. +“It’s wind-proof! And instead of buttoning the coat, you pull it on +over your head.” +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl said he didn’t like that style very well. +</p> + +<p> +“Then I can easily change it,” the tailor told him. “But just +try it on!” he urged. “It may please you, after all.” +</p> + +<p> +So Solomon Owl pulled the coat over his head. And it fell down about him, +almost reaching his feet. But the coat did not seem to suit him at all, for he +began to splutter and choke. +</p> + +<p> +“What’s the matter now?” Mr. Frog asked him. +</p> + +<p> +“I can’t see—that’s what’s the matter!” +Solomon Owl cried in a voice that sounded hollower than ever, because it was +muffled by the hood, which covered his head. +</p> + +<p> +“I declare—I haven’t cut the holes for your eyes!” the +tailor exclaimed. “Just wait a moment and I’ll make everything +satisfactory.” He clinked his shears together sharply as he spoke. +</p> + +<p> +But Solomon Owl told him that he wouldn’t <i>think</i> of letting anybody +use shears so near his eyes. +</p> + +<div class="fig" style="width:100%;"> +<a name="illus02"></a> +<img src="images/image-001.jpg" width="300" height="450" alt="[Illustration: ]" /> +<p class="caption">Solomon Found Mr. Frog’s Shop Was Closed </p> +</div> + +<p> +“I’ll take off the coat,” he said. “And I know now that +you’re a very poor tailor, or you wouldn’t have made such a +mistake.” He began to tug at the coat. But he soon found that taking it +off was not so easy as putting it on. Solomon’s sharp claws caught in the +cloth; and his hooked beak, too, fastened itself in the hood the moment he +tried to pull the coat over his head. “Here!” he cried to Mr. Frog. +“Just lend me a hand! I can’t see to help myself.” +</p> + +<p> +But Mr. Frog did not even answer him. +</p> + +<p> +“Don’t you hear me?” Solomon Owl shouted, as he struggled +with his new coat, only to become tangled in it more than ever. +</p> + +<p> +Still, the tailor said never a word, though something very like a giggle, +followed by a splash, caught Solomon’s ear. +</p> + +<p> +“He’s left me!” Solomon Owl groaned. +</p> + +<p> +“Mr. Frog has left me to get out of this coat alone. And goodness knows +how I’m ever a-going to do it.” He threshed about so vigorously +that he tripped himself and fell upon the bank of the brook, rolling over and +over toward the water. +</p> + +<p> +He had a very narrow escape. If he hadn’t happened to bring up against an +old stump he would certainly have tumbled into the stream. +</p> + +<p> +Though Solomon couldn’t see, he knew that he was in danger. So he lay on +his back on the ground and carefully tore his new coat into strings and +ribbons. +</p> + +<p> +At last he was free. And he rose to his feet feeling very sheepish, for he knew +that Mr. Frog had played a sly trick on him. +</p> + +<p> +“Nevermind!” said Solomon Owl, as he flew way. “I’ll +come back to-morrow and ask Mr. Frog to make me a waistcoat and trousers. And +then——” He did not finish what he was saying. But there is no +doubt that whatever it was, it could not have been very pleasant for Mr. Frog. +</p> + +<p> +Just as he had planned, Solomon Owl returned to the brook the next day. And he +was both surprised and disappointed at what he found. +</p> + +<p> +The door of Mr. Frog’s tailor’s shop was shut and locked. And on it +there was a sign, which said: +</p> + +<p class="center"> +TO LET +</p> + +<p> +“He’s moved away!” cried Solomon Owl. And he went off feeling +that he had been cheated out of a good dinner—to say nothing of a new +waistcoat—and new trousers, too. +</p> + +<p> +He had not been gone long when the door opened. And Mr. Frog leaped nimbly +outside. He took the sign off the door; and sitting down cross-legged upon the +bank, he began to sew upon Jasper Jay’s new blue suit, while his face +wore a wider smile than ever. +</p> + +<p> +He had suddenly decided not to let his shop, after all. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap06"></a>VI<br /> +Solomon Needs a Change</h2> + +<p> +For some time Solomon Owl had known that a queer feeling was coming over him. +And he could not think what it meant. He noticed, too, that his appetite was +leaving him. Nothing seemed to taste good any more. +</p> + +<p> +So at last, one fine fall evening he went to see Aunt Polly Woodchuck, who was +an herb doctor; for he had begun to worry about his health. +</p> + +<p> +“It’s lucky you came to-day,” said Aunt Polly. “Because +to-night I’m going to begin my winter’s nap. And you couldn’t +have seen me again till spring—unless you happened to come here on +ground-hog day, next February.... What appears to be your trouble?” she +inquired. +</p> + +<p> +“It’s my appetite, partly,” Solomon Owl said. “Nothing +tastes as it did when I was a youngster. And I keep longing for something, +though what it is I can’t just tell.” +</p> + +<p> +Aunt Polly Woodchuck nodded her head wisely. +</p> + +<p> +“What have you been eating lately?” she asked. +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl replied that he hadn’t eaten anything but mice since the +leaves began to turn. +</p> + +<p> +“H-m—the leaves are nearly all off the trees now,” the old +lady remarked. “How many mice have you eaten in that time?” +</p> + +<p> +Solomon said that as nearly as he could remember he had eaten +twenty-seven—or a hundred and twenty-seven. He couldn’t say +which—but one of those numbers was correct. +</p> + +<p> +Aunt Polly Woodchuck threw up her hands. +</p> + +<p> +“Sakes alive!” she cried. “It’s no wonder you +don’t feel well! What you need is a change of food. And it’s lucky +you came to me now. If you’d gone on like that much longer I’d hate +to say what might have happened to you. You’d have had dyspepsia, or some +other sort of misery in your stomach.” +</p> + +<p> +“What shall I do?” asked Solomon Owl. “Insects are scarce at +this season of the year. Of course, there are frogs—but I don’t +seem to care for them. And there are fish—but they’re not easy to +get, for they don’t come out of the water and sit on the bank, as the +frogs do.” +</p> + +<p> +“How about pullets?” Aunt Polly inquired. +</p> + +<p> +At that Solomon Owl let out a long row of hoots, because he was pleased. +</p> + +<p> +“The very thing!” he cried. “That’s what I’ve +been wanting all this time. And I never guessed it.... I’ll pay you for +your advice the next time I see you,” he told Aunt Polly. And Solomon Owl +hurried away before she could stop him. Since he had no intention of visiting +her on ground-hog day, he knew it would be spring before he saw Aunt Polly +Woodchuck again. +</p> + +<p> +The old lady scolded a bit. And it did not make her feel any pleasanter to hear +Solomon’s mocking laughter, which grew fainter and fainter as he left the +pasture behind him. Then she went inside her house, for she was fast growing +sleepy. And she wanted to set things to rights before she began her long +winter’s nap. +</p> + +<p> +Meanwhile, Solomon Owl roamed restlessly through the woods. There was only one +place in the neighborhood where he could get a pullet. That was at Farmer +Green’s chicken house. And for some reason he did not care to visit the +farm buildings until it grew darker. +</p> + +<p> +So he amused himself by making the woods echo with his strange cry, +“<i>Whoo-whoo-whoo, whoo-whoo, to-whoo-ah!</i>” And now and then he +threw in a few “<i>wha-whas</i>,” just for extra measure. +</p> + +<p> +Many of the forest folk who heard him remarked that Solomon Owl seemed to be in +extra fine spirits. +</p> + +<p> +“Probably it’s the hunter’s moon that pleases him!” +Jimmy Rabbit remarked to a friend of his. “I’ve always noticed that +old Solomon makes more noise on moonlight nights than at any other time.” +</p> + +<p> +The hunter’s moon, big and yellow and round, was just rising over Blue +Mountain. But for once it was not the moon that made Solomon Owl so talkative. +He was in fine feather, so to speak, because he was hoping to have a fat pullet +for his supper. And as for the moon, he would have been just as pleased had +there been none at all that night. For Solomon Owl never cared to be seen when +he visited Farmer Green’s chicken house. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap07"></a>VII<br /> +The Blazing Eyes</h2> + +<p> +It was some three hours after sunset when Solomon Owl at last reached Farmer +Green’s place. All was quiet in the chicken house because the hens and +roosters and their families had long since gone to roost. And except for a +light that shone through a window, the farmhouse showed not a sign of life. +</p> + +<p> +Everything was as Solomon Owl wished it—or so he thought, at least, as he +alighted in a tree in the yard to look about him. He wanted no one to interrupt +him when he should go nosing around the chicken house, to find an opening. +</p> + +<p> +To his annoyance, he had not sat long in the tree when the wood-shed door +opened. And Solomon stared in amazement at the strange sight he saw. +</p> + +<p> +A great head appeared, with eyes and mouth—yes! and nose, too—all a +glaring flame color. Solomon had never seen such a horrible face on man or bird +or beast. But he was sure it was a man, for he heard a laugh that was not to be +mistaken for either a beast’s or a bird’s. And the worst of it was, +those blazing eyes were turned squarely toward Farmer Green’s chicken +house! +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl was too wary to go for his fat pullet just then. He decided that he +would wait quietly in the tree for a time, hoping that the man would go away. +</p> + +<p> +While Solomon watched him the stranger neither moved nor spoke. And, of course, +Solomon Owl was growing hungrier every minute. So at last he felt that he +simply <i>must</i> say something. +</p> + +<p> +“Who-who-who-are-you?” he called out from his tree. +</p> + +<p> +But the strange man did not answer. He did not even turn his head. +</p> + +<p> +“He must be some city person,” Solomon Owl said to himself. +“He thinks he’s too good to speak to a countryman like me.” +</p> + +<p> +Then Solomon sat up and listened. He heard a scratching sound. And soon he saw +a plump figure crawl right up into his tree-top. +</p> + +<p> +It was Fatty Coon! +</p> + +<p> +“What are you doing here?” Solomon Owl asked in a low voice, which +was not any too pleasant. +</p> + +<p> +“I’m out for an airing,” Fatty answered. “Beautiful +night—isn’t it?” +</p> + +<p> +But Solomon Owl was not interested in the weather. “I don’t suppose +you’ve come down here to get a chicken, have you?” he inquired. +</p> + +<p> +Fatty Coon seemed greatly surprised at the question. +</p> + +<p> +“Why—no!” he exclaimed. “But now that you speak of it, +it reminds me that Farmer Green’s saving a pullet for me. He was heard to +say not long ago that he would like to catch me taking one of his hens. So he +must have one for me. And I don’t want to disappoint him.” +</p> + +<p> +At first Solomon Owl didn’t know what answer to make. But at last he +turned his head toward Fatty. +</p> + +<p> +“Why don’t you go and get your pullet now?” he asked. +</p> + +<p> +“There’s that man down below, with the glaring eyes—” +said Fatty Coon. “I’ve been waiting around here for quite a long +time and he hasn’t looked away from the chicken house even once.... Do +you know him?” +</p> + +<p> +“No! And I don’t want to!” said Solomon Owl. +</p> + +<p> +“S-sh!” Fatty Coon held up a warning hand. “Who’s +that?” he asked, peering down at a dark object at the foot of their tree. +</p> + +<p> +Then both he and Solomon saw that it was Tommy Fox, sitting on his haunches and +staring at the big head, with its blazing eyes and nose and mouth. +</p> + +<p> +“Not looking for chickens, I suppose?” Solomon Owl called in a low +tone, which was hardly more than a whisper. +</p> + +<p> +But Tommy Fox’s sharp ears heard him easily. And he looked up, licking +his chops as if he were very hungry indeed. And all the while the stranger +continued to stare straight at the chicken house, as if he did not intend to +let anybody go +</p> + +<p> +prowling about that long, low building to steal any of Farmer Green’s +poultry. +</p> + +<p> +It was no wonder that the three chicken-lovers (two in the tree and one beneath +it) hesitated. If the queer man had only spoken they might not have been so +timid. But he said never a word. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap08"></a>VIII<br /> +Watching The Chickens</h2> + +<p> +Solomon Owl and Fatty Coon couldn’t help laughing at what Tommy Fox said +to them, as they sat in their tree near the farmhouse, looking down at him in +the moonlight. +</p> + +<p> +“I’m here to watch Farmer Green’s chickens for +him—” said he—“to see that no rat—or anybody +else—runs away with a pullet.” +</p> + +<p> +“Farmer Green has someone else watching for him to-night,” said +Solomon Owl, when he had stopped laughing. “There’s that strange +man! You can see how he keeps his glaring eyes fixed on the chicken house. And +unless I’m mistaken, he’s on the lookout for <i>you</i>.” +</p> + +<p> +“No such thing!” Tommy Fox snapped. And he looked up at Solomon as +if he wished that he could climb the tree. +</p> + +<p> +“Here comes somebody else!” Fatty Coon exclaimed suddenly. His keen +eyes had caught sight of Jimmy Rabbit, hopping along on his way to the +vegetable garden, to see if he couldn’t find a stray cabbage or a turnip. +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl called to him. Whereupon, Jimmy Rabbit promptly sat up and looked +at the odd trio. If it hadn’t been for Tommy Fox he would have drawn +nearer. +</p> + +<p> +“Do you know that stranger?” Solomon Owl asked him, pointing out +the horrible head to Jimmy. +</p> + +<p> +“I haven’t the pleasure,” said Jimmy Rabbit, after he had +taken a good look. +</p> + +<p> +“Well,” said Solomon, “won’t you kindly speak to him; +and ask him to go away?” +</p> + +<p> +“Certainly!” answered Jimmy Rabbit, who always tried to be +obliging. +</p> + +<p> +“I hope the stranger won’t eat him,” remarked Tommy Fox, +“because I hope to do that some day, myself.” +</p> + +<p> +It was queer—but Jimmy Rabbit was the only one of the four that +wasn’t afraid of those glaring features. He hopped straight up to the big +round head, which was just a bit higher than one of the fence posts, against +which the stranger seemed to be leaning. And after a moment or two Jimmy Rabbit +called to Solomon and Fatty and Tommy Fox: +</p> + +<p> +“He won’t go away! He’s going to stay right where he +is!” +</p> + +<p> +“Come here a minute!” said Tommy. +</p> + +<p> +Jimmy Rabbit shook his head. +</p> + +<p> +“You come over here!” he answered. And he did not stir from the +side of the stranger. He knew very well that Tommy Fox was afraid of the man +with the head with the glaring eyes. +</p> + +<p> +As for Tommy Fox, he did not even reply—that is, to Jimmy Rabbit. But he +spoke his mind freely enough to his two friends in the tree. +</p> + +<p> +“It seems to me one of you ought to do something,” said he. +“We’ll eat no pullets to-night if we can’t get rid of this +meddlesome stranger.” +</p> + +<p> +Fatty Coon quite agreed with him. +</p> + +<p> +“The one who was here first is the one to act!” Fatty declared. +“That’s <i>you!</i>” he told Solomon Owl. +</p> + +<p> +So Solomon Owl felt most uncomfortable. +</p> + +<p> +“I don’t know what I can do,” he said. “I spoke to the +stranger—asked him who he was. And he wouldn’t answer me.” +</p> + +<p> +“Can’t you frighten him away?” Tommy Fox inquired. “Fly +right over his head and give him a blow with your wing as you pass!” +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl coughed. He was embarrassed, to say the least. +</p> + +<p> +“He’s afraid!” Fatty Coon cried. And both he and Tommy Fox +kept repeating, over and over again, “He’s afraid! He’s +afraid! He’s afraid!” +</p> + +<p> +It was really more than Solomon Owl could stand. +</p> + +<p> +“I’m not!” he retorted angrily. “Watch me and +you’ll see!” And without another word he darted out of the tree and +swooped down upon the stranger, just brushing the top of his head. Solomon Owl +knew at once that he had knocked something off the top of that dreadful +head—something that fell to the ground and made Jimmy Rabbit jump +nervously. +</p> + +<p> +Then Solomon returned to his perch in the tree. +</p> + +<p> +“He hasn’t moved,” he said. “But I knocked off his +hat.” +</p> + +<p> +“You took off the top of his head!” cried Fatty Coon in great +excitement. “Look! The inside of his head is afire.” +</p> + +<p> +And peering down from the tree-top, Solomon Owl saw that Fatty Coon had told +the truth. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap09"></a>IX<br /> +Hallowe’en</h2> + +<p> +Solomon Owl was afraid of fire. And when he looked down from his perch in the +tree and saw, through the hole in the stranger’s crown, that all was +aglow inside his big, round head, Solomon couldn’t help voicing his +horror. He “<i>whoo-whooed</i>” so loudly that Tommy Fox, at the +foot of the tree, asked him what on earth was the matter. +</p> + +<p> +“His head’s all afire!” Solomon Owl told him. +“That’s what makes his eyes glare so. And that’s why the fire +shines through his mouth and his nose, too. It’s no wonder he +didn’t answer my question—for, of course, his tongue must certainly +be burned to a cinder.” +</p> + +<p> +“Then it ought to be safe for anybody to enter the chicken house,” +Tommy Fox observed. “What could the stranger do, when he’s in such +a fix?” +</p> + +<p> +“He could set the chicken house afire, if he followed you inside,” +replied Solomon Owl wisely. “And I, for one, am not going near the +pullets to-night.” +</p> + +<p> +“Nor I!” Fatty Coon echoed. “I’m going straight to the +cornfield. The corn is still standing there in shocks; and I ought to find +enough ears to make a good meal.” +</p> + +<p> +But Solomon Owl and Tommy Fox were not interested in corn. They never ate it. +And so it is not surprising that they should be greatly disappointed. After a +person has his mouth all made up for chicken it is hard to think of anything +that would taste even half as good. +</p> + +<p> +“It’s queer he doesn’t go and hold his head under the +pump,” said Solomon Owl. “That’s what I should do, if I were +he.” +</p> + +<p> +“Jimmy Rabbit had better not go too near him, or he’ll get +singed,” said Tommy Fox, anxiously. “I don’t want anything to +happen to <i>him</i>.” +</p> + +<p> +“Jimmy Rabbit is very careless,” Solomon declared. “I +don’t see what he’s thinking of—going so near a fire! It +makes me altogether too nervous to stay here. And I’m going away at +once.” +</p> + +<p> +Tommy Fox said that he felt the same way. And the moment Fatty Coon, with his +sharp claws, started to crawl down the tree on his way to the cornfield, Tommy +Fox hurried off without even stopping to say good-bye. +</p> + +<p> +“<i>Haw-haw-haw-hoo!</i>” laughed Solomon Owl. “Tommy Fox is +afraid of you!” he told Fatty Coon. +</p> + +<p> +But Fatty didn’t seem to hear him. He was thinking only of the supper of +corn that he was going to have. +</p> + +<p> +“Better come away!” Solomon Owl called to Jimmy Rabbit, turning his +head toward the fence where Jimmy had been lingering near the hot-headed +stranger. +</p> + +<p> +But Jimmy Rabbit didn’t answer him, either. He was no longer there. The +moment he had seen Tommy Fox bounding off across the meadow Jimmy had started +at once for Farmer Green’s vegetable garden. +</p> + +<p> +So Solomon Owl was the last to leave. +</p> + +<p> +“There’s really nothing else I can do,” he remarked to +himself. “I don’t know what Aunt Polly Woodchuck would say if she +knew that I didn’t follow her advice to-night and eat a pullet for my +supper.... But I’ve tried my best.... And that’s all anybody can +do.” +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl was upset all the rest of that night. And just before daybreak he +visited the farmyard again, to see whether the strange man with the flaring +head still watched the chicken house. And Solomon found that he had vanished. +</p> + +<p> +So Solomon Owl alighted on the fence. There was nothing there except a +hollowed-out pumpkin, with a few holes cut in it, which someone had left on one +of the fence-posts. +</p> + +<p> +“Good!” said he. “Maybe I can get my pullet after all!” +He turned to fly to the chicken house. But just then the woodshed door opened +again. And Farmer Green stepped outside, with a lantern in his hand. He was +going to the barn to milk the cows. But Solomon Owl did not wait to learn +anything more. +</p> + +<p> +He hurried away to his house among the hemlocks. And having quickly settled +himself for a good nap, he was soon fast asleep. +</p> + +<p> +That was how Johnnie Green’s jack-o’-lantern kept Tommy Fox and +Fatty Coon and Solomon Owl from taking any chickens on Hallowe’en. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap10"></a>X<br /> +A Troublesome Wishbone</h2> + +<p> +Solomon Owl had pains—sharp pains—underneath his waistcoat. And not +knowing what else to do, he set off at once for Aunt Polly Woodchuck’s +house under the hill, in the pasture, which he had not visited since the +previous fall. Luckily, he found the old lady at home. And quickly he told her +of his trouble. +</p> + +<p> +“What have you been eating?” she inquired. +</p> + +<p> +“I’ve followed your advice. I’ve been eating chickens,” +said he—“very small chickens, because they were all I could +get.” +</p> + +<p> +Aunt Polly Woodchuck, who was an herb doctor—and a good +one—regarded him through her spectacles. +</p> + +<p> +“I’m afraid,” said she, “you don’t chew your food +properly. Bolting one’s food is very harmful. It’s as bad as not +eating anything at all, almost.” +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl showed plainly that her remark surprised him. +</p> + +<p> +“Why,” he exclaimed, “I always swallow my food +whole—when it isn’t too big!” +</p> + +<p> +“Gracious me!” cried Aunt Polly, throwing up both her hands. +“It’s no wonder you’re ill. It’s no wonder you have +pains; and now I know exactly what’s the matter with you. You have a +wishbone inside you. I can feel it!” she told him, as she prodded him in +the waistcoat. +</p> + +<p> +“I wish you could get it out for me!” said Solomon with a look of +distress. +</p> + +<p> +“All the wishing in the world won’t help you,” she answered, +“unless we can find some way of removing the wishbone so you can wish on +that. Then I’m sure you would feel better at once.” +</p> + +<p> +“This is strange,” Solomon mused. “All my life I’ve +been swallowing my food without chewing it. And it has never given me any +trouble before.... What shall I do?” +</p> + +<p> +“Don’t eat anything for a week,” she directed. “And fly +against tree-trunks as hard as you can. Then come back here after seven +days.” +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl went off in a most doleful frame of mind. It seemed to him that he +had never seen so many mice and frogs and chipmunks as he came across during +the following week. But he didn’t dare catch a single one, on account of +what Aunt Polly Woodchuck had said. +</p> + +<p> +His pains, however, grew less from day to day—at least, the pains that +had first troubled him. But he had others to take their place. Hunger pangs, +these were! And they were almost as bad as those that had sent him hurrying to +see Aunt Polly Woodchuck. +</p> + +<p> +On the whole, Solomon passed a very unhappy week. Flying head foremost into +tree-trunks (as Aunt Polly had instructed him to do) gave him many bumps and +bruises. So he was glad when the time came for him to return to her house in +the pasture. +</p> + +<p> +Solomon’s neighbors had been so interested in watching him that they were +all sorry when he ceased his strange actions. Indeed, there was a rumor that +Solomon had become very angry with Farmer Green and that he was trying to knock +down some of Farmer Green’s trees. Before the end of that unpleasant week +Solomon had often noticed as many as twenty-four of the forest folk following +him about, hoping to see a tree fall. +</p> + +<p> +But they were all disappointed. However, they enjoyed the sight of Solomon +hurling himself against tree-trunks. And the louder he groaned, the more people +gathered around him. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap11"></a>XI<br /> +Cured At Last</h2> + +<p> +“How do you feel now?” Aunt Polly Woodchuck asked Solomon Owl, when +he had come back to her house after a week’s absence. +</p> + +<p> +“No better!” he groaned. “I still have pains. But they seem +to have moved and scattered all over me.” +</p> + +<p> +“Good!” she exclaimed with a smile. “You are much better, +though you didn’t know it. The wishbone is broken. You broke it by flying +against the trees. And you ought not to have any more trouble. But let me +examine you!” she said, prodding him in the waistcoat once more. +</p> + +<p> +“This is odd!” she continued a bit later. “I can feel the +wishbone more plainly than ever.” +</p> + +<p> +“That’s my own wishbone!” Solomon cried indignantly. +“I’ve grown so thin through not eating that it’s a wonder you +can’t feel my backbone, too.” +</p> + +<p> +Aunt Polly Woodchuck looked surprised. +</p> + +<p> +“Perhaps you’re right!” said she. “Not having a +wishbone of my own, I forgot that you had one.” +</p> + +<p> +A look of disgust came over Solomon Owl’s face. +</p> + +<p> +“You’re a very poor doctor,” he told her. “Here +you’ve kept me from eating for a whole week—and I don’t +believe it was necessary at all!” +</p> + +<p> +“Well, you’re better, aren’t you?” she asked him. +</p> + +<p> +“I shall be as soon as I have a good meal,” replied Solomon Owl, +hopefully. +</p> + +<p> +“You ought not to eat anything for another week,” Aunt Polly told +him solemnly. +</p> + +<p> +“Nonsense!” he cried. +</p> + +<p> +“I’m a doctor; and I ought to know best,” she insisted. +</p> + +<p> +But Solomon Owl hooted rudely. +</p> + +<p> +“I’ll never come to you for advice any more,” he declared. +“I firmly believe that my whole trouble was simply that I’ve been +eating too sparingly. And I shall take good care to see that it doesn’t +happen again.” +</p> + +<p> +No one had ever spoken to Aunt Polly in quite that fashion—though old Mr. +Crow had complained one time that she had cured him <i>too quickly</i>. But she +did not lose her temper, in spite of Solomon’s jeers. +</p> + +<p> +“You’ll be back here again the very next time you’re +ill,” she remarked. “And if you continue to swallow your food +whole——” +</p> + +<p> +But Solomon Owl did not even wait to hear what she said. He was so impolite +that he flew away while she was talking. And since it was then almost dark, and +a good time to look for field mice, he began his night’s hunting right +there in Farmer Green’s pasture. +</p> + +<p> +By morning Solomon was so plump that Aunt Polly Woodchuck would have had a good +deal of trouble finding his wishbone. But since he did not visit her again, she +had no further chance to prod him in the waistcoat. +</p> + +<p> +Afterward, Solomon heard a bit of gossip that annoyed him. A friend of his +reported that Aunt Polly Woodchuck was going about and telling everybody how +she had saved Solomon’s life. +</p> + +<p> +“Mice!” he exclaimed (he often said that when some would have said +“Rats!”). “There’s not a word of truth in her claim. +And if people in this neighborhood keep on taking her advice and her catnip tea +they’re going to be sorry some day. For they’ll be really ill the +first thing they know. And then what will they do?” +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap12"></a>XII<br /> +Benjamin Bat</h2> + +<p> +Solomon Owl was by no means the only night-prowler in Pleasant Valley. He had +neighbors that chose to sleep in the daytime, so they might roam through the +woods and fields after dark. One of these was Benjamin Bat. And furthermore, he +was the color of night itself. +</p> + +<p> +Now, Benjamin Bat was an odd chap. When he was still he liked to hang by his +feet, upside down. And when he was flying he sailed about in a zigzag, +helter-skelter fashion. He went in so many different directions, turning this +way and that, one could never tell where he was going. One might say that his +life was just one continual dodge—when he wasn’t resting with his +heels where his head ought to be. +</p> + +<p> +A good many of Benjamin Bat’s friends said he certainly must be crazy, +because he didn’t do as they did. But that never made the slightest +difference in Benjamin Bat’s habits. He continued to zigzag through +life—and hang by his heels—just the same. Perhaps he thought that +all other people were crazy because they didn’t do likewise. +</p> + +<p> +Benjamin often dodged across Solomon Owl’s path, when Solomon was hunting +for field mice. And since Benjamin was the least bit like a mouse +himself—except for his wings—there was a time, once, when Solomon +tried to catch him. +</p> + +<p> +But Solomon Owl soon found that chasing Benjamin Bat made him dizzy. If +Benjamin hadn’t been used to hanging head downward, maybe he would have +been dizzy, too. +</p> + +<p> +Though the two often saw each other, Benjamin Bat never seemed to care to stop +for a chat with Solomon Owl. One night, however, Benjamin actually called to +Solomon and asked his advice. He was in trouble. And he knew that Solomon Owl +was supposed by some to be the wisest old fellow for miles around. +</p> + +<p> +It was almost morning. And Solomon Owl was hurrying home, because a terrible +storm had arisen. The lightning was flashing, and peals of thunder crashed +through the woods. Big drops of rain were already pattering down. But Solomon +Owl did not care, for he had almost reached his house in the hollow hemlock +near the foot of Blue Mountain. +</p> + +<p> +It was different with Benjamin Bat. That night he had strayed a long distance +from his home in Cedar Swamp. And he didn’t know what to do. “I +want to get under cover, somewhere,” he told Solomon Owl. “You +don’t know of a good place near-by, do you, where I can get out of the +storm and take a nap?” +</p> + +<p> +“Why, yes!” answered Solomon Owl. “Come right along to my +house and spend the day with me!” +</p> + +<p> +But Benjamin Bat did not like the suggestion at all. +</p> + +<p> +“I’m afraid I might crowd, you,” he said. He was thinking of +the time when Solomon Owl had chased him. And sleeping in Solomon Owl’s +house seemed far from a safe thing to do. +</p> + +<div class="fig" style="width:100%;"> +<a name="illus03"></a> +<img src="images/image-002.jpg" width="266" height="400" alt="[Illustration: ]" /> +<p class="caption">Benjamin Asked Solomon’s Advice </p> +</div> + +<p> +Solomon was wise enough to guess what was going on inside Benjamin’s +head. +</p> + +<p> +“Come along!” he said. “We’ll both be asleep before we +know it. I’m sorry I can’t offer you something to eat. But I +haven’t a morsel of food in my house. No doubt, though, you’ve just +had a good meal. <i>I</i> ate seven mice to-night. And I certainly +couldn’t eat anything more.” +</p> + +<p> +When Solomon Owl told him that, Benjamin Bat thought perhaps there was no +danger, after all. And since the rain was falling harder and harder every +moment, he thanked Solomon and said he would be glad to accent his invitation. +</p> + +<p> +“Follow me, then!” said Solomon Owl. And he led the way to his home +in the hemlock. +</p> + +<p> +For once, Benjamin Bat flew in a fairly straight line, though he did a little +dodging, because he couldn’t help it. +</p> + +<p> +There was more room inside Solomon’s house than Benjamin Bat had +supposed. While Benjamin was looking about and telling Solomon that he had a +fine home, his host quickly made a bed of leaves in one corner of the +room—there was only one room, of course. +</p> + +<p> +“That’s for you!” said Solomon Owl. “I always sleep on +the other side of the house.” And without waiting even to make sure that +his guest was comfortable, Solomon Owl lay down and began to snore—for he +was very sleepy. +</p> + +<p> +It was so cozy there that Benjamin Bat was glad, already, that he had accepted +Solomon’s invitation. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap13"></a>XIII<br /> +The Lucky Guest</h2> + +<p> +In the middle of the day Solomon Owl happened to awake. He was sorry that he +hadn’t slept until sunset, because he was very hungry. Knowing that it +was light outside his hollow tree, he didn’t want to leave home to find +something to eat. +</p> + +<p> +Then, suddenly, he remembered that he had brought Benjamin Bat to his house +early that morning, so Benjamin might escape the storm.... Why not eat Benjamin +Bat? +</p> + +<p> +As soon as the thought occurred to him, Solomon Owl liked it. And he moved +stealthily over to the bed of leaves he had made for his guest just before +daybreak. +</p> + +<p> +But Benjamin Bat was not there. Though Solomon looked in every nook and cranny +of his one-room house, he did not find him. +</p> + +<p> +“He must have left as soon as it stopped raining,” said Solomon Owl +to himself. “He might at least have waited to thank me for giving him a +day’s lodging. It’s the last time I’ll ever bring any +worthless vagabond into my house. And I ought to have known better than to have +anything to do with a crazy person like Benjamin Bat.” +</p> + +<p> +Anybody can see that Solomon Owl was displeased. But it was not at all +astonishing, if one stops to remember how hungry he was, and that he had +expected to enjoy a good meal without the trouble of going away from home to +get it. +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl went to the door of his house and looked out. The sun was shining +so brightly that after blinking in his doorway for a few minutes he decided +that he would go to bed again and try to sleep until dusk. He never liked +bright days. “They’re so dismal!” he used to say. “Give +me a good, dark night and I’m happy, for there’s nothing more +cheering than gloom.” +</p> + +<p> +In spite of the pangs of hunger that gnawed inside him, Solomon at last +succeeded in falling asleep once more. And he dreamed that he chased Benjamin +Bat three times around Blue Mountain, and then three times back again, in the +opposite direction. But he never could catch him, because Benjamin Bat simply +wouldn’t fly straight. His zigzag course was so confusing that even in +his dream Solomon Owl grew dizzy. +</p> + +<p> +Now, Benjamin Bat was in Solomon’s house all the time. And the reason why +Solomon Owl hadn’t found him was a very simple one. It was merely that +Solomon hadn’t looked in the right place. +</p> + +<p> +Benjamin Bat was hidden—as you might say—where his hungry host +never once thought of looking for him. And being asleep all the while, Benjamin +didn’t once move or make the slightest noise. +</p> + +<p> +If he had snored, or sneezed, or rustled his wings, no doubt Solomon Owl would +have found him. +</p> + +<p> +When Benjamin awakened, late in the afternoon, Solomon was still sleeping. And +Benjamin crept through the door and went out into the gathering twilight, +without arousing Solomon. +</p> + +<p> +“I’ll thank him the next time I meet him,” Benjamin Bat +decided. And he staggered away through the air as if he did not quite know, +himself, where he was going. But, of course, that was only his queer way of +flying. +</p> + +<p> +When he told his friends where he had spent the day they were astonished. +</p> + +<p> +“How did you ever dare do anything so dangerous as sleeping in Solomon +Owl’s house?” they all asked him. +</p> + +<p> +But Benjamin Bat only said, “Oh! There was nothing to be afraid +of.” And he began to feel quite important. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap14"></a>XIV<br /> +Hanging By The Heels</h2> + +<p> +It was several nights before Solomon Owl and Benjamin Bat chanced to meet again +in the forest. +</p> + +<p> +“Hullo!” said Solomon. +</p> + +<p> +“Hullo!” said Benjamin Bat. “I’m glad to see you, +because I want to thank you for letting me spend the day in your house, so I +wouldn’t have to stay out in the storm.” +</p> + +<p> +“You must be a light sleeper,” Solomon observed. (He did not tell +Benjamin that he was welcome!) +</p> + +<p> +“What makes you think that?” Benjamin Bat inquired. +</p> + +<p> +“Why—you left my house before noon,” Solomon told him. +</p> + +<p> +“Oh, no!” said Benjamin. “I slept soundly until sunset. When +I came away the crickets were chirping. And I was surprised that you +hadn’t waked up yourself.” +</p> + +<p> +“You were gone before midday,” Solomon Owl insisted. And they had +something very like a dispute, while Solomon Owl sat in one tree and Benjamin +Bat hung head downward from another. “I ought to know,” said +Solomon. “I was awake about noon; and I looked everywhere for you.” +</p> + +<p> +“What for?” asked Benjamin. +</p> + +<p> +Naturally, Solomon didn’t like to tell him that he had intended to eat +him. So he looked wise—and said nothing. +</p> + +<p> +“You didn’t look on the ceiling, did you?” Benjamin Bat +inquired. +</p> + +<p> +“No, indeed!” Solomon Owl exclaimed. +</p> + +<p> +“Well, that’s where I was, hanging by my feet,” Benjamin Bat +informed him. +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl certainly was surprised to hear that. +</p> + +<p> +“The idea!” he cried. “You’re a queer one! I never once +thought of looking <i>on the ceiling</i> for a <i>luncheon!</i>” He was +so astonished that he spoke before he thought how oddly his remark would sound +to another. +</p> + +<p> +When he heard what Solomon Owl said, Benjamin Bat knew at once that Solomon had +meant to eat him. And he was so frightened that he dropped from the limb to +which he was clinging and flew off as fast as he could go. For once in his life +he flew in a straight line, with no zigzags at all, he was in such a hurry to +get away from Solomon Owl, who—for all he knew—might still be very +hungry. +</p> + +<p> +But Solomon Owl had caught so many mice that night that he didn’t feel +like chasing anybody. So he sat motionless in the tree, merely turning his head +to watch Benjamin sailing away through the dusky woods. He noticed that +Benjamin didn’t dodge at all—except when there was a tree in his +way. And he wondered what the reason was. +</p> + +<p> +“Perhaps he’s not so crazy as I supposed,” said Solomon Owl +to himself. And ever afterward, when he happened to awake and feel hungry, +Solomon Owl used to look up at the ceiling above him and wish that Benjamin Bat +was there. +</p> + +<p> +But Benjamin Bat never cared to have anything more to do with Solomon Owl. +</p> + +<p> +He said he had a good reason for avoiding him. +</p> + +<p> +And ever afterward he passed for a very brave person among his friends. They +often pointed him out to strangers, saying, “There’s Benjamin Bat! +<i>He</i> doesn’t know what fear is. Why, once he even spent a whole day +asleep in Solomon Owl’s house! And if you don’t think <i>that</i> +was a bold thing to do, then I guess you don’t know Solomon Owl.” +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap15"></a>XV<br /> +Disputes Settled</h2> + +<p> +Solomon Owl looked so wise that many of his neighbors fell into the habit of +going to him for advice. If two of the forest folk chanced to have a dispute +which they could not settle between them they frequently visited Solomon and +asked him to decide which was in the right. And in the course of time Solomon +became known far and wide for his ability to patch up a quarrel. +</p> + +<p> +At last Jimmy Rabbit stopped Solomon Owl one night and suggested that he hang a +sign outside his house, so that there shouldn’t be anybody in the whole +valley that wouldn’t know what to do in case he found himself in an +argument. +</p> + +<p> +Solomon decided on the spot that Jimmy Rabbit’s idea was a good one. So +he hurried home and before morning he had his sign made, and put out where +everyone could see it. It looked like this: +</p> + +<p class="center"> +DISPUTES SETTLED WITHIN +</p> + +<p> +There was only one objection to the sign. As soon as Jimmy Rabbit saw it he +told Solomon that it should have said: +</p> + +<p class="center"> +DISPUTES SETTLED WITHOUT +</p> + +<p> +“Without what?” Solomon Owl inquired. +</p> + +<p> +“Why, without going into your house!” said Jimmy Rabbit. “I +can’t climb a tree, you know. And neither can Tommy Fox. We might have a +dispute to-night; and how could you ever settle it?” +</p> + +<p> +“Oh, I shall be willing to step outside,” Solomon told him. And he +refused to change the sign, declaring that he liked it just as it was. +</p> + +<p> +Now, there was only one trouble with Solomon Owl’s settling of disputes. +Many of the forest folk wanted to see him in the daytime. And <i>night</i> was +the only time <i>he</i> was willing to see them. But he heard so many +objections to that arrangement that in the end Solomon agreed to meet people at +dusk and at dawn, when it was neither very dark nor very light. On the whole he +found that way very satisfactory, because there was just enough light at dusk +and at dawn to make him blink. And when Solomon blinked he looked even wiser +than ever. +</p> + +<p> +Well, the first disputing pair that came to Solomon’s tree after he hung +out his new sign were old Mr. Crow and Jasper Jay. They reached the hemlock +grove soon after sunset and squalled loudly for Solomon. “Hurry!” +Mr. Crow cried, as soon as Solomon Owl stepped outside his door. “It will +be dark before we know it; and it’s almost our bedtime.” +</p> + +<p> +“What’s your difficulty?” Solomon asked them. +</p> + +<p> +Mr. Crow looked at Jasper Jay. And then he looked at Solomon again. +</p> + +<p> +“Maybe you won’t like to hear it,” he said. And he winked at +Jasper. “But you’ve put out this sign—so we’ve come +here.” +</p> + +<p> +“You’ve done just right!” exclaimed Solomon Owl. “And +as for my not liking to hear the trouble, it’s your dispute and not mine. +So I don’t see how it concerns me—except to settle it.” +</p> + +<p> +“Very Well,” Mr. Crow answered. “The dispute, then, is this: +Jasper says that in spite of your looking so wise, you’re really the +stupidest person in Pleasant Valley.” +</p> + +<p> +“He does, eh?” cried Solomon Owl, while Jasper Jay laughed loudly. +“And you, of course, do not agree with him,” Solomon continued. +</p> + +<p> +“I do not!” Mr. Crow declared. +</p> + +<p> +“Good!” said Solomon, nodding his head approvingly. +</p> + +<p> +“No, I do not agree with Jasper Jay,” Mr. Crow said. “I claim +that there’s one other person more stupid than you are—and +that’s Fatty Coon.” +</p> + +<p> +Well, Solomon Owl certainly was displeased. And it didn’t make him feel +any happier to hear Jasper Jay’s boisterous shouts, or the hoarse +“<i>haw-haw</i>” of old Mr. Crow. +</p> + +<p> +“I hope you can decide which one of us is right,” Mr. Crow +ventured. +</p> + +<p> +“I am, of course!” cried Jasper Jay. +</p> + +<p> +“You’re not!” Mr. Crow shouted. And to Solomon Owl he said, +“We’ve been disputing like this all day long.” +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl didn’t know what to say. If he announced that Jasper was +right it would be the same as admitting that he was the stupidest person in the +whole neighborhood. And if he said that old Mr. Crow’s opinion was +correct he would not be much better off. Naturally he didn’t want to tell +either of them that he was right. +</p> + +<p> +“I’ll have to think about this,” Solomon observed at last. +</p> + +<p> +“We don’t want to wait,” said Mr. Crow. “If we keep on +disputing we’re likely to have a fight.” +</p> + +<p> +Now, Solomon Owl hoped that they would have a fight. So he was determined to +keep them waiting for his decision. +</p> + +<p> +“Come back to-morrow at this time,” he said. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap16"></a>XVI<br /> +Nine Fights</h2> + +<p> +The next evening, just at dusk, Jasper Jay and old Mr. Crow returned to Solomon +Owl’s house, looking much bedraggled. One of Mr. Crow’s eyes was +almost closed; and Jasper Jay’s crest seemed to have been torn half off +his head. +</p> + +<p> +“What’s the matter?” asked Solomon, as soon as he saw them. +</p> + +<p> +“We’ve had three fights,” said Jasper Jay. +</p> + +<p> +“Yes! And I’ve whipped him each time!” cried Mr. Crow. +“So I must be in the right. And you’d better decide our dispute in +my favor at once.” +</p> + +<p> +But Solomon Owl was still in no hurry. +</p> + +<p> +“It’s a difficult question to settle,” said he. “I +don’t want to make any mistake. So I shall have to ask you to come back +here to-morrow at this time.” +</p> + +<p> +Both Jasper and Mr. Crow seemed disappointed. Although Mr. Crow had won each +fight, he was very weary, for he was older than Jasper Jay. +</p> + +<p> +As they went off, Solomon Owl began to feel much pleased with himself. +</p> + +<p> +The following evening, at sunset, old Mr. Crow and Jasper Jay visited Solomon +Owl once more. And they looked more battered than ever. +</p> + +<p> +“We’ve had three more fights,” said Mr. Crow. +</p> + +<p> +“Yes! And I won each time!” Jasper Jay piped up. “So I must +be in the right. And you’d better decide in my favor without any further +delay.” +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl thought deeply for some time. +</p> + +<p> +“Maybe I ought to wait until to-morrow——” he began. +</p> + +<p> +But his callers both shouted “No!” +</p> + +<p> +“Well,” said Solomon, “Mr. Crow has won three fights; and +Jasper Jay has won three. So it is certain that each must be in the +wrong.” +</p> + +<p> +But that announcement did not satisfy Jasper and Mr. Crow. And they left the +hemlock grove, disputing more loudly than ever. +</p> + +<p> +And the next day, at dusk, they came back again. +</p> + +<p> +“We’ve had three more fights; and I won!” they both cried at +the same time. +</p> + +<p> +“That proves my claim,” said Solomon Owl. “You’re both +wrong.” +</p> + +<p> +They whispered together for a few minutes. +</p> + +<p> +“We don’t like your way of settling disputes,” Mr. Crow +remarked shortly. “But we’ve decided to stop quarreling.” +</p> + +<p> +“Good!” said Solomon Owl. “That shows that you are +sensible.” +</p> + +<p> +“Yes!” replied Jasper. “We’ve decided to stop +quarreling and fight <i>you!</i>” +</p> + +<p> +“Wait a moment!” said Solomon Owl hastily, as they drew nearer. +“I don’t want my new suit spoiled.” And he ducked inside the +hollow tree before they could reach him. +</p> + +<p> +Jasper and Mr. Crow waited and waited. But Solomon Owl did not reappear. And +since his two visitors did not dare follow him into the dark cavern where he +lived, they decided at last that they would go home—and get into bed. +</p> + +<p> +“Let’s take away his sign, anyhow!” Jasper Jay suggested. +</p> + +<p> +So they pulled down Solomon’s sign, which said “Disputes Settled +Within,” and they carried it off with them and hid it in some bushes. +</p> + +<p> +That same night Solomon Owl hunted for it for a long time. But he never found +it. +</p> + +<p> +He decided not to hang out another, for he saw that settling disputes was a +dangerous business. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap17"></a>XVII<br /> +Cousin Simon Screecher</h2> + +<p> +Solomon Owl had a small cousin named Simon Screecher. He was unlike Solomon in +some respects, because he always wore ear-tufts, and his eyes were yellow +instead of black. But in some other ways he was no different from Solomon Owl, +for he was a noisy chap and dearly loved mice—to eat. +</p> + +<p> +It happened that the two met in the woods one fine fall evening; and they +agreed to go hunting mice together. +</p> + +<p> +Now, being so much smaller than Solomon, Simon Screecher was all the spryer. In +fact, he was so active that he could catch mice faster than Solomon Owl could +capture them. And they had not hunted long before Solomon discovered that Simon +had succeeded in disposing of six mice to his three. +</p> + +<p> +That discovery did not please Solomon at all. +</p> + +<p> +“Look here!” he said. “Since we are hunting together +it’s only fair to divide what we catch, half and half.” +</p> + +<p> +Simon Screecher hesitated. But after reflecting that his cousin was very big +and very strong, he agreed to Solomon’s suggestion. +</p> + +<p> +So they resumed their hunting. And every time one of them caught two mice, he +gave one mouse to his cousin. +</p> + +<p> +Still Solomon Owl was not satisfied. +</p> + +<p> +“Wait a moment!” Solomon called to Simon Screecher. “It has +just occurred to me that I am more than twice as big as you are; so I ought to +have twice as many mice as you.” +</p> + +<p> +This time Simon Screecher hesitated longer. He did not like the second +suggestion even as well as the first. And in the end he said as much, too. +</p> + +<p> +But Solomon Owl insisted that it was only fair. +</p> + +<p> +“You surely ought to be glad to please your own cousin,” he told +Simon. +</p> + +<p> +“It’s not that,” said Simon Screecher. “It seems to me +that since I’m not half your size, I ought to have twice as many mice to +eat, so I’ll grow bigger.” +</p> + +<p> +Well, Solomon Owl hadn’t thought of that. He was puzzled to know what to +say. And he wanted time in which to ponder. +</p> + +<p> +“I’ll think over what you say,” he told Simon Screecher. +“And now, since it’s almost dawn, we’d better not hunt any +longer to-night. But I’ll meet you again at dusk if you’ll come to +my house.” +</p> + +<p> +“Very well, Cousin Solomon!” Simon answered. “I’m sure +that after you’ve had a good sleep you’ll be ready to agree with +me.” +</p> + +<p> +“If that’s the case, I may not take any nap at all,” Solomon +replied. +</p> + +<p> +“Oh! You ought to have your rest!” his cousin exclaimed. Simon knew +that if Solomon went all day without sleep he would be frightfully peevish by +nightfall. +</p> + +<p> +“Well—I’ll try to get forty winks,” Solomon promised. +“But I don’t believe I can get more than that, because I have so +much on my mind that I’m sure to be wakeful.” +</p> + +<p> +Simon Screecher was somewhat worried as they parted. His wailing, tremulous +whistle, which floated through the shadowy woods, showed that he was far from +happy. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap18"></a>XVIII<br /> +A Cousinly Quarrel</h2> + +<p> +It proved to be just as Solomon Owl had told his cousin, Simon Screecher. +Solomon had so much on his mind that he had no sooner fallen asleep than he +awoke again, to study over the question that perplexed him. He certainly did +not want Simon to have twice as many mice as he. But Simon’s argument was +a good one. He had said that since Solomon was more than twice his size, it was +proper that he should have a chance to grow. And everybody knew—Solomon +reflected—everybody knew that <i>eating</i> made one larger. +</p> + +<p> +The longer Solomon pondered, the farther he seemed from any answer that he +liked. And he had begun to fear that he would not succeed in getting more than +thirty-nine winks all day—instead of forty—when all at once an idea +came into his mind. +</p> + +<p> +Solomon knew right away that he had nothing more to worry about. He dropped +into a sound sleep with a pleasant smile upon his usually solemn face. And when +he opened his eyes again it was time for Simon Screecher to arrive. +</p> + +<p> +Yes! Solomon could hear his cousin’s whistle even then. So he hurried to +his door; and there was Simon, sitting on a limb of the big hemlock waiting for +him! +</p> + +<p> +“It’s all right!” said Solomon to his cousin. “I agree +to your suggestion. We’ll hunt together again to-night; and if you will +give me one-third of all the mice you catch, I promise to give you two-thirds +of all the mice that I capture.” +</p> + +<p> +“Good!” said Simon Screecher. And he looked vastly relieved. +“Just hoot when you have any mice for me!” +</p> + +<p> +“Whistle when you have any for me!” Solomon Owl replied. +</p> + +<p> +And at that they started out for their night’s sport. It was not long +before Simon Screecher’s well known whistle brought Solomon hurrying to +him. Simon already had three mice, one of which he gave to Solomon, according +to their agreement. +</p> + +<p> +That same thing happened several times; until at last Simon Screecher began to +grumble. +</p> + +<p> +“What’s the matter?” he asked his cousin. “You are not +hooting, as you promised you would.” +</p> + +<p> +“But I haven’t caught any mice yet!” Solomon Owl replied. +</p> + +<div class="fig" style="width:100%;"> +<a name="illus04"></a> +<img src="images/image-003.jpg" width="300" height="450" alt="[Illustration: ]" /> +<p class="caption">“It’s All Right,” Said Solomon </p> +</div> + +<p> +Again and again and again Simon’s call summoned Solomon. But not once did +Solomon’s summon Simon. And all the time Simon Screecher grew more +discontented. Toward the end of the night he declared flatly that he +wasn’t going to hunt any more with his cousin. +</p> + +<p> +“I’ve done exactly as I agreed!” Solomon Owl protested. +</p> + +<p> +“You’re altogether too slow and clumsy,” Simon Screecher told +him bluntly. “If I’m going to hunt with anybody after this +I’m going to choose someone that’s as spry as I am. There’s +no sense in my working for you. Here I’ve toiled all night long and +I’m still hungry, for I’ve given you a third of my food.” +</p> + +<p> +They parted then—and none too pleasantly. +</p> + +<p> +In Simon’s whistle, as he flew away toward his home, there was +unmistakable anger. But Solomon Owl’s answering hoots—while they +were not exactly sweet—seemed to carry more than a hint of laughter. +</p> + +<p> +One would naturally think that Solomon might have been even hungrier than his +small cousin. But it was not so. He had had more to eat than usual; for he had +been very busy catching locusts and katydids—and frogs, too. Solomon Owl +had not tried to catch a single mouse that night. +</p> + +<p> +You know now the idea that had come to him while he was lying awake in his +house during the daytime. He had made up his mind that he would not hunt for +mice. And since he had not promised Simon to give him anything else, there was +no reason why he should not eat all the frogs and katydids and locusts that he +could find. +</p> + +<p> +Perhaps it was not surprising that Simon Screecher never guessed the truth. But +he seemed to know that there was something queer about that night’s +hunting, for he never came to Solomon Owl’s house again. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap19"></a>XIX<br /> +The Sleet Storm</h2> + +<p> +It was winter. And for several days a strong south wind had swept up Pleasant +Valley. That—as Solomon Owl knew very well—that meant a thaw was +coming. He was not sorry, because the weather had been bitterly cold. +</p> + +<p> +Well, the thaw came. And the weather grew so warm that Solomon Owl could stay +out all night without once feeling chilled. He found the change so agreeable +that he strayed further from home than was his custom. Indeed, he was far away +on the other side of Blue Mountain at midnight, when it began to rain. +</p> + +<p> +Now, that was not quite so pleasant. But still Solomon did not mind greatly. It +was not until later that he began to feel alarmed, when he noticed that flying +did not seem so easy as usual. +</p> + +<p> +Solomon had grown heavy all at once—and goodness knows it was not because +he had overeaten, for food was scarce at that season of the year. Moreover, +Solomon’s wings were strangely stiff. When he moved them they +<i>crackled</i>. +</p> + +<p> +“It must be my joints,” he said to himself. “I’m afraid +this wetting has given me rheumatism.” So he started home at +once—though it was only midnight. But the further he went, the worse he +felt—and the harder it was to fly. +</p> + +<p> +“I’ll have to rest a while,” he said to himself at last. So +he alighted on a limb; for he was more tired than he had ever been in all his +life. +</p> + +<p> +But he soon felt so much better that he was ready to start on again. And then, +to his dismay, Solomon Owl found that he could hardly stir. The moment he left +his perch he floundered down upon the ground. And though he tried his hardest, +he couldn’t reach the tree again. +</p> + +<p> +The rain was still beating down steadily. And Solomon began to think it a bad +night to be out. What was worse, the weather was fast turning cold. +</p> + +<p> +“I’m afraid I’ll have to stay in bed a week after +this,” he groaned. “If I sit here long, as wet as I am, while the +thaw turns into a <i>freeze</i>, I shall certainly be ill.” +</p> + +<p> +Now, if it hadn’t been for the rain, Solomon Owl would have had no +trouble at all. Or if it hadn’t been for the freezing cold he would have +been in no difficulty. Though he didn’t know it, his trouble was simply +this: The rain froze upon him as +</p> + +<p> +fast as it fell, covering him with a coating of ice. It was no wonder that he +felt strangely heavy—no wonder that he couldn’t fly. +</p> + +<p> +There he crouched on the ground, while the rain and sleet beat upon him. And +the only comforting thought that entered his head was that on so stormy a night +Tommy Fox and Fatty Coon would be snug and warm in their beds. <i>They</i> +wouldn’t go out in such weather. +</p> + +<p> +And Solomon Owl wished that he, too, had stayed at home that night. +</p> + +<p> +From midnight until almost dawn Solomon Owl sat there. Now and then he tried to +fly. But it was no use. He could scarcely raise himself off the ground. +</p> + +<p> +At last he decided he would have to <i>walk</i> home. Fortunately, a hard crust +covered the soft snow. So Solomon started off on his long journey. +</p> + +<p> +Flying, Solomon could have covered the distance in a few minutes. But he was a +slow walker. By the time he reached his home among the hemlocks the sun was +shining brightly—for the rain had stopped before daybreak. +</p> + +<p> +Solomon wondered how he would ever succeed in reaching his doorway, high up in +the hollow tree. He gazed helplessly upward. And as he sat there mournfully the +bright sunshine melted the ice that bound his wings. After a time he discovered +that he could move freely once more. And then he rose quickly in the air and in +a twinkling he had disappeared into the darkness of his home—that +darkness which to him was always so pleasant. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap20"></a>XX<br /> +A Pair Of Red-Heads</h2> + +<p> +In the woods there was hardly one of Solomon Owl’s neighbors that +couldn’t point out the big hemlock tree where he lived. And mischievous +fellows like Reddy Woodpecker sometimes annoyed Solomon a good deal by rapping +loudly on his door. When he thrust his head angrily out of his house and +blinked in the sunlight, his tormentors would skip away and laugh. They laughed +because they knew that they had awakened Solomon Owl. And they dodged out of +his reach because he was always ill-tempered when anybody disturbed his rest in +the daytime. +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl did not mind so <i>very</i> much so long as that trick was not +played on him too often. But after a time it became one of Reddy +Woodpecker’s favorite sports. Not only once, but several times a day did +he go to the hemlock grove to hammer upon Solomon’s hollow tree. And each +time that he brought Solomon Owl to his door Reddy Woodpecker laughed more +loudly than ever before. +</p> + +<p> +Once Solomon forgot to take off his nightcap (though he wore it in the daytime, +it really was a nightcap). And Reddy Woodpecker was so amused that he shouted +at the top of his lungs. +</p> + +<p> +“What’s the joke?” asked Solomon Owl in his deep, rumbling +voice. He tried to look very severe. But it is hard to look any way except +funny with a nightcap on one’s head. +</p> + +<p> +As luck had it, Jasper Jay came hurrying up just then. He had heard Reddy +Woodpecker’s laughter. And if there was a joke he wanted to enjoy it, +too. +</p> + +<p> +Jasper Jay, alighting in a small hemlock near Reddy Woodpecker, asked the same +question that Solomon Owl had just put to his rude caller. +</p> + +<p> +“What’s the joke?” inquired Jasper Jay. +</p> + +<p> +Reddy could not speak. He was rocking back and forth upon a limb, choking and +gasping for breath. But he managed to point to the big tree where Solomon Owl +lived. +</p> + +<p> +And when Jasper looked, and saw Solomon’s great, round, pale, questioning +face, all tied up in a red nightcap, he began to scream. +</p> + +<p> +They were no ordinary screams—those shrieks of Jasper Jay’s. That +blue-coated rascal was the noisiest of all the feathered folk in Pleasant +Valley. And now he fairly made the woods echo with his hoarse cries. +</p> + +<p> +“This is the funniest sight I’ve ever seen!” Jasper Jay said +at last, to nobody in particular. “I declare, there’s a pair of +them!” +</p> + +<p> +At that, Reddy Woodpecker suddenly stopped laughing. +</p> + +<p> +“A pair of what?” he asked. +</p> + +<p> +“A pair of red-heads, of course!” Jasper Jay replied. +“You’ve a red cap—and so has he!” Jasper pointed at +Solomon Owl (a very rude thing to do!). +</p> + +<p> +Then two things happened all at once. Solomon Owl snatched off his red +night-cap—which he had quite forgotten. And Reddy Woodpecker dashed at +Jasper Jay. He couldn’t pull off <i>his</i> red cap, for it grew right on +his head. +</p> + +<p> +“So that’s what you’re laughing at, is it?” he cried +angrily. And then nobody laughed any more—that is, nobody but Solomon +Owl. +</p> + +<p> +Solomon was so pleased by the fight that followed between Jasper Jay and Reddy +Woodpecker that his deep, rumbling laughter could be heard for half an +hour—even if it <i>was</i> midday. “<i>Wha-wha! Whoo-ah!</i>” +The sound reached the ears of Farmer Green, who was just crossing a neighboring +field, on his way home to dinner. +</p> + +<p> +“Well, well!” he exclaimed. “I wonder what’s happened +to that old owl! Something must have tickled him—for I never heard an owl +laugh in broad daylight before.” +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap21"></a>XXI<br /> +At Home In The Haystack</h2> + +<p> +After what happened when he came to his door without remembering to take off +his red nightcap, Solomon Owl hoped that Reddy Woodpecker would stop teasing +him. +</p> + +<p> +But it was not so. Having once viewed Solomon’s red cap, Reddy Woodpecker +wanted to see it some more. So he came again and again and knocked on +Solomon’s door. +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl, however, remembered each time to remove his nightcap before +sticking his head out. And it might be said that neither of them was exactly +pleased. For Reddy Woodpecker was disappointed; and Solomon Owl was angry. +</p> + +<p> +Not a day passed that Reddy Woodpecker didn’t disturb Solomon’s +rest at least a dozen times. Perhaps if Solomon had just kept still inside his +house Reddy would have grown tired of bothering him. But Solomon Owl—for +all he looked so wise—never thought of that. +</p> + +<p> +But he saw before a great while that he would have to make a change of some +sort—if he wanted to enjoy a good, quiet sleep again. +</p> + +<p> +For a long time Solomon Owl pondered. It was a great puzzle—to know just +how to outwit Reddy Woodpecker. And Solomon almost despaired of finding a way +out of the difficulty. But at last an idea came to him, all in a flash. He +would take his daytime naps somewhere else! +</p> + +<p> +Solomon spent several nights looking for a good place to pass his days. And in +the end he decided on the meadow. It would be convenient, he thought, when he +was hunting meadow mice at dawn, if he could stay right there, without +bothering to go into the woods to sleep. +</p> + +<p> +Since there were no trees in the meadow, but only a few scrubby bushes along +the stone wall, one might naturally make the mistake of thinking that there +could not possibly be a nook of any kind that would suit Solomon Owl, who could +never sleep soundly unless his bedroom was quite dark. +</p> + +<p> +But there was one hiding place that Solomon liked almost as well as his home in +the hollow hemlock. And that was Farmer Green’s haystack. He burrowed +into one side of it and made himself a snug chamber, which was as dark as a +pocket—and ever so much quieter. What pleased Solomon most, however, was +this: Nobody knew about that new retreat except himself. +</p> + +<p> +Even if Reddy Woodpecker should succeed in finding it, he never could disturb +Solomon by drumming upon the haystack. If Reddy tried that trick, his bill +would merely sink noiselessly into the hay. +</p> + +<p> +So Solomon Owl at last had a good day’s rest. And when he met Reddy +Woodpecker just after sunset, Solomon was feeling so cheerful that he said +“Good-evening!” quite pleasantly, before he remembered that it was +Reddy who had teased him so often. +</p> + +<p> +“Good-evening!” Reddy Woodpecker replied. He seemed much surprised +that Solomon Owl should be so agreeable. “Can you hear me?” Reddy +asked him. +</p> + +<p> +“Perfectly!” said Solomon. +</p> + +<p> +“That’s strange!” Reddy Woodpecker exclaimed. “I was +almost sure you had suddenly grown deaf.” And he could not understand why +Solomon Owl laughed loud and long. +</p> + +<p> +“<i>Wha-wha! Whoo-ah!</i>” Solomon’s deep-voiced laughter +rolled and echoed through the woodland. +</p> + +<p> +But Reddy Woodpecker did not laugh at all. +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div class="chapter"> + +<h2><a name="chap22"></a>XXII<br /> +It Was Solomon’s Fault</h2> + +<p> +Reddy Woodpecker had a very good reason for not laughing when he met Solomon +Owl. Of course, he knew nothing whatever of Solomon’s new hiding place in +the haystack. And that very morning Reddy had invited a party of friends to go +with him to the hemlock grove where Solomon Owl had always lived, “to +have some fun,” as Reddy had explained. +</p> + +<p> +For a long time he had knocked and hammered and pounded at Solomon Owl’s +door. But for once Solomon’s great pale face did not appear. +</p> + +<p> +“Where’s the fun?” Reddy’s friends had wanted to know, +after they had waited until they were impatient. +</p> + +<p> +And Reddy Woodpecker could only shake his head and say: +</p> + +<p> +“I can’t understand it! It’s never happened like this before. +I’m afraid Solomon Owl has lost his hearing.” +</p> + +<p> +Reddy Woodpecker’s friends were no more polite than he. And they began to +jeer at him. +</p> + +<p> +“You didn’t hammer loud enough,” one of them told him. +</p> + +<p> +So he set to work again and rapped and rapped until his head felt as if it +would fly off, and his neck began to ache. +</p> + +<p> +Still, Solomon Owl did not appear. And the party broke up in something very +like a quarrel. For Reddy Woodpecker lost his temper when his friends teased +him; and a good many unpleasant remarks passed back and forth. +</p> + +<p> +Somehow, Reddy felt that it was all Solomon Owl’s fault, because he +hadn’t come to the door. +</p> + +<p> +Of course, Reddy had no means of knowing that all that time Solomon Owl was +sleeping peacefully in Farmer Green’s haystack in the meadow, a quarter +of a mile away. +</p> + +<p> +It was a good joke on Reddy Woodpecker. And though no one had told Solomon Owl +about it, he was not so stupid that he couldn’t guess at least <i>a +little</i> that had happened. +</p> + +<p class="p2"> +Solomon Owl continued to have a very pleasant time living in the meadow. Since +there were many mice right close at hand, little by little he visited the woods +less and less. And there came a time at last when he hardly left the meadow at +all. +</p> + +<p> +Not flying any more than he could help, and eating too much, and sleeping very +soundly each day, he grew stouter than ever, until his friends hardly knew him +when they saw him. +</p> + +<p> +“Solomon Owl is a sight—he’s so fat!” people began to +say. +</p> + +<p> +But his size never worried Solomon Owl in the least. When he became too big for +his doorway in the haystack, it was a simple matter to make the opening +larger—much simpler than it would have been to make himself +<i>smaller</i>. And that was another reason why he was delighted with his new +home. +</p> + +<p> +At last, however, something happened to put an end to his lazy way of living. +One day the sound of men’s voices awakened him, when he was having a good +nap in the haystack. And he felt his bedroom quiver as if an earthquake had +shaken it. +</p> + +<p> +Scrambling to his doorway and peeping slyly out, Solomon saw a sight that made +him very angry. A hayrack stood alongside the stack; and on it stood Farmer +Green and his hired man. Each had a pitchfork in his hands, with which he tore +great forkfuls of hay off the stack and piled it upon the wagon. +</p> + +<p> +Solomon Owl knew then that his fine hiding place was going to be spoiled. As +soon as the horses had pulled the load of hay away, with Farmer Green and the +hired man riding on top of it, Solomon Owl crept out of his snug bedroom and +hurried off to the woods. +</p> + +<p> +He was so fat that it was several days before he could squeeze inside his old +home in the hollow hemlock. And for the time being he had to sit on a limb and +sleep in the daylight as best he could. +</p> + +<p> +But to his surprise, Reddy Woodpecker troubled him no more. Reddy had drummed +so hard on Solomon’s door, in the effort to awake him when he +wasn’t there, that Aunt Polly Woodchuck told him he would ruin his bill, +if he didn’t look out. And since the warning thoroughly alarmed him, +Reddy stopped visiting the hemlock grove. +</p> + +<p> +In time Solomon Owl grew to look like himself again. And people never really +knew just what had happened to him. But they noticed that he always hooted +angrily whenever anybody mentioned Farmer Green’s name. +</p> + +<p class="center"> +THE END +</p> + +</div><!--end chapter--> + +<div style='display:block;margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE TALE OF SOLOMON OWL ***</div> +<div style='display:block;margin:1em 0;'>This file should be named 16663-h.htm or 16663-h.zip</div> +<div style='display:block;margin:1em 0;'>This and all associated files of various formats will be found in https://www.gutenberg.org/1/6/6/6/16663/</div> +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will +be renamed. +</div> + +<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> +Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright +law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, +so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United +States without permission and without paying copyright +royalties. 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\ No newline at end of file diff --git a/16663-h/images/image-001.jpg b/16663-h/images/image-001.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..dd18c74 --- /dev/null +++ b/16663-h/images/image-001.jpg diff --git a/16663-h/images/image-002.jpg b/16663-h/images/image-002.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..f6936e3 --- /dev/null +++ b/16663-h/images/image-002.jpg diff --git a/16663-h/images/image-003.jpg b/16663-h/images/image-003.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..b17916f --- /dev/null +++ b/16663-h/images/image-003.jpg diff --git a/16663-h/images/image-fp.jpg b/16663-h/images/image-fp.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ad74ce5 --- /dev/null +++ b/16663-h/images/image-fp.jpg diff --git a/16663-h/images/image-p25.jpg b/16663-h/images/image-p25.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..dd18c74 --- /dev/null +++ b/16663-h/images/image-p25.jpg diff --git a/16663-h/images/image-p64.jpg b/16663-h/images/image-p64.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..f6936e3 --- /dev/null +++ b/16663-h/images/image-p64.jpg diff --git a/16663-h/images/image-p96.jpg b/16663-h/images/image-p96.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..b17916f --- /dev/null +++ b/16663-h/images/image-p96.jpg diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..86a1cfa --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #16663 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/16663) diff --git a/old/16663-8.txt b/old/16663-8.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..b0d7f84 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/16663-8.txt @@ -0,0 +1,2471 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Tale of Solomon Owl by Arthur Scott +Bailey + + + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no +restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under +the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or +online at http://www.gutenberg.org/license + + + +Title: The Tale of Solomon Owl + +Author: Arthur Scott Bailey + +Release Date: 2005-09 [Ebook #16663] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO 8859-1 + + +***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE TALE OF SOLOMON OWL*** + + + + + +The Tale of Solomon Owl +By Arthur Scott Bailey + +Author of "The Tale of Sandy Chipmunk," "The Tale of Tommy Fox," etc. +_Illustrated by Harry L. Smith_ + +New York +Grosset & Dunlap +1917 + + + + + + [_Frontispiece_] + + Solomon Owl Sat Up And Listened. + + + + + + CONTENTS + + +Illustrations +I - Scaring Johnny Green +II - A Newcomer +III - Solomon Likes Frogs +IV - An Odd Bargain +V - The Cold Weather Coat +VI - Solomon Needs a Change +VII - The Blazing Eyes +VIII - Watching The Chickens +IX - Hallowe'en +X - A Troublesome Wishbone +XI - Cured At Last +XII - Benjamin Bat +XIII - The Lucky Guest +XIV - Hanging By The Heels +XV - Disputes Settled +XVI - Nine Fights +XVII - Cousin Simon Screecher +XVIII - A Cousinly Quarrel +XIX - The Sleet Storm +XX - A Pair Of Red-Heads +XXI - At Home In The Haystack +XXII - It Was Solomon's Fault + + + + + +ILLUSTRATIONS + + + Solomon Owl Sat Up And Listened _Frontispiece_ + Solomon Found Mr. Frog's Shop Was Closed + Benjamin Bat Asked Solomon's Advice + "It's All Right!" Said Solomon + + + + + + +THE TALE OF SOLOMON OWL + + + + + +I +SCARING JOHNNY GREEN + + +When Johnnie Green was younger, it always scared him to hear Solomon Owl's +deep-toned voice calling in the woods after dark. + +"_Whoo-whoo-whoo, whoo-whoo, to-whoo-ah_!" That weird cry was enough to +send Johnnie Green hurrying into the farmhouse, though sometimes he paused +in the doorway to listen--especially if Solomon Owl happened to be +laughing. His "_haw-haw-hoo-hoo_," booming across the meadow on a crisp +fall evening, when the big yellow moon hung over the fields of corn-shocks +and pumpkins, sounded almost as if Solomon were laughing at the little boy +he had frightened. There was certainly a mocking, jeering note in his +laughter. + +Of course, as he grew older, Johnnie Green no longer shivered on hearing +Solomon's rolling call. When Solomon laughed, Johnnie Green would laugh, +too. But Solomon Owl never knew that, for often he was half a mile from +the farm buildings. + +A "hoot owl," Johnnie Green termed him. And anyone who heard Solomon +hooting of an evening, or just before sunrise, would have agreed that it +was a good name for him. But he was really a _barred_ owl, for he had bars +of white across his feathers. + +If you had happened to catch Solomon Owl resting among the thick hemlocks +near the foot of Blue Mountain, where he lived, you would have thought +that he looked strangely like a human being. He had no "horns," or +ear-tufts, such as some of the other owls wore; and his great pale face, +with its black eyes, made him seem very wise and solemn. + +In spite of the mild, questioning look upon his face whenever anyone +surprised him in the daytime, Solomon Owl was the noisiest of all the +different families of owls in Pleasant Valley. There were the barn owls, +the long-eared owls, the short-eared owls, the saw-whet owls, the screech +owls--but there! there's no use of naming them all. There wasn't one of +them that could equal Solomon Owl's laughing and hooting and shrieking and +wailing--at night. + +During the day, however, Solomon Owl he was quiet about it. One reason for +his silence then was that he generally slept when the sun was shining. And +when most people were sleeping, Solomon Owl was as wide awake as he could +be. + +He was a night-prowler--if ever there was one. And he could see a mouse on +the darkest night, even if it stirred ever so slightly. + +That was unfortunate for the mice. But luckily for them, Solomon Owl +couldn't be in more than one place at a time. Otherwise, there wouldn't +have been a mouse left in Pleasant Valley--if he could have had _his_ way. + +And though he didn't help the mice, he helped Farmer Green by catching +them. If he did take a fat pullet once in a while, it is certain that he +more than paid for it. + +So, on the whole, Farmer Green did not wood-lot. And for a long time +Solomon raised no objection to Farmer Green's living near Swift River. + +But later Solomon Owl claimed that it would be a good thing for the forest +folk if they could get rid of the whole Green family--and the hired man, +too. + + + + + +II +A NEWCOMER + + +Upon his arrival, as a stranger, in Pleasant Valley, Solomon Owl looked +about carefully for a place to live. What he wanted especially was a good, +_dark_ hole, for he thought that sunshine was very dismal. + +Though he was willing to bestir himself enough to suit anybody, when it +came to _hunting_, Solomon Owl did not like to work. He was no busy +nest-builder, like Rusty Wren. In his search for a house he looked several +times at the home of old Mr. Crow. If it had suited him better, Solomon +would not have hesitated to take that it was altogether _too light_ to +please him. + +That was lucky for old Mr. Crow. And the black rascal knew it, too. He had +noticed that Solomon Owl was hanging about the neighborhood. And several +times he caught Solomon examining his nest. + +But Mr. Crow did not have to worry long. For as it happened, Solomon Owl +at last found exactly what he wanted. In an old, hollow hemlock, he came +across a cozy, dark cavity. As soon as he saw it he knew that it was the +very thing! So he moved in at once. And except for the time that he spent +in the meadow--which was considerably later--he lived there for a good many +years. + +Once Fatty Coon thought that he would drive Solomon out of his snug house +and live in it himself. But he soon changed Solomon Owl--so Fatty +discovered--had sharp, strong claws and a sharp, strong beak as well, which +curled over his face in a cruel hook. + +It was really a good thing for Solomon Owl--the fight he had with Fatty +Coon. For afterward his neighbors seldom troubled him--except when Jasper +Jay brought a crowd of his noisy friends to tease Solomon, or Reddy +Woodpecker annoyed him by rapping on his door when he was asleep. + +But those rowdies always took good care to skip out of Solomon's reach. +And when Jasper Jay met Solomon alone in the woods at dawn or dusk he was +most polite to the solemn old chap. _Then_ it was "How-dy-do, Mr. Owl!" +and "I hope you're well to-day!" And when Solomon Jasper, that bold fellow +always felt quite uneasy; and he was glad when Solomon Owl looked away. + +If Solomon Owl chanced to _hoot_ on those occasions, Jasper Jay would jump +almost out of his bright blue coat. Then Solomon's deep laughter would +echo mockingly through the woods. + +You see, though not nearly so wise as he appeared, Solomon Owl knew well +enough how to frighten some people. + + + + + +III +SOLOMON LIKES FROGS + + +It was a warm summer's evening--so warm that Mr. Frog, the tailor, had +taken his sewing outside his tailor's shop and seated himself cross-legged +upon the bank of the brook, where he sang and sewed without ceasing--except +to take a swim now and then in the cool water, "to stretch his legs," as +he claimed. + +He was making a new suit of blue clothes for Jasper Jay. And since Jasper +was a great dandy, and very particular Mr. Frog was taking special pains +with his sewing. + +Usually he did his work quickly. But now after every five stitches that he +put into his work he stopped to take out ten. And naturally he was not +getting on very fast. He had been working busily since early morning; and +Jasper Jay's suit was further than ever from being finished. + +Since he was a most cheerful person, Mr. Frog did not mind that. Indeed, +he was more than pleased, because the oftener he took a swim the fewer +stitches he lost. So he sang the merriest songs he knew. + +The light was fast fading when a hollow laugh startled Mr. Frog. It seemed +to come from the willow tree right over his head. And he knew without +looking up that it was Solomon Owl's deep voice. + +Mr. Frog tried to leap into the brook. But when he uncrossed his legs, in +his haste he tangled them up in his sewing. And all he could do was to +turn a somersault backward among some bulrushes, hoping that Solomon Owl +had not seen him. + +It is no secret that Mr. Frog was terribly afraid of Solomon Owl. Some of +Mr. Frog's friends had mysteriously disappeared. And they had last been +seen in Solomon's company. + +As it happened, Mr. Frog had hoped in vain. For Solomon Owl only laughed +more loudly than before. And then he said: + +"What are you afraid of, Mr. Frog?" + +The tailor knew at once that he was caught. So he hopped nimbly to his +feet and answered that there was nothing to be afraid of, so far as he +could see. + +It was a true statement, too; because Mr. Frog had not yet discovered +Solomon Owl's exact whereabouts. + +But he learned them soon; for Solomon immediately dropped down from the +big willow and alighted on the bank near Mr. Frog--altogether _too near_ +him, in fact, for the tailor's comfort. + +Solomon looked at Mr. Frog very solemnly. And he thought that he shivered. + +"What's the matter? Are you ill?" Solomon Owl inquired. "You seem to be +shaking." + +"Just a touch of chills and fever, probably!" replied Mr. Frog with an +uneasy smile. "You know it's very damp here." + +"You don't look in the best of health--that's a fact!" Solomon Owl +remarked. "You appear to me to be somewhat green in the face." And he +laughed once more--that same hollow, mirthless laugh. + +Mr. Frog couldn't help jumping, because the sound alarmed him. + +"Don't be disturbed!" said Solomon Owl. "I like all the Frog family." + +At that remark, Mr. Frog started violently That was exactly the trouble! +Solomon Owl was _altogether too fond_ of frogs, whether they were old or +young, big or little. + +It was no wonder that Mr. Frog swallowed rapidly sixteen times before he +could say another word. + + + + + +IV +AN ODD BARGAIN + + +While Mr. Frog was swallowing nothing rapidly, he was thinking rapidly, +too. There was something about Solomon Owl's big, staring eyes that made +Mr. Frog feel uncomfortable. And if he had thought he had any chance of +escaping he would have dived into the brook and swum under the bank. + +But Solomon Owl was too near him for that. And Mr. Frog was afraid his +caller would pounce upon him any moment. So he quickly thought of a plan +to save himself. "No doubt----" he began. But Solomon Owl interrupted him. + +"There!" cried Solomon. "You _can_ speak, after all. I supposed you'd +swallowed your tongue. And I was just waiting to see what you'd do next. I +thought maybe you would swallow your _head_." + +Mr. Frog managed to laugh at the joke, though, to tell the truth, he felt +more nervous than ever. He saw what was in Solomon Owl's mind, for Solomon +was thinking of swallowing Mr. Frog's head himself. + +"No doubt--" Mr. Frog resumed--"no doubt you've come to ask me to make you a +new suit of clothes." + +Now, Solomon Owl had had no such idea at all. But when it was mentioned to +him, he rather liked it. + +"Will you?" he inquired, with a highly interested air. + +"Why, certainly!" the tailor replied. And for the first time since he had +turned his backward somersault into the bulrushes, he smiled widely. "I'll +tell you what I'll do!" he said. "First, I'll make you a coat free. And +second, if you like it I will then make you a waistcoat and trousers, at +double rates." + +Solomon Owl liked the thought of getting a coat for nothing. But for all +that, he looked at the tailor somewhat doubtfully. + +"Will it take you long?" he asked. + +"No, indeed!" Mr. Frog told him. "I'll make your coat while you wait." + +"Oh, I wasn't going away," Solomon assured him with an odd look which made +Mr. Frog shiver again. "Be quick, please! Because I have some important +business to attend to." + +Mr. Frog couldn't help wondering if it wasn't he himself that Solomon Owl +was going to attend to. In spite of his fears, to work to cut up some +cloth that hung just outside his door. + +"Stop!" Solomon Owl cried in a voice that seemed to shake the very ground. +"You haven't measured me yet!" + +"It's not necessary," Mr. Frog explained glibly. "I've become so skilful +that one look at an elegant figure like yours is all that I need." + +Naturally, Mr. Frog's remark pleased Solomon Owl. And he uttered ten rapid +hoots, which served to make Mr. Frog's fingers fly all the faster. Soon he +was sewing Solomon's coat with long stitches; and though his needle +slipped now and then, he did not pause to take out a single stitch. For +some reason, Mr. Frog was in a great hurry. + +Solomon Owl did not appear to notice that the tailor was not taking much +pains with his sewing. Perhaps Mr. Frog worked so fast that Solomon could +not see what he was doing. + +Anyhow, he was delighted when Mr. Frog suddenly cried: + +"It's finished!" And then he tossed the coat to Solomon. "Try it on!" he +said. "I want to see how well it fits you." + +Solomon Owl held up the garment and looked at it very carefully. And as he +examined it a puzzled look came over his great pale face. + +There was something about his new coat that he did not understand. + + + + + +V +THE COLD WEATHER COAT + + +Yes! As he held up his new coat and looked at it, Solomon Owl was puzzled. +He turned his head toward Mr. Frog and stared at him for a moment. And +then he turned his head away from the tailor and gazed upon the coat +again. + +Mr. Frog was most uncomfortable--especially when Solomon looked at _him_. + +"Everything's all right, isn't it?" he inquired. + +Solomon Owl slowly shook his head. + +"This is a queer coat!" he said. "What's this bag at the top of it?" + +"Oh!" exclaimed Mr. Frog. "That's the hood! Knowing that you spend your +winters here in Pleasant Valley, I made a hood to go over your head.... +You'll find it very comfortable in cold weather--and it's the latest style, +too. All the winter coats this year will have hoods, with holes to see +through, you know." + +Solomon Owl looked relieved at Mr. Frog's explanation. But there was still +something more that appeared to trouble him. + +"How shall I get into the coat?" he inquired. "It doesn't open in front, +as it should." + +"Another cold-weather style!" Mr. Frog assured him. "It's wind-proof! And +instead of buttoning the coat, you pull it on over your head." + +Solomon Owl said he didn't like that style very well. + +"Then I can easily change it," the tailor told him. "But just try it on!" +he urged. "It may please you, after all." + +So Solomon Owl pulled the coat over his head. And it fell down about him, +almost reaching his feet. But the coat did not seem to suit him at all, +for he began to splutter and choke. + +"What's the matter now?" Mr. Frog asked him. + +"I can't see--that's what's the matter!" Solomon Owl cried in a voice that +sounded hollower than ever, because it was muffled by the hood, which +covered his head. + +"I declare--I haven't cut the holes for your eyes!" the tailor exclaimed. +"Just wait a moment and I'll make everything satisfactory." He clinked his +shears together sharply as he spoke. + +But Solomon Owl told him that he wouldn't _think_ of letting anybody use +shears so near his eyes. + + [_Illustration 1_] + + Solomon Found Mr. Frog's Shop Was Closed + + +"I'll take off the coat," he said. "And I know now that you're a very poor +tailor, or you wouldn't have made such a mistake." He began to tug at the +coat. But he soon found that taking it off was not so easy as putting it +on. Solomon's sharp claws caught in the cloth; and his hooked beak, too, +fastened itself in the hood the moment he tried to pull the coat over his +head. "Here!" he cried to Mr. Frog. "Just lend me a hand! I can't see to +help myself." + +But Mr. Frog did not even answer him. + +"Don't you hear me?" Solomon Owl shouted, as he struggled with his new +coat, only to become tangled in it more than ever. + +Still, the tailor said never a word, though something very like a giggle, +followed by a splash, caught Solomon's ear. + +"He's left me!" Solomon Owl groaned. + +"Mr. Frog has left me to get out of this coat alone. And goodness knows +how I'm ever a-going to do it." He threshed about so vigorously that he +tripped himself and fell upon the bank of the brook, rolling over and over +toward the water. + +He had a very narrow escape. If he hadn't happened to bring up against an +old stump he would certainly have tumbled into the stream. + +Though Solomon couldn't see, he knew that he was in danger. So he lay on +his back on the ground and carefully tore his new coat into strings and +ribbons. + +At last he was free. And he rose to his feet feeling very sheepish, for he +knew that Mr. Frog had played a sly trick on him. + +"Nevermind!" said Solomon Owl, as he flew way. "I'll come back to-morrow +and ask Mr. Frog to make me a waistcoat and trousers. And then----" He did +not finish what he was saying. But there is no doubt that whatever it was, +it could not have been very pleasant for Mr. Frog. + +Just as he had planned, Solomon Owl returned to the brook the next day. +And he was both surprised and disappointed at what he found. + +The door of Mr. Frog's tailor's shop was shut and locked. And on it there +was a sign, which said: + +TO LET + +"He's moved away!" cried Solomon Owl. And he went off feeling that he had +been cheated out of a good dinner--to say nothing of a new waistcoat--and +new trousers, too. + +He had not been gone long when the door opened. And Mr. Frog leaped nimbly +outside. He took the sign off the door; and sitting down cross-legged upon +the bank, he began to sew upon Jasper Jay's new blue suit, while his face +wore a wider smile than ever. + +He had suddenly decided not to let his shop, after all. + + + + + +VI +SOLOMON NEEDS A CHANGE + + +For some time Solomon Owl had known that a queer feeling was coming over +him. And he could not think what it meant. He noticed, too, that his +appetite was leaving him. Nothing seemed to taste good any more. + +So at last, one fine fall evening he went to see Aunt Polly Woodchuck, who +was an herb doctor; for he had begun to worry about his health. + +"It's lucky you came to-day," said Aunt Polly. "Because to-night I'm going +to begin my winter's nap. And you couldn't have seen me again till +spring--unless you happened to come here on ground-hog day, next +February.... What appears to be your trouble?" she inquired. + +"It's my appetite, partly," Solomon Owl said. "Nothing tastes as it did +when I was a youngster. And I keep longing for something, though what it +is I can't just tell." + +Aunt Polly Woodchuck nodded her head wisely. + +"What have you been eating lately?" she asked. + +Solomon Owl replied that he hadn't eaten anything but mice since the +leaves began to turn. + +"H-m--the leaves are nearly all off the trees now," the old lady remarked. +"How many mice have you eaten in that time?" + +Solomon said that as nearly as he could remember he had eaten +twenty-seven--or a hundred and twenty-seven. He couldn't say which--but one +of those numbers was correct. + +Aunt Polly Woodchuck threw up her hands. + +"Sakes alive!" she cried. "It's no wonder you don't feel well! What you +need is a change of food. And it's lucky you came to me now. If you'd gone +on like that much longer I'd hate to say what might have happened to you. +You'd have had dyspepsia, or some other sort of misery in your stomach." + +"What shall I do?" asked Solomon Owl. "Insects are scarce at this season +of the year. Of course, there are frogs--but I don't seem to care for them. +And there are fish--but they're not easy to get, for they don't come out of +the water and sit on the bank, as the frogs do." + +"How about pullets?" Aunt Polly inquired. + +At that Solomon Owl let out a long row of hoots, because he was pleased. + +"The very thing!" he cried. "That's what I've been wanting all this time. +And I never guessed it.... I'll pay you for your advice the next time I +see you," he told Aunt Polly. And Solomon Owl hurried away before she +could stop him. Since he had no intention of visiting her on ground-hog +day, he knew it would be spring before he saw Aunt Polly Woodchuck again. + +The old lady scolded a bit. And it did not make her feel any pleasanter to +hear Solomon's mocking laughter, which grew fainter and fainter as he left +the pasture behind him. Then she went inside her house, for she was fast +growing sleepy. And she wanted to set things to rights before she began +her long winter's nap. + +Meanwhile, Solomon Owl roamed restlessly through the woods. There was only +one place in the neighborhood where he could get a pullet. That was at +Farmer Green's chicken house. And for some reason he did not care to visit +the farm buildings until it grew darker. + +So he amused himself by making the woods echo with his strange cry, +"_Whoo-whoo-whoo, whoo-whoo, to-whoo-ah!_" And now and then he threw in a +few "_wha-whas_," just for extra measure. + +Many of the forest folk who heard him remarked that Solomon Owl seemed to +be in extra fine spirits. + +"Probably it's the hunter's moon that pleases him!" Jimmy Rabbit remarked +to a friend of his. "I've always noticed that old Solomon makes more noise +on moonlight nights than at any other time." + +The hunter's moon, big and yellow and round, was just rising over Blue +Mountain. But for once it was not the moon that made Solomon Owl so +talkative. He was in fine feather, so to speak, because he was hoping to +have a fat pullet for his supper. And as for the moon, he would have been +just as pleased had there been none at all that night. For Solomon Owl +never cared to be seen when he visited Farmer Green's chicken house. + + + + + +VII +THE BLAZING EYES + + +It was some three hours after sunset when Solomon Owl at last reached +Farmer Green's place. All was quiet in the chicken house because the hens +and roosters and their families had long since gone to roost. And except +for a light that shone through a window, the farmhouse showed not a sign +of life. + +Everything was as Solomon Owl wished it--or so he thought, at least, as he +alighted in a tree in the yard to look about him. He wanted no one to +interrupt him when he should go nosing around the chicken house, to find +an opening. + +To his annoyance, he had not sat long in the tree when the wood-shed door +opened. And Solomon stared in amazement at the strange sight he saw. + +A great head appeared, with eyes and mouth--yes! and nose, too--all a +glaring flame color. Solomon had never seen such a horrible face on man or +bird or beast. But he was sure it was a man, for he heard a laugh that was +not to be mistaken for either a beast's or a bird's. And the worst of it +was, those blazing eyes were turned squarely toward Farmer Green's chicken +house! + +Solomon Owl was too wary to go for his fat pullet just then. He decided +that he would wait quietly in the tree for a time, hoping that the man +would go away. + +While Solomon watched him the stranger neither moved nor spoke. And, of +course, Solomon Owl was growing hungrier every minute. So at last he felt +that he simply _must_ say something. + +"Who-who-who-are-you?" he called out from his tree. + +But the strange man did not answer. He did not even turn his head. + +"He must be some city person," Solomon Owl said to himself. "He thinks +he's too good to speak to a countryman like me." + +Then Solomon sat up and listened. He heard a scratching sound. And soon he +saw a plump figure crawl right up into his tree-top. + +It was Fatty Coon! + +"What are you doing here?" Solomon Owl asked in a low voice, which was not +any too pleasant. + +"I'm out for an airing," Fatty answered. "Beautiful night--isn't it?" + +But Solomon Owl was not interested in the weather. "I don't suppose you've +come down here to get a chicken, have you?" he inquired. + +Fatty Coon seemed greatly surprised at the question. + +"Why--no!" he exclaimed. "But now that you speak of it, it reminds me that +Farmer Green's saving a pullet for me. He was heard to say not long ago +that he would like to catch me taking one of his hens. So he must have one +for me. And I don't want to disappoint him." + +At first Solomon Owl didn't know what answer to make. But at last he +turned his head toward Fatty. + +"Why don't you go and get your pullet now?" he asked. + +"There's that man down below, with the glaring eyes--" said Fatty Coon. +"I've been waiting around here for quite a long time and he hasn't looked +away from the chicken house even once.... Do you know him?" + +"No! And I don't want to!" said Solomon Owl. + +"S-sh!" Fatty Coon held up a warning hand. "Who's that?" he asked, peering +down at a dark object at the foot of their tree. + +Then both he and Solomon saw that it was Tommy Fox, sitting on his +haunches and staring at the big head, with its blazing eyes and nose and +mouth. + +"Not looking for chickens, I suppose?" Solomon Owl called in a low tone, +which was hardly more than a whisper. + +But Tommy Fox's sharp ears heard him easily. And he looked up, licking his +chops as if he were very hungry indeed. And all the while the stranger +continued to stare straight at the chicken house, as if he did not intend +to let anybody go + +prowling about that long, low building to steal any of Farmer Green's +poultry. + +It was no wonder that the three chicken-lovers (two in the tree and one +beneath it) hesitated. If the queer man had only spoken they might not +have been so timid. But he said never a word. + + + + + +VIII +WATCHING THE CHICKENS + + +Solomon Owl and Fatty Coon couldn't help laughing at what Tommy Fox said +to them, as they sat in their tree near the farmhouse, looking down at him +in the moonlight. + +"I'm here to watch Farmer Green's chickens for him--" said he--"to see that +no rat--or anybody else--runs away with a pullet." + +"Farmer Green has someone else watching for him to-night," said Solomon +Owl, when he had stopped laughing. "There's that strange man! You can see +how he keeps his glaring eyes fixed on the chicken house. And unless I'm +mistaken, he's on the lookout for _you_." + +"No such thing!" Tommy Fox snapped. And he looked up at Solomon as if he +wished that he could climb the tree. + +"Here comes somebody else!" Fatty Coon exclaimed suddenly. His keen eyes +had caught sight of Jimmy Rabbit, hopping along on his way to the +vegetable garden, to see if he couldn't find a stray cabbage or a turnip. + +Solomon Owl called to him. Whereupon, Jimmy Rabbit promptly sat up and +looked at the odd trio. If it hadn't been for Tommy Fox he would have +drawn nearer. + +"Do you know that stranger?" Solomon Owl asked him, pointing out the +horrible head to Jimmy. + +"I haven't the pleasure," said Jimmy Rabbit, after he had taken a good +look. + +"Well," said Solomon, "won't you kindly speak to him; and ask him to go +away?" + +"Certainly!" answered Jimmy Rabbit, who always tried to be obliging. + +"I hope the stranger won't eat him," remarked Tommy Fox, "because I hope +to do that some day, myself." + +It was queer--but Jimmy Rabbit was the only one of the four that wasn't +afraid of those glaring features. He hopped straight up to the big round +head, which was just a bit higher than one of the fence posts, against +which the stranger seemed to be leaning. And after a moment or two Jimmy +Rabbit called to Solomon and Fatty and Tommy Fox: + +"He won't go away! He's going to stay right where he is!" + +"Come here a minute!" said Tommy. + +Jimmy Rabbit shook his head. + +"You come over here!" he answered. And he did not stir from the side of +the stranger. He knew very well that Tommy Fox was afraid of the man with +the head with the glaring eyes. + +As for Tommy Fox, he did not even reply--that is, to Jimmy Rabbit. But he +spoke his mind freely enough to his two friends in the tree. + +"It seems to me one of you ought to do something," said he. "We'll eat no +pullets to-night if we can't get rid of this meddlesome stranger." + +Fatty Coon quite agreed with him. + +"The one who was here first is the one to act!" Fatty declared. "That's +_you_!" he told Solomon Owl. + +So Solomon Owl felt most uncomfortable. + +"I don't know what I can do," he said. "I spoke to the stranger--asked him +who he was. And he wouldn't answer me." + +"Can't you frighten him away?" Tommy Fox inquired. "Fly right over his +head and give him a blow with your wing as you pass!" + +Solomon Owl coughed. He was embarrassed, to say the least. + +"He's afraid!" Fatty Coon cried. And both he and Tommy Fox kept repeating, +over and over again, "He's afraid! He's afraid! He's afraid!" + +It was really more than Solomon Owl could stand. + +"I'm not!" he retorted angrily. "Watch me and you'll see!" And without +another word he darted out of the tree and swooped down upon the stranger, +just brushing the top of his head. Solomon Owl knew at once that he had +knocked something off the top of that dreadful head--something that fell to +the ground and made Jimmy Rabbit jump nervously. + +Then Solomon returned to his perch in the tree. + +"He hasn't moved," he said. "But I knocked off his hat." + +"You took off the top of his head!" cried Fatty Coon in great excitement. +"Look! The inside of his head is afire." + +And peering down from the tree-top, Solomon Owl saw that Fatty Coon had +told the truth. + + + + + +IX +HALLOWE'EN + + +Solomon Owl was afraid of fire. And when he looked down from his perch in +the tree and saw, through the hole in the stranger's crown, that all was +aglow inside his big, round head, Solomon couldn't help voicing his +horror. He "_whoo-whooed_" so loudly that Tommy Fox, at the foot of the +tree, asked him what on earth was the matter. + +"His head's all afire!" Solomon Owl told him. "That's what makes his eyes +glare so. And that's why the fire shines through his mouth and his nose, +too. It's no wonder he didn't answer my question--for, of course, his +tongue must certainly be burned to a cinder." + +"Then it ought to be safe for anybody to enter the chicken house," Tommy +Fox observed. "What could the stranger do, when he's in such a fix?" + +"He could set the chicken house afire, if he followed you inside," replied +Solomon Owl wisely. "And I, for one, am not going near the pullets +to-night." + +"Nor I!" Fatty Coon echoed. "I'm going straight to the cornfield. The corn +is still standing there in shocks; and I ought to find enough ears to make +a good meal." + +But Solomon Owl and Tommy Fox were not interested in corn. They never ate +it. And so it is not surprising that they should be greatly disappointed. +After a person has his mouth all made up for chicken it is hard to think +of anything that would taste even half as good. + +"It's queer he doesn't go and hold his head under the pump," said Solomon +Owl. "That's what I should do, if I were he." + +"Jimmy Rabbit had better not go too near him, or he'll get singed," said +Tommy Fox, anxiously. "I don't want anything to happen to _him_." + +"Jimmy Rabbit is very careless," Solomon declared. "I don't see what he's +thinking of--going so near a fire! It makes me altogether too nervous to +stay here. And I'm going away at once." + +Tommy Fox said that he felt the same way. And the moment Fatty Coon, with +his sharp claws, started to crawl down the tree on his way to the +cornfield, Tommy Fox hurried off without even stopping to say good-bye. + +"_Haw-haw-haw-hoo_!" laughed Solomon Owl. "Tommy Fox is afraid of you!" he +told Fatty Coon. + +But Fatty didn't seem to hear him. He was thinking only of the supper of +corn that he was going to have. + +"Better come away!" Solomon Owl called to Jimmy Rabbit, turning his head +toward the fence where Jimmy had been lingering near the hot-headed +stranger. + +But Jimmy Rabbit didn't answer him, either. He was no longer there. The +moment he had seen Tommy Fox bounding off across the meadow Jimmy had +started at once for Farmer Green's vegetable garden. + +So Solomon Owl was the last to leave. + +"There's really nothing else I can do," he remarked to himself. "I don't +know what Aunt Polly Woodchuck would say if she knew that I didn't follow +her advice to-night and eat a pullet for my supper.... But I've tried my +best.... And that's all anybody can do." + +Solomon Owl was upset all the rest of that night. And just before daybreak +he visited the farmyard again, to see whether the strange man with the +flaring head still watched the chicken house. And Solomon found that he +had vanished. + +So Solomon Owl alighted on the fence. There was nothing there except a +hollowed-out pumpkin, with a few holes cut in it, which someone had left +on one of the fence-posts. + +"Good!" said he. "Maybe I can get my pullet after all!" He turned to fly +to the chicken house. But just then the woodshed door opened again. And +Farmer Green stepped outside, with a lantern in his hand. He was going to +the barn to milk the cows. But Solomon Owl did not wait to learn anything +more. + +He hurried away to his house among the hemlocks. And having quickly +settled himself for a good nap, he was soon fast asleep. + +That was how Johnnie Green's jack-o'-lantern kept Tommy Fox and Fatty Coon +and Solomon Owl from taking any chickens on Hallowe'en. + + + + + +X +A TROUBLESOME WISHBONE + + +Solomon Owl had pains--sharp pains--underneath his waistcoat. And not +knowing what else to do, he set off at once for Aunt Polly Woodchuck's +house under the hill, in the pasture, which he had not visited since the +previous fall. Luckily, he found the old lady at home. And quickly he told +her of his trouble. + +"What have you been eating?" she inquired. + +"I've followed your advice. I've been eating chickens," said he--"very +small chickens, because they were all I could get." + +Aunt Polly Woodchuck, who was an herb doctor--and a good one--regarded him +through her spectacles. + +"I'm afraid," said she, "you don't chew your food properly. Bolting one's +food is very harmful. It's as bad as not eating anything at all, almost." + +Solomon Owl showed plainly that her remark surprised him. + +"Why," he exclaimed, "I always swallow my food whole--when it isn't too +big!" + +"Gracious me!" cried Aunt Polly, throwing up both her hands. "It's no +wonder you're ill. It's no wonder you have pains; and now I know exactly +what's the matter with you. You have a wishbone inside you. I can feel +it!" she told him, as she prodded him in the waistcoat. + +"I wish you could get it out for me!" said Solomon with a look of +distress. + +"All the wishing in the world won't help you," she answered, "unless we +can find some way of removing the wishbone so you can wish on that. Then +I'm sure you would feel better at once." + +"This is strange," Solomon mused. "All my life I've been swallowing my +food without chewing it. And it has never given me any trouble before.... +What shall I do?" + +"Don't eat anything for a week," she directed. "And fly against +tree-trunks as hard as you can. Then come back here after seven days." + +Solomon Owl went off in a most doleful frame of mind. It seemed to him +that he had never seen so many mice and frogs and chipmunks as he came +across during the following week. But he didn't dare catch a single one, +on account of what Aunt Polly Woodchuck had said. + +His pains, however, grew less from day to day--at least, the pains that had +first troubled him. But he had others to take their place. Hunger pangs, +these were! And they were almost as bad as those that had sent him +hurrying to see Aunt Polly Woodchuck. + +On the whole, Solomon passed a very unhappy week. Flying head foremost +into tree-trunks (as Aunt Polly had instructed him to do) gave him many +bumps and bruises. So he was glad when the time came for him to return to +her house in the pasture. + +Solomon's neighbors had been so interested in watching him that they were +all sorry when he ceased his strange actions. Indeed, there was a rumor +that Solomon had become very angry with Farmer Green and that he was +trying to knock down some of Farmer Green's trees. Before the end of that +unpleasant week Solomon had often noticed as many as twenty-four of the +forest folk following him about, hoping to see a tree fall. + +But they were all disappointed. However, they enjoyed the sight of Solomon +hurling himself against tree-trunks. And the louder he groaned, the more +people gathered around him. + + + + + +XI +CURED AT LAST + + +"How do you feel now?" Aunt Polly Woodchuck asked Solomon Owl, when he had +come back to her house after a week's absence. + +"No better!" he groaned. "I still have pains. But they seem to have moved +and scattered all over me." + +"Good!" she exclaimed with a smile. "You _are_ much better, though you +didn't know it. The wishbone is broken. You broke it by flying against the +trees. And you ought not to have any more trouble. But let me examine +you!" she said, prodding him in the waistcoat once more. + +"This is odd!" she continued a bit later. "I can feel the wishbone more +plainly than ever." + +"That's my own wishbone!" Solomon cried indignantly. "I've grown so thin +through not eating that it's a wonder you can't feel my backbone, too." + +Aunt Polly Woodchuck looked surprised. + +"Perhaps you're right!" said she. "Not having a wishbone of my own, I +forgot that you had one." + +A look of disgust came over Solomon Owl's face. + +"You're a very poor doctor," he told her. "Here you've kept me from eating +for a whole week--and I don't believe it was necessary at all!" + +"Well, you're better, aren't you?" she asked him. + +"I shall be as soon as I have a good meal," replied Solomon Owl, +hopefully. + +"You ought not to eat anything for another week," Aunt Polly told him +solemnly. + +"Nonsense!" he cried. + +"I'm a doctor; and I ought to know best," she insisted. + +But Solomon Owl hooted rudely. + +"I'll never come to you for advice any more," he declared. "I firmly +believe that my whole trouble was simply that I've been eating too +sparingly. And I shall take good care to see that it doesn't happen +again." + +No one had ever spoken to Aunt Polly in quite that fashion--though old Mr. +Crow had complained one time that she had cured him _too quickly_. But she +did not lose her temper, in spite of Solomon's jeers. + +"You'll be back here again the very next time you're ill," she remarked. +"And if you continue to swallow your food whole----" + +But Solomon Owl did not even wait to hear what she said. He was so +impolite that he flew away while she was talking. And since it was then +almost dark, and a good time to look for field mice, he began his night's +hunting right there in Farmer Green's pasture. + +By morning Solomon was so plump that Aunt Polly Woodchuck would have had a +good deal of trouble finding his wishbone. But since he did not visit her +again, she had no further chance to prod him in the waistcoat. + +Afterward, Solomon heard a bit of gossip that annoyed him. A friend of his +reported that Aunt Polly Woodchuck was going about and telling everybody +how she had saved Solomon's life. + +"Mice!" he exclaimed (he often said that when some would have said +"Rats!"). "There's not a word of truth in her claim. And if people in this +neighborhood keep on taking her advice and her catnip tea they're going to +be sorry some day. For they'll be really ill the first thing they know. +And then what will they do?" + + + + + +XII +BENJAMIN BAT + + +Solomon Owl was by no means the only night-prowler in Pleasant Valley. He +had neighbors that chose to sleep in the daytime, so they might roam +through the woods and fields after dark. One of these was Benjamin Bat. +And furthermore, he was the color of night itself. + +Now, Benjamin Bat was an odd chap. When he was still he liked to hang by +his feet, upside down. And when he was flying he sailed about in a zigzag, +helter-skelter fashion. He went in so many different directions, turning +this way and that, one could never tell where he was going. One might say +that his life was just one continual dodge--when he wasn't resting with his +heels where his head ought to be. + +A good many of Benjamin Bat's friends said he certainly must be crazy, +because he didn't do as they did. But that never made the slightest +difference in Benjamin Bat's habits. He continued to zigzag through +life--and hang by his heels--just the same. Perhaps he thought that all +other people were crazy because they didn't do likewise. + +Benjamin often dodged across Solomon Owl's path, when Solomon was hunting +for field mice. And since Benjamin was the least bit like a mouse +himself--except for his wings--there was a time, once, when Solomon tried to +catch him. + +But Solomon Owl soon found that chasing Benjamin Bat made him dizzy. If +Benjamin hadn't been used to hanging head downward, maybe he would have +been dizzy, too. + +Though the two often saw each other, Benjamin Bat never seemed to care to +stop for a chat with Solomon Owl. One night, however, Benjamin actually +called to Solomon and asked his advice. He was in trouble. And he knew +that Solomon Owl was supposed by some to be the wisest old fellow for +miles around. + +It was almost morning. And Solomon Owl was hurrying home, because a +terrible storm had arisen. The lightning was flashing, and peals of +thunder crashed through the woods. Big drops of rain were already +pattering down. But Solomon Owl did not care, for he had almost reached +his house in the hollow hemlock near the foot of Blue Mountain. + +It was different with Benjamin Bat. That night he had strayed a long +distance from his home in Cedar Swamp. And he didn't know what to do. "I +want to get under cover, somewhere," he told Solomon Owl. "You don't know +of a good place near-by, do you, where I can get out of the storm and take +a nap?" + +"Why, yes!" answered Solomon Owl. "Come right along to my house and spend +the day with me!" + +But Benjamin Bat did not like the suggestion at all. + +"I'm afraid I might crowd, you," he said. He was thinking of the time when +Solomon Owl had chased him. And sleeping in Solomon Owl's house seemed far +from a safe thing to do. + + [_Illustration 2_] + + Benjamin Asked Solomon's Advice + + +Solomon was wise enough to guess what was going on inside Benjamin's head. + +"Come along!" he said. "We'll both be asleep before we know it. I'm sorry +I can't offer you something to eat. But I haven't a morsel of food in my +house. No doubt, though, you've just had a good meal. _I_ ate seven mice +to-night. And I certainly couldn't eat anything more." + +When Solomon Owl told him that, Benjamin Bat thought perhaps there was no +danger, after all. And since the rain was falling harder and harder every +moment, he thanked Solomon and said he would be glad to accent his +invitation. + +"Follow me, then!" said Solomon Owl. And he led the way to his home in the +hemlock. + +For once, Benjamin Bat flew in a fairly straight line, though he did a +little dodging, because he couldn't help it. + +There was more room inside Solomon's house than Benjamin Bat had supposed. +While Benjamin was looking about and telling Solomon that he had a fine +home, his host quickly made a bed of leaves in one corner of the +room--there was only one room, of course. + +"That's for you!" said Solomon Owl. "I always sleep on the other side of +the house." And without waiting even to make sure that his guest was +comfortable, Solomon Owl lay down and began to snore--for he was very +sleepy. + +It was so cozy there that Benjamin Bat was glad, already, that he had +accepted Solomon's invitation. + + + + + +XIII +THE LUCKY GUEST + + +In the middle of the day Solomon Owl happened to awake. He was sorry that +he hadn't slept until sunset, because he was very hungry. Knowing that it +was light outside his hollow tree, he didn't want to leave home to find +something to eat. + +Then, suddenly, he remembered that he had brought Benjamin Bat to his +house early that morning, so Benjamin might escape the storm.... Why not +eat Benjamin Bat? + +As soon as the thought occurred to him, Solomon Owl liked it. And he moved +stealthily over to the bed of leaves he had made for his guest just before +daybreak. + +But Benjamin Bat was not there. Though Solomon looked in every nook and +cranny of his one-room house, he did not find him. + +"He must have left as soon as it stopped raining," said Solomon Owl to +himself. "He might at least have waited to thank me for giving him a day's +lodging. It's the last time I'll ever bring any worthless vagabond into my +house. And I ought to have known better than to have anything to do with a +crazy person like Benjamin Bat." + +Anybody can see that Solomon Owl was displeased. But it was not at all +astonishing, if one stops to remember how hungry he was, and that he had +expected to enjoy a good meal without the trouble of going away from home +to get it. + +Solomon Owl went to the door of his house and looked out. The sun was +shining so brightly that after blinking in his doorway for a few minutes +he decided that he would go to bed again and try to sleep until dusk. He +never liked bright days. "They're so dismal!" he used to say. "Give me a +good, dark night and I'm happy, for there's nothing more cheering than +gloom." + +In spite of the pangs of hunger that gnawed inside him, Solomon at last +succeeded in falling asleep once more. And he dreamed that he chased +Benjamin Bat three times around Blue Mountain, and then three times back +again, in the opposite direction. But he never could catch him, because +Benjamin Bat simply wouldn't fly straight. His zigzag course was so +confusing that even in his dream Solomon Owl grew dizzy. + +Now, Benjamin Bat was in Solomon's house all the time. And the reason why +Solomon Owl hadn't found him was a very simple one. It was merely that +Solomon hadn't looked in the right place. + +Benjamin Bat was hidden--as you might say--where his hungry host never once +thought of looking for him. And being asleep all the while, Benjamin +didn't once move or make the slightest noise. + +If he had snored, or sneezed, or rustled his wings, no doubt Solomon Owl +would have found him. + +When Benjamin awakened, late in the afternoon, Solomon was still sleeping. +And Benjamin crept through the door and went out into the gathering +twilight, without arousing Solomon. + +"I'll thank him the next time I meet him," Benjamin Bat decided. And he +staggered away through the air as if he did not quite know, himself, where +he was going. But, of course, that was only his queer way of flying. + +When he told his friends where he had spent the day they were astonished. + +"How did you ever dare do anything so dangerous as sleeping in Solomon +Owl's house?" they all asked him. + +But Benjamin Bat only said, "Oh! There was nothing to be afraid of." And +he began to feel quite important. + + + + + +XIV +HANGING BY THE HEELS + + +It was several nights before Solomon Owl and Benjamin Bat chanced to meet +again in the forest. + +"Hullo!" said Solomon. + +"Hullo!" said Benjamin Bat. "I'm glad to see you, because I want to thank +you for letting me spend the day in your house, so I wouldn't have to stay +out in the storm." + +"You must be a light sleeper," Solomon observed. (He did not tell Benjamin +that he was welcome!) + +"What makes you think that?" Benjamin Bat inquired. + +"Why--you left my house before noon," Solomon told him. + +"Oh, no!" said Benjamin. "I slept soundly until sunset. When I came away +the crickets were chirping. And I was surprised that you hadn't waked up +yourself." + +"You were gone before midday," Solomon Owl insisted. And they had +something very like a dispute, while Solomon Owl sat in one tree and +Benjamin Bat hung head downward from another. "I ought to know," said +Solomon. "I was awake about noon; and I looked everywhere for you." + +"What for?" asked Benjamin. + +Naturally, Solomon didn't like to tell him that he had intended to eat +him. So he looked wise--and said nothing. + +"You didn't look on the ceiling, did you?" Benjamin Bat inquired. + +"No, indeed!" Solomon Owl exclaimed. + +"Well, that's where I was, hanging by my feet," Benjamin Bat informed him. + +Solomon Owl certainly was surprised to hear that. + +"The idea!" he cried. "You're a queer one! I never once thought of looking +_on the ceiling_ for a _luncheon_!" He was so astonished that he spoke +before he thought how oddly his remark would sound to another. + +When he heard what Solomon Owl said, Benjamin Bat knew at once that +Solomon had meant to eat him. And he was so frightened that he dropped +from the limb to which he was clinging and flew off as fast as he could +go. For once in his life he flew in a straight line, with no zigzags at +all, he was in such a hurry to get away from Solomon Owl, who--for all he +knew--might still be very hungry. + +But Solomon Owl had caught so many mice that night that he didn't feel +like chasing anybody. So he sat motionless in the tree, merely turning his +head to watch Benjamin sailing away through the dusky woods. He noticed +that Benjamin didn't dodge at all--except when there was a tree in his way. +And he wondered what the reason was. + +"Perhaps he's not so crazy as I supposed," said Solomon Owl to himself. +And ever afterward, when he happened to awake and feel hungry, Solomon Owl +used to look up at the ceiling above him and wish that Benjamin Bat was +there. + +But Benjamin Bat never cared to have anything more to do with Solomon Owl. + +He said he had a good reason for avoiding him. + +And ever afterward he passed for a very brave person among his friends. +They often pointed him out to strangers, saying, "There's Benjamin Bat! +_He_ doesn't know what fear is. Why, once he even spent a whole day asleep +in Solomon Owl's house! And if you don't think _that_ was a bold thing to +do, then I guess you don't know Solomon Owl." + + + + + +XV +DISPUTES SETTLED + + +Solomon Owl looked so wise that many of his neighbors fell into the habit +of going to him for advice. If two of the forest folk chanced to have a +dispute which they could not settle between them they frequently visited +Solomon and asked him to decide which was in the right. And in the course +of time Solomon became known far and wide for his ability to patch up a +quarrel. + +At last Jimmy Rabbit stopped Solomon Owl one night and suggested that he +hang a sign outside his house, so that there shouldn't be anybody in the +whole valley that wouldn't know what to do in case he found himself in an +argument. + +Solomon decided on the spot that Jimmy Rabbit's idea was a good one. So he +hurried home and before morning he had his sign made, and put out where +everyone could see it. It looked like this: + +DISPUTES SETTLED WITHIN + +There was only one objection to the sign. As soon as Jimmy Rabbit saw it +he told Solomon that it should have said: + +DISPUTES SETTLED WITHOUT + +"Without what?" Solomon Owl inquired. + +"Why, without going into your house!" said Jimmy Rabbit. "I can't climb a +tree, you know. And neither can Tommy Fox. We might have a dispute +to-night; and how could you ever settle it?" + +"Oh, I shall be willing to step outside," Solomon told him. And he refused +to change the sign, declaring that he liked it just as it was. + +Now, there was only one trouble with Solomon Owl's settling of disputes. +Many of the forest folk wanted to see him in the daytime. And _night_ was +the only time _he_ was willing to see them. But he heard so many +objections to that arrangement that in the end Solomon agreed to meet +people at dusk and at dawn, when it was neither very dark nor very light. +On the whole he found that way very satisfactory, because there was just +enough light at dusk and at dawn to make him blink. And when Solomon +blinked he looked even wiser than ever. + +Well, the first disputing pair that came to Solomon's tree after he hung +out his new sign were old Mr. Crow and Jasper Jay. They reached the +hemlock grove soon after sunset and squalled loudly for Solomon. "Hurry!" +Mr. Crow cried, as soon as Solomon Owl stepped outside his door. "It will +be dark before we know it; and it's almost our bedtime." + +"What's your difficulty?" Solomon asked them. + +Mr. Crow looked at Jasper Jay. And then he looked at Solomon again. + +"Maybe you won't like to hear it," he said. And he winked at Jasper. "But +you've put out this sign--so we've come here." + +"You've done just right!" exclaimed Solomon Owl. "And as for my not liking +to hear the trouble, it's your dispute and not mine. So I don't see how it +concerns me--except to settle it." + +"Very Well," Mr. Crow answered. "The dispute, then, is this: Jasper says +that in spite of your looking so wise, you're really the stupidest person +in Pleasant Valley." + +"He does, eh?" cried Solomon Owl, while Jasper Jay laughed loudly. "And +you, of course, do not agree with him," Solomon continued. + +"I do not!" Mr. Crow declared. + +"Good!" said Solomon, nodding his head approvingly. + +"No, I do not agree with Jasper Jay," Mr. Crow said. "I claim that there's +one other person more stupid than you are--and that's Fatty Coon." + +Well, Solomon Owl certainly was displeased. And it didn't make him feel +any happier to hear Jasper Jay's boisterous shouts, or the hoarse +"_haw-haw_" of old Mr. Crow. + +"I hope you can decide which one of us is right," Mr. Crow ventured. + +"I am, of course!" cried Jasper Jay. + +"You're not!" Mr. Crow shouted. And to Solomon Owl he said, "We've been +disputing like this all day long." + +Solomon Owl didn't know what to say. If he announced that Jasper was right +it would be the same as admitting that he was the stupidest person in the +whole neighborhood. And if he said that old Mr. Crow's opinion was correct +he would not be much better off. Naturally he didn't want to tell either +of them that he was right. + +"I'll have to think about this," Solomon observed at last. + +"We don't want to wait," said Mr. Crow. "If we keep on disputing we're +likely to have a fight." + +Now, Solomon Owl hoped that they would have a fight. So he was determined +to keep them waiting for his decision. + +"Come back to-morrow at this time," he said. + + + + + +XVI +NINE FIGHTS + + +The next evening, just at dusk, Jasper Jay and old Mr. Crow returned to +Solomon Owl's house, looking much bedraggled. One of Mr. Crow's eyes was +almost closed; and Jasper Jay's crest seemed to have been torn half off +his head. + +"What's the matter?" asked Solomon, as soon as he saw them. + +"We've had three fights," said Jasper Jay. + +"Yes! And I've whipped him each time!" cried Mr. Crow. "So I must be in +the right. And you'd better decide our dispute in my favor at once." + +But Solomon Owl was still in no hurry. + +"It's a difficult question to settle,' said he. 'I don't want to make any +mistake. So I shall have to ask you to come back here to-morrow at this +time." + +Both Jasper and Mr. Crow seemed disappointed. Although Mr. Crow had won +each fight, he was very weary, for he was older than Jasper Jay. + +As they went off, Solomon Owl began to feel much pleased with himself. + +The following evening, at sunset, old Mr. Crow and Jasper Jay visited +Solomon Owl once more. And they looked more battered than ever. + +"We've had three more fights," said Mr. Crow. + +"Yes! And I won each time!" Jasper Jay piped up. "So I must be in the +right. And you'd better decide in my favor without any further delay." + +Solomon Owl thought deeply for some time. + +"Maybe I ought to wait until to-morrow----" he began. + +But his callers both shouted "No!" + +"Well," said Solomon, "Mr. Crow has won three fights; and Jasper Jay has +won three. So it is certain that each must be in the wrong." + +But that announcement did not satisfy Jasper and Mr. Crow. And they left +the hemlock grove, disputing more loudly than ever. + +And the next day, at dusk, they came back again. + +"We've had three more fights; and I won!" they both cried at the same +time. + +"That proves my claim," said Solomon Owl. "You're both wrong." + +They whispered together for a few minutes. + +"We don't like your way of settling disputes," Mr. Crow remarked shortly. +"But we've decided to stop quarreling." + +"Good!" said Solomon Owl. "That shows that you are sensible." + +"Yes!" replied Jasper. "We've decided to stop quarreling and fight _you_!" + +"Wait a moment!" said Solomon Owl hastily, as they drew nearer. "I don't +want my new suit spoiled." And he ducked inside the hollow tree before +they could reach him. + +Jasper and Mr. Crow waited and waited. But Solomon Owl did not reappear. +And since his two visitors did not dare follow him into the dark cavern +where he lived, they decided at last that they would go home--and get into +bed. + +"Let's take away his sign, anyhow!" Jasper Jay suggested. + +So they pulled down Solomon's sign, which said "Disputes Settled Within," +and they carried it off with them and hid it in some bushes. + +That same night Solomon Owl hunted for it for a long time. But he never +found it. + +He decided not to hang out another, for he saw that settling disputes was +a dangerous business. + + + + + +XVII +COUSIN SIMON SCREECHER + + +Solomon Owl had a small cousin named Simon Screecher. He was unlike +Solomon in some respects, because he always wore ear-tufts, and his eyes +were yellow instead of black. But in some other ways he was no different +from Solomon Owl, for he was a noisy chap and dearly loved mice--to eat. + +It happened that the two met in the woods one fine fall evening; and they +agreed to go hunting mice together. + +Now, being so much smaller than Solomon, Simon Screecher was all the +spryer. In fact, he was so active that he could catch mice faster than +Solomon Owl could capture them. And they had not hunted long before +Solomon discovered that Simon had succeeded in disposing of six mice to +his three. + +That discovery did not please Solomon at all. + +"Look here!" he said. "Since we are hunting together it's only fair to +divide what we catch, half and half." + +Simon Screecher hesitated. But after reflecting that his cousin was very +big and very strong, he agreed to Solomon's suggestion. + +So they resumed their hunting. And every time one of them caught two mice, +he gave one mouse to his cousin. + +Still Solomon Owl was not satisfied. + +"Wait a moment!" Solomon called to Simon Screecher. "It has just occurred +to me that I am more than twice as big as you are; so I ought to have +twice as many mice as you." + +This time Simon Screecher hesitated longer. He did not like the second +suggestion even as well as the first. And in the end he said as much, too. + +But Solomon Owl insisted that it was only fair. + +"You surely ought to be glad to please your own cousin," he told Simon. + +"It's not that," said Simon Screecher. "It seems to me that since I'm not +half your size, I ought to have twice as many mice to eat, so I'll grow +bigger." + +Well, Solomon Owl hadn't thought of that. He was puzzled to know what to +say. And he wanted time in which to ponder. + +"I'll think over what you say," he told Simon Screecher. "And now, since +it's almost dawn, we'd better not hunt any longer to-night. But I'll meet +you again at dusk if you'll come to my house." + +"Very well, Cousin Solomon!" Simon answered. "I'm sure that after you've +had a good sleep you'll be ready to agree with me." + +"If that's the case, I may not take any nap at all," Solomon replied. + +"Oh! You ought to have your rest!" his cousin exclaimed. Simon knew that +if Solomon went all day without sleep he would be frightfully peevish by +nightfall. + +"Well--I'll try to get forty winks," Solomon promised. "But I don't believe +I can get more than that, because I have so much on my mind that I'm sure +to be wakeful." + +Simon Screecher was somewhat worried as they parted. His wailing, +tremulous whistle, which floated through the shadowy woods, showed that he +was far from happy. + + + + + +XVIII +XVIII - A COUSINLY QUARREL + + +It proved to be just as Solomon Owl had told his cousin, Simon Screecher. +Solomon had so much on his mind that he had no sooner fallen asleep than +he awoke again, to study over the question that perplexed him. He +certainly did not want Simon to have twice as many mice as he. But Simon's +argument was a good one. He had said that since Solomon was more than +twice his size, it was proper that he should have a chance to grow. And +everybody knew--Solomon reflected--everybody knew that _eating_ made one +larger. + +The longer Solomon pondered, the farther he seemed from any answer that he +liked. And he had begun to fear that he would not succeed in getting more +than thirty-nine winks all day--instead of forty--when all at once an idea +came into his mind. + +Solomon knew right away that he had nothing more to worry about. He +dropped into a sound sleep with a pleasant smile upon his usually solemn +face. And when he opened his eyes again it was time for Simon Screecher to +arrive. + +Yes! Solomon could hear his cousin's whistle even then. So he hurried to +his door; and there was Simon, sitting on a limb of the big hemlock +waiting for him! + +"It's all right!" said Solomon to his cousin. "I agree to your suggestion. +We'll hunt together again to-night; and if you will give me one-third of +all the mice you catch, I promise to give you two-thirds of all the mice +that I capture." + +"Good!" said Simon Screecher. And he looked vastly relieved. "Just hoot +when you have any mice for me!" + +"Whistle when you have any for me!" Solomon Owl replied. + +And at that they started out for their night's sport. It was not long +before Simon Screecher's well known whistle brought Solomon hurrying to +him. Simon already had three mice, one of which he gave to Solomon, +according to their agreement. + +That same thing happened several times; until at last Simon Screecher +began to grumble. + +"What's the matter?" he asked his cousin. "You are not hooting, as you +promised you would." + +"But I haven't caught any mice yet!" Solomon Owl replied. + + [_Illustration 3_] + + "It's All Right," Said Solomon + + +Again and again and again Simon's call summoned Solomon. But not once did +Solomon's summon Simon. And all the time Simon Screecher grew more +discontented. Toward the end of the night he declared flatly that he +wasn't going to hunt any more with his cousin. + +"I've done exactly as I agreed!" Solomon Owl protested. + +"You're altogether too slow and clumsy," Simon Screecher told him bluntly. +"If I'm going to hunt with anybody after this I'm going to choose someone +that's as spry as I am. There's no sense in my working for you. Here I've +toiled all night long and I'm still hungry, for I've given you a third of +my food." + +They parted then--and none too pleasantly. + +In Simon's whistle, as he flew away toward his home, there was +unmistakable anger. But Solomon Owl's answering hoots--while they were not +exactly sweet--seemed to carry more than a hint of laughter. + +One would naturally think that Solomon might have been even hungrier than +his small cousin. But it was not so. He had had more to eat than usual; +for he had been very busy catching locusts and katydids--and frogs, too. +Solomon Owl had not tried to catch a single mouse that night. + +You know now the idea that had come to him while he was lying awake in his +house during the daytime. He had made up his mind that he would not hunt +for _mice_. And since he had not promised Simon to give him anything else, +there was no reason why he should not eat all the frogs and katydids and +locusts that he could find. + +Perhaps it was not surprising that Simon Screecher never guessed the +truth. But he seemed to know that there was something queer about that +night's hunting, for he never came to Solomon Owl's house again. + + + + + +XIX +THE SLEET STORM + + +It was winter. And for several days a strong south wind had swept up +Pleasant Valley. That--as Solomon Owl knew very well--that meant a thaw was +coming. He was not sorry, because the weather had been bitterly cold. + +Well, the thaw came. And the weather grew so warm that Solomon Owl could +stay out all night without once feeling chilled. He found the change so +agreeable that he strayed further from home than was his custom. Indeed, +he was far away on the other side of Blue Mountain at midnight, when it +began to rain. + +Now, that was not quite so pleasant. But still Solomon did not mind +greatly. It was not until later that he began to feel alarmed, when he +noticed that flying did not seem so easy as usual. + +Solomon had grown heavy all at once--and goodness knows it was not because +he had overeaten, for food was scarce at that season of the year. +Moreover, Solomon's wings were strangely stiff. When he moved them they +_crackled_. + +"It must be my joints," he said to himself. "I'm afraid this wetting has +given me rheumatism." So he started home at once--though it was only +midnight. But the further he went, the worse he felt--and the harder it was +to fly. + +"I'll have to rest a while," he said to himself at last. So he alighted on +a limb; for he was more tired than he had ever been in all his life. + +But he soon felt so much better that he was ready to start on again. And +then, to his dismay, Solomon Owl found that he could hardly stir. The +moment he left his perch he floundered down upon the ground. And though he +tried his hardest, he couldn't reach the tree again. + +The rain was still beating down steadily. And Solomon began to think it a +bad night to be out. What was worse, the weather was fast turning cold. + +"I'm afraid I'll have to stay in bed a week after this," he groaned. "If I +sit here long, as wet as I am, while the thaw turns into a _freeze_, I +shall certainly be ill." + +Now, if it hadn't been for the rain, Solomon Owl would have had no trouble +at all. Or if it hadn't been for the freezing cold he would have been in +no difficulty. Though he didn't know it, his trouble was simply this: The +rain froze upon him as + +fast as it fell, covering him with a coating of ice. It was no wonder that +he felt strangely heavy--no wonder that he couldn't fly. + +There he crouched on the ground, while the rain and sleet beat upon him. +And the only comforting thought that entered his head was that on so +stormy a night Tommy Fox and Fatty Coon would be snug and warm in their +beds. _They_ wouldn't go out in such weather. + +And Solomon Owl wished that he, too, had stayed at home that night. + +From midnight until almost dawn Solomon Owl sat there. Now and then he +tried to fly. But it was no use. He could scarcely raise himself off the +ground. + +At last he decided he would have to _walk_ home. Fortunately, a hard crust +covered the soft snow. So Solomon started off on his long journey. + +Flying, Solomon could have covered the distance in a few minutes. But he +was a slow walker. By the time he reached his home among the hemlocks the +sun was shining brightly--for the rain had stopped before daybreak. + +Solomon wondered how he would ever succeed in reaching his doorway, high +up in the hollow tree. He gazed helplessly upward. And as he sat there +mournfully the bright sunshine melted the ice that bound his wings. After +a time he discovered that he could move freely once more. And then he rose +quickly in the air and in a twinkling he had disappeared into the darkness +of his home--that darkness which to him was always so pleasant. + + + + + +XX +A PAIR OF RED-HEADS + + +In the woods there was hardly one of Solomon Owl's neighbors that couldn't +point out the big hemlock tree where he lived. And mischievous fellows +like Reddy Woodpecker sometimes annoyed Solomon a good deal by rapping +loudly on his door. When he thrust his head angrily out of his house and +blinked in the sunlight, his tormentors would skip away and laugh. They +laughed because they knew that they had awakened Solomon Owl. And they +dodged out of his reach because he was always ill-tempered when anybody +disturbed his rest in the daytime. + +Solomon Owl did not mind so _very_ much so long as that trick was not +played on him too often. But after a time it became one of Reddy +Woodpecker's favorite sports. Not only once, but several times a day did +he go to the hemlock grove to hammer upon Solomon's hollow tree. And each +time that he brought Solomon Owl to his door Reddy Woodpecker laughed more +loudly than ever before. + +Once Solomon forgot to take off his nightcap (though he wore it in the +daytime, it really was a nightcap). And Reddy Woodpecker was so amused +that he shouted at the top of his lungs. + +"What's the joke?" asked Solomon Owl in his deep, rumbling voice. He tried +to look very severe. But it is hard to look any way except funny with a +nightcap on one's head. + +As luck had it, Jasper Jay came hurrying up just then. He had heard Reddy +Woodpecker's laughter. And if there was a joke he wanted to enjoy it, too. + +Jasper Jay, alighting in a small hemlock near Reddy Woodpecker, asked the +same question that Solomon Owl had just put to his rude caller. + +"What's the joke?" inquired Jasper Jay. + +Reddy could not speak. He was rocking back and forth upon a limb, choking +and gasping for breath. But he managed to point to the big tree where +Solomon Owl lived. + +And when Jasper looked, and saw Solomon's great, round, pale, questioning +face, all tied up in a red nightcap, he began to scream. + +They were no ordinary screams--those shrieks of Jasper Jay's. That +blue-coated rascal was the noisiest of all the feathered folk in Pleasant +Valley. And now he fairly made the woods echo with his hoarse cries. + +"This is the funniest sight I've ever seen!" Jasper Jay said at last, to +nobody in particular. "I declare, there's a pair of them!" + +At that, Reddy Woodpecker suddenly stopped laughing. + +"A pair of what?" he asked. + +"A pair of red-heads, of course!" Jasper Jay replied. "You've a red +cap--and so has he!" Jasper pointed at Solomon Owl (a very rude thing to +do!). + +Then two things happened all at once. Solomon Owl snatched off his red +night-cap--which he had quite forgotten. And Reddy Woodpecker dashed at +Jasper Jay. He couldn't pull off _his_ red cap, for it grew right on his +head. + +"So that's what you're laughing at, is it?" he cried angrily. And then +nobody laughed any more--that is, nobody but Solomon Owl. + +Solomon was so pleased by the fight that followed between Jasper Jay and +Reddy Woodpecker that his deep, rumbling laughter could be heard for half +an hour--even if it _was_ midday. "_Wha-wha! Whoo-ah!_" The sound reached +the ears of Farmer Green, who was just crossing a neighboring field, on +his way home to dinner. + +"Well, well!" he exclaimed. "I wonder what's happened to that old owl! +Something must have tickled him--for I never heard an owl laugh in broad +daylight before." + + + + + +XXI +AT HOME IN THE HAYSTACK + + +After what happened when he came to his door without remembering to take +off his red nightcap, Solomon Owl hoped that Reddy Woodpecker would stop +teasing him. + +But it was not so. Having once viewed Solomon's red cap, Reddy Woodpecker +wanted to see it some more. So he came again and again and knocked on +Solomon's door. + +Solomon Owl, however, remembered each time to remove his nightcap before +sticking his head out. And it might be said that neither of them was +exactly pleased. For Reddy Woodpecker was disappointed; and Solomon Owl +was angry. + +Not a day passed that Reddy Woodpecker didn't disturb Solomon's rest at +least a dozen times. Perhaps if Solomon had just kept still inside his +house Reddy would have grown tired of bothering him. But Solomon Owl--for +all he looked so wise--never thought of that. + +But he saw before a great while that he would have to make a change of +some sort--if he wanted to enjoy a good, quiet sleep again. + +For a long time Solomon Owl pondered. It was a great puzzle--to know just +how to outwit Reddy Woodpecker. And Solomon almost despaired of finding a +way out of the difficulty. But at last an idea came to him, all in a +flash. He would take his daytime naps somewhere else! + +Solomon spent several nights looking for a good place to pass his days. +And in the end he decided on the meadow. It would be convenient, he +thought, when he was hunting meadow mice at dawn, if he could stay right +there, without bothering to go into the woods to sleep. + +Since there were no trees in the meadow, but only a few scrubby bushes +along the stone wall, one might naturally make the mistake of thinking +that there could not possibly be a nook of any kind that would suit +Solomon Owl, who could never sleep soundly unless his bedroom was quite +dark. + +But there was one hiding place that Solomon liked almost as well as his +home in the hollow hemlock. And that was Farmer Green's haystack. He +burrowed into one side of it and made himself a snug chamber, which was as +dark as a pocket--and ever so much quieter. What pleased Solomon most, +however, was this: Nobody knew about that new retreat except himself. + +Even if Reddy Woodpecker should succeed in finding it, he never could +disturb Solomon by drumming upon the haystack. If Reddy tried that trick, +his bill would merely sink noiselessly into the hay. + +So Solomon Owl at last had a good day's rest. And when he met Reddy +Woodpecker just after sunset, Solomon was feeling so cheerful that he said +"Good-evening!" quite pleasantly, before he remembered that it was Reddy +who had teased him so often. + +"Good-evening!" Reddy Woodpecker replied. He seemed much surprised that +Solomon Owl should be so agreeable. "Can you hear me?" Reddy asked him. + +"Perfectly!" said Solomon. + +"That's strange!" Reddy Woodpecker exclaimed. "I was almost sure you had +suddenly grown deaf." And he could not understand why Solomon Owl laughed +loud and long. + +"_Wha-wha! Whoo-ah!_" Solomon's deep-voiced laughter rolled and echoed +through the woodland. + +But Reddy Woodpecker did not laugh at all. + + + + + +XXII +IT WAS SOLOMON'S FAULT + + +Reddy Woodpecker had a very good reason for not laughing when he met +Solomon Owl. Of course, he knew nothing whatever of Solomon's new hiding +place in the haystack. And that very morning Reddy had invited a party of +friends to go with him to the hemlock grove where Solomon Owl had always +lived, "to have some fun," as Reddy had explained. + +For a long time he had knocked and hammered and pounded at Solomon Owl's +door. But for once Solomon's great pale face did not appear. + +"Where's the fun?" Reddy's friends had wanted to know, after they had +waited until they were impatient. + +And Reddy Woodpecker could only shake his head and say: + +"I can't understand it! It's never happened like this before. I'm afraid +Solomon Owl has lost his hearing." + +Reddy Woodpecker's friends were no more polite than he. And they began to +jeer at him. + +"You didn't hammer loud enough," one of them told him. + +So he set to work again and rapped and rapped until his head felt as if it +would fly off, and his neck began to ache. + +Still, Solomon Owl did not appear. And the party broke up in something +very like a quarrel. For Reddy Woodpecker lost his temper when his friends +teased him; and a good many unpleasant remarks passed back and forth. + +Somehow, Reddy felt that it was all Solomon Owl's fault, because he hadn't +come to the door. + +Of course, Reddy had no means of knowing that all that time Solomon Owl +was sleeping peacefully in Farmer Green's haystack in the meadow, a +quarter of a mile away. + +It was a good joke on Reddy Woodpecker. And though no one had told Solomon +Owl about it, he was not so stupid that he couldn't guess at least _a +little_ that had happened. + + + +Solomon Owl continued to have a very pleasant time living in the meadow. +Since there were many mice right close at hand, little by little he +visited the woods less and less. And there came a time at last when he +hardly left the meadow at all. + +Not flying any more than he could help, and eating too much, and sleeping +very soundly each day, he grew stouter than ever, until his friends hardly +knew him when they saw him. + +"Solomon Owl is a sight--he's so fat!" people began to say. + +But his size never worried Solomon Owl in the least. When he became too +big for his doorway in the haystack, it was a simple matter to make the +opening larger--much simpler than it would have been to make himself +_smaller_. And that was another reason why he was delighted with his new +home. + +At last, however, something happened to put an end to his lazy way of +living. One day the sound of men's voices awakened him, when he was having +a good nap in the haystack. And he felt his bedroom quiver as if an +earthquake had shaken it. + +Scrambling to his doorway and peeping slyly out, Solomon saw a sight that +made him very angry. A hayrack stood alongside the stack; and on it stood +Farmer Green and his hired man. Each had a pitchfork in his hands, with +which he tore great forkfuls of hay off the stack and piled it upon the +wagon. + +Solomon Owl knew then that his fine hiding place was going to be spoiled. +As soon as the horses had pulled the load of hay away, with Farmer Green +and the hired man riding on top of it, Solomon Owl crept out of his snug +bedroom and hurried off to the woods. + +He was so fat that it was several days before he could squeeze inside his +old home in the hollow hemlock. And for the time being he had to sit on a +limb and sleep in the daylight as best he could. + +But to his surprise, Reddy Woodpecker troubled him no more. Reddy had +drummed so hard on Solomon's door, in the effort to awake him when he +wasn't there, that Aunt Polly Woodchuck told him he would ruin his bill, +if he didn't look out. And since the warning thoroughly alarmed him, Reddy +stopped visiting the hemlock grove. + +In time Solomon Owl grew to look like himself again. And people never +really knew just what had happened to him. But they noticed that he always +hooted angrily whenever anybody mentioned Farmer Green's name. + + + +THE END + + + + + + +***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE TALE OF SOLOMON OWL*** + + + +CREDITS + + +May 2005 + + Project Gutenberg Edition + Roger Frank Online Distributed Proofreading Team + +June 2006 + + Added PGHeader/PGFooter. + Joshua Hutchinson + + + +A WORD FROM PROJECT GUTENBERG + + +This file should be named 16663-0.txt or 16663-0.zip. + +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + + + http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/1/6/6/6/16663/ + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one -- the old editions will be +renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no one +owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and +you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without permission +and without paying copyright royalties. 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+ +<!-- +The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Tale of Solomon Owl by Arthur Scott
+Bailey
+
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no
+restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under
+the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or
+online at http://www.gutenberg.org/license
+
+
+
+
+Title: The Tale of Solomon Owl
+
+Author: Arthur Scott Bailey
+
+Release Date: 2005-09 [EBook #16663]
+
+Language: American English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+--> +
+<!DOCTYPE TEI.2 SYSTEM "http://www.gutenberg.org/tei/marcello/0.4/dtd/pgtei.dtd">
+
+<TEI.2 lang="en-us">
+ <teiHeader>
+ <fileDesc>
+ <titleStmt>
+ <title>The Tale of Solomon Owl</title>
+ <respStmt><resp>Illustrated by</resp> <name>John Tenniel</name></respStmt>
+ <author><name reg="Bailey, Arthur Scott">Arthur Scott Bailey</name></author>
+ </titleStmt>
+ <publicationStmt>
+ <publisher>Project Gutenberg</publisher>
+ <date>2005-09</date>
+ <idno type="etext-no">16663</idno>
+ <idno type='DPid'>projectID42dc791b3f533</idno>
+ <availability>
+ <p>This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and
+ with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it
+ away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg
+ License online at www.gutenberg.org/license</p>
+ </availability>
+ </publicationStmt>
+ <sourceDesc>
+ <p>unknown</p>
+ </sourceDesc>
+ </fileDesc>
+ <encodingDesc>
+ <projectDesc>
+ <p>Produced by Roger Frank
+ and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at
+ <http://www.pgdp.net/c>.</p>
+ </projectDesc>
+ </encodingDesc>
+ <profileDesc>
+ <langUsage>
+ <language id="en-us">United States English</language>
+ </langUsage>
+ </profileDesc>
+ <revisionDesc>
+ <change>
+ <date value="2005-5">May 2005</date>
+ <respStmt>
+ <name>Roger Frank </name>
+ <name>Online Distributed Proofreading Team</name>
+ </respStmt>
+ <item>Project Gutenberg Edition</item>
+ </change> + <change>
+ <date value="2006-6">June 2006</date>
+ <respStmt>
+ <name>Joshua Hutchinson</name>
+ </respStmt>
+ <item>Added PGHeader/PGFooter.</item>
+ </change>
+ </revisionDesc>
+ </teiHeader>
+ +<pgExtensions> + <pgStyleSheet> + .w95 { } + @media pdf { + .w95 { width: 95% } + } + </pgStyleSheet> +</pgExtensions> +
+<text>
+
+<front>
+ <div>
+ <divGen type="pgheader" />
+ </div>
+ + <titlePage rend="page-break-before: right">
+ <docTitle>
+ <titlePart type="main" rend="font-size: x-large">The Tale of Solomon Owl</titlePart>
+ </docTitle>
+
+ <byline>
+ <lb />By <docAuthor>Arthur Scott Bailey</docAuthor><lb /><lb />
+ Author of "The Tale of Sandy Chipmunk," "The Tale of Tommy Fox," etc.
+ </byline>
+
+ <docEdition>
+ <hi rend="font-style: italic">Illustrated by Harry L. Smith</hi><lb /><lb />
+ </docEdition>
+
+ <docImprint>
+ New York<lb />
+ Grosset & Dunlap<lb />
+ 1917
+ </docImprint>
+ </titlePage>
+
+ <div rend="page-break-before: always">
+ <p rend="text-align: center"><anchor id="image-fp" />
+ <figure rend="w95" url="images/image-fp.jpg">
+ <head rend="text-align: center">Solomon Owl Sat Up And Listened.
+ </head>
+ <figDesc><hi rend="font-style: italic">Frontispiece</hi></figDesc>
+ </figure></p><p></p>
+ </div>
+
<div rend="page-break-before: right">
+
+<index index="pdf" />
+
+<head rend="text-align: center">Contents</head>
+ <divGen type="toc" />
+ </div>
+
+ <div rend="page-break-before: right">
+ <index index="toc" />
+ <index index="pdf" />
+ <head>Illustrations</head>
+
+ <list type="simple">
+ <item>
+ <ref target="image-fp">
+ Solomon Owl Sat Up And Listened <hi rend="font-style: italic">Frontispiece</hi>
+ </ref>
+ </item>
+
+ <item>
+ <ref target="image-001">
+ Solomon Found Mr. Frog's Shop Was Closed</ref>
+ </item>
+
+ <item>
+ <ref target="image-002">
+ Benjamin Bat Asked Solomon's Advice</ref>
+ </item>
+
+ <item>
+ <ref target="image-003">
+ <q>It's All Right!</q> Said Solomon</ref>
+ </item>
+ </list>
+ </div>
+</front>
+
+<body>
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<pb n="001" /><anchor id="Pg001" />
+<head>The Tale of Solomon Owl</head>
+<p></p>
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="I - Scaring Johnny Green" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="I - Scaring Johnny Green" />
+<head>I<lb />
+Scaring Johnny Green</head>
+
+<p>
+When Johnnie Green was younger, it always
+scared him to hear Solomon Owl's
+deep-toned voice calling in the woods after
+dark.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="002" /><anchor id="Pg002" />
+<p>
+<q><hi rend="font-style: italic">Whoo-whoo-whoo, whoo-whoo, to-whoo-ah</hi>!</q>
+That weird cry was enough
+to send Johnnie Green hurrying into the
+farmhouse, though sometimes he paused
+in the doorway to listen—especially if
+Solomon Owl happened to be laughing.
+His <q><hi rend="font-style: italic">haw-haw-hoo-hoo</hi>,</q> booming across
+the meadow on a crisp fall evening, when
+the big yellow moon hung over the fields
+of corn-shocks and pumpkins, sounded almost
+as if Solomon were laughing at the
+little boy he had frightened. There was
+certainly a mocking, jeering note in his
+laughter.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Of course, as he grew older, Johnnie
+Green no longer shivered on hearing Solomon's
+rolling call. When Solomon
+laughed, Johnnie Green would laugh, too.
+But Solomon Owl never knew that, for
+often he was half a mile from the farm
+buildings.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+A <q>hoot owl,</q> Johnnie Green termed
+him. And anyone who heard Solomon
+hooting of an evening, or just before sunrise,
+would have agreed that it was a good
+name for him. But he was really a <hi rend="font-style: italic">barred</hi>
+owl, for he had bars of white across his
+feathers.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="003" /><anchor id="Pg003" />
+
+<p>
+If you had happened to catch Solomon
+Owl resting among the thick hemlocks
+near the foot of Blue Mountain, where he
+lived, you would have thought that he
+looked strangely like a human being. He
+had no <q>horns,</q> or ear-tufts, such as some
+of the other owls wore; and his great pale
+face, with its black eyes, made him seem
+very wise and solemn.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+In spite of the mild, questioning look
+upon his face whenever anyone surprised
+him in the daytime, Solomon Owl was the
+noisiest of all the different families of owls
+in Pleasant Valley. There were the barn
+owls, the long-eared owls, the short-eared
+owls, the saw-whet owls, the screech owls—but
+there! there's no use of naming them
+all. There wasn't one of them that could
+equal Solomon Owl's laughing and hooting
+and shrieking and wailing—at night.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="004" /><anchor id="Pg004" />
+<p>
+During the day, however, Solomon Owl
+he was quiet about it. One reason for his
+silence then was that he generally slept
+when the sun was shining. And when
+most people were sleeping, Solomon Owl
+was as wide awake as he could be.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+He was a night-prowler—if ever there
+was one. And he could see a mouse on the
+darkest night, even if it stirred ever so
+slightly.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+That was unfortunate for the mice. But
+luckily for them, Solomon Owl couldn't
+be in more than one place at a time. Otherwise,
+there wouldn't have been a mouse
+left in Pleasant Valley—if he could have
+had <hi rend="font-style: italic">his</hi> way.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+And though he didn't help the mice, he
+helped Farmer Green by catching them.
+If he did take a fat pullet once in a while,
+it is certain that he more than paid for it.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="005" /><anchor id="Pg005" />
+<p>
+So, on the whole, Farmer Green did not
+wood-lot. And for a long time Solomon
+raised no objection to Farmer Green's living
+near Swift River.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But later Solomon Owl claimed that it
+would be a good thing for the forest folk
+if they could get rid of the whole Green
+family—and the hired man, too.
+</p>
+</div>
+
+<pb n="006" /><anchor id="Pg006" />
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="II - A Newcomer" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="II - A Newcomer" />
+<head>II<lb />
+A Newcomer</head>
+
+<p>
+Upon his arrival, as a stranger, in Pleasant
+Valley, Solomon Owl looked about
+carefully for a place to live. What he
+wanted especially was a good, <hi rend="font-style: italic">dark</hi> hole,
+for he thought that sunshine was very dismal.
+</p>
+<pb n="007" /><anchor id="Pg007" />
+<p>
+Though he was willing to bestir himself
+enough to suit anybody, when it came to
+<hi rend="font-style: italic">hunting</hi>, Solomon Owl did not like to
+work. He was no busy nest-builder, like
+Rusty Wren. In his search for a house he
+looked several times at the home of old
+Mr. Crow. If it had suited him better,
+Solomon would not have hesitated to take
+that it was altogether <hi rend="font-style: italic">too light</hi> to please
+him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+That was lucky for old Mr. Crow. And
+the black rascal knew it, too. He had noticed
+that Solomon Owl was hanging about
+the neighborhood. And several times he
+caught Solomon examining his nest.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But Mr. Crow did not have to worry
+long. For as it happened, Solomon Owl
+at last found exactly what he wanted. In
+an old, hollow hemlock, he came across a
+cozy, dark cavity. As soon as he saw it
+he knew that it was the very thing! So
+he moved in at once. And except for the
+time that he spent in the meadow—which
+was considerably later—he lived there for
+a good many years.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="008" /><anchor id="Pg008" />
+<p>
+Once Fatty Coon thought that he would
+drive Solomon out of his snug house and
+live in it himself. But he soon changed
+Solomon Owl—so Fatty discovered—had
+sharp, strong claws and a sharp,
+strong beak as well, which curled over his
+face in a cruel hook.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+It was really a good thing for Solomon
+Owl—the fight he had with Fatty Coon.
+For afterward his neighbors seldom
+troubled him—except when Jasper Jay
+brought a crowd of his noisy friends to
+tease Solomon, or Reddy Woodpecker annoyed
+him by rapping on his door when he
+was asleep.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But those rowdies always took good care
+to skip out of Solomon's reach. And when
+Jasper Jay met Solomon alone in the
+woods at dawn or dusk he was most polite
+to the solemn old chap. <hi rend="font-style: italic">Then</hi> it was
+<q>How-dy-do, Mr. Owl!</q> and <q>I hope
+you're well to-day!</q> And when Solomon
+Jasper, that bold fellow always felt quite
+uneasy; and he was glad when Solomon
+Owl looked away.
+</p>
+<pb n="009" /><anchor id="Pg009" />
+
+<p>
+If Solomon Owl chanced to <hi rend="font-style: italic">hoot</hi> on those
+occasions, Jasper Jay would jump almost
+out of his bright blue coat. Then Solomon's
+deep laughter would echo mockingly
+through the woods.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="010" /><anchor id="Pg010" />
+<p>
+You see, though not nearly so wise as
+he appeared, Solomon Owl knew well
+enough how to frighten some people.
+</p>
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="III - Solomon Likes Frogs" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="III - Solomon Likes Frogs" />
+<head>III<lb />
+Solomon Likes Frogs</head>
+
+
+<p>
+It was a warm summer's evening—so
+warm that Mr. Frog, the tailor, had taken
+his sewing outside his tailor's shop and
+seated himself cross-legged upon the bank
+of the brook, where he sang and sewed
+without ceasing—except to take a swim
+now and then in the cool water, <q>to stretch
+his legs,</q> as he claimed.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+He was making a new suit of blue
+clothes for Jasper Jay. And since Jasper
+was a great dandy, and very particular
+Mr. Frog was taking special pains with his
+sewing.
+</p>
+<pb n="011" /><anchor id="Pg011" />
+
+<p>
+Usually he did his work quickly. But
+now after every five stitches that he put
+into his work he stopped to take out ten.
+And naturally he was not getting on very
+fast. He had been working busily since
+early morning; and Jasper Jay's suit was
+further than ever from being finished.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Since he was a most cheerful person,
+Mr. Frog did not mind that. Indeed, he
+was more than pleased, because the oftener
+he took a swim the fewer stitches he lost.
+So he sang the merriest songs he knew.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+The light was fast fading when a hollow
+laugh startled Mr. Frog. It seemed to
+come from the willow tree right over his
+head. And he knew without looking up
+that it was Solomon Owl's deep voice.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="012" /><anchor id="Pg012" />
+<p>
+Mr. Frog tried to leap into the brook.
+But when he uncrossed his legs, in his
+haste he tangled them up in his sewing.
+And all he could do was to turn a somersault
+backward among some bulrushes,
+hoping that Solomon Owl had not seen
+him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+It is no secret that Mr. Frog was terribly
+afraid of Solomon Owl. Some of
+Mr. Frog's friends had mysteriously disappeared.
+And they had last been seen
+in Solomon's company.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+As it happened, Mr. Frog had hoped in
+vain. For Solomon Owl only laughed
+more loudly than before. And then he
+said:
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>What are you afraid of, Mr. Frog?</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+The tailor knew at once that he was
+caught. So he hopped nimbly to his feet
+and answered that there was nothing to
+be afraid of, so far as he could see.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+It was a true statement, too; because
+Mr. Frog had not yet discovered Solomon
+Owl's exact whereabouts.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="013" /><anchor id="Pg013" />
+<p>
+But he learned them soon; for Solomon
+immediately dropped down from the big
+willow and alighted on the bank near Mr.
+Frog—altogether <hi rend="font-style: italic">too near</hi> him, in fact,
+for the tailor's comfort.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon looked at Mr. Frog very solemnly.
+And he thought that he shivered.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>What's the matter? Are you ill?</q>
+Solomon Owl inquired. <q>You seem to be
+shaking.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Just a touch of chills and fever, probably!</q>
+replied Mr. Frog with an uneasy
+smile. <q>You know it's very damp here.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>You don't look in the best of health—that's
+a fact!</q> Solomon Owl remarked.
+<q>You appear to me to be somewhat green
+in the face.</q> And he laughed once more—that
+same hollow, mirthless laugh.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Mr. Frog couldn't help jumping, because
+the sound alarmed him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Don't be disturbed!</q> said Solomon
+Owl. <q>I like all the Frog family.</q>
+</p>
+
+<pb n="014" /><anchor id="Pg014" />
+<p>
+At that remark, Mr. Frog started violently
+That was exactly the trouble!
+Solomon Owl was <hi rend="font-style: italic">altogether too fond</hi> of
+frogs, whether they were old or young, big
+or little.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+It was no wonder that Mr. Frog swallowed
+rapidly sixteen times before he
+could say another word.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="015" /><anchor id="Pg015" />
+
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="IV - An Odd Bargain" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="IV - An Odd Bargain" />
+<head>IV<lb />
+ An Odd Bargain</head>
+
+<p>
+While Mr. Frog was swallowing nothing
+rapidly, he was thinking rapidly, too.
+There was something about Solomon
+Owl's big, staring eyes that made Mr.
+Frog feel uncomfortable. And if he had
+thought he had any chance of escaping he
+would have dived into the brook and swum
+under the bank.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But Solomon Owl was too near him for
+that. And Mr. Frog was afraid his caller
+would pounce upon him any moment. So
+he quickly thought of a plan to save himself.
+<q>No doubt&qdash;</q> he began. But
+Solomon Owl interrupted him.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="016" /><anchor id="Pg016" />
+
+<p>
+<q>There!</q> cried Solomon. <q>You <hi rend="font-style: italic">can</hi>
+speak, after all. I supposed you'd swallowed
+your tongue. And I was just waiting
+to see what you'd do next. I thought
+maybe you would swallow your <hi rend="font-style: italic">head</hi>.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Mr. Frog managed to laugh at the joke,
+though, to tell the truth, he felt more nervous
+than ever. He saw what was in Solomon
+Owl's mind, for Solomon was thinking
+of swallowing Mr. Frog's head himself.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>No doubt—</q> Mr. Frog resumed—<q>no
+doubt you've come to ask me to make you
+a new suit of clothes.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Now, Solomon Owl had had no such idea
+at all. But when it was mentioned to him,
+he rather liked it.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Will you?</q> he inquired, with a highly
+interested air.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="017" /><anchor id="Pg017" />
+<p>
+<q>Why, certainly!</q> the tailor replied.
+And for the first time since he had turned
+his backward somersault into the bulrushes,
+he smiled widely. <q>I'll tell you
+what I'll do!</q> he said. <q>First, I'll make
+you a coat free. And second, if you like it
+I will then make you a waistcoat and
+trousers, at double rates.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl liked the thought of getting
+a coat for nothing. But for all that,
+he looked at the tailor somewhat doubtfully.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Will it take you long?</q> he asked.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>No, indeed!</q> Mr. Frog told him. <q>I'll
+make your coat while you wait.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Oh, I wasn't going away,</q> Solomon assured
+him with an odd look which made
+Mr. Frog shiver again. <q>Be quick, please!
+Because I have some important business
+to attend to.</q>
+</p>
+
+<pb n="018" /><anchor id="Pg018" />
+<p>
+Mr. Frog couldn't help wondering if it
+wasn't he himself that Solomon Owl was
+going to attend to. In spite of his fears,
+to work to cut up some cloth that hung
+just outside his door.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Stop!</q> Solomon Owl cried in a voice
+that seemed to shake the very ground.
+<q>You haven't measured me yet!</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>It's not necessary,</q> Mr. Frog explained
+glibly. <q>I've become so skilful
+that one look at an elegant figure like
+yours is all that I need.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Naturally, Mr. Frog's remark pleased
+Solomon Owl. And he uttered ten rapid
+hoots, which served to make Mr. Frog's
+fingers fly all the faster. Soon he was sewing
+Solomon's coat with long stitches; and
+though his needle slipped now and then,
+he did not pause to take out a single stitch.
+For some reason, Mr. Frog was in a great
+hurry.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="019" /><anchor id="Pg019" />
+<p>
+Solomon Owl did not appear to notice
+that the tailor was not taking much pains
+with his sewing. Perhaps Mr. Frog
+worked so fast that Solomon could not see
+what he was doing.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Anyhow, he was delighted when Mr.
+Frog suddenly cried:
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>It's finished!</q> And then he tossed the
+coat to Solomon. <q>Try it on!</q> he said.
+<q>I want to see how well it fits you.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl held up the garment and
+looked at it very carefully. And as he examined
+it a puzzled look came over his
+great pale face.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+There was something about his new coat
+that he did not understand.
+</p>
+<pb n="020" /><anchor id="Pg020" />
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="V - The Cold Weather Coat" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="V - The Cold Weather Coat" />
+<head>V<lb />
+The Cold Weather Coat</head>
+
+
+<p>
+Yes! As he held up his new coat and
+looked at it, Solomon Owl was puzzled.
+He turned his head toward Mr. Frog and
+stared at him for a moment. And then he
+turned his head away from the tailor and
+gazed upon the coat again.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Mr. Frog was most uncomfortable—especially
+when Solomon looked at <hi rend="font-style: italic">him</hi>.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Everything's all right, isn't it?</q> he inquired.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl slowly shook his head.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>This is a queer coat!</q> he said.
+<q>What's this bag at the top of it?</q>
+</p>
+
+<pb n="021" /><anchor id="Pg021" />
+<p>
+<q>Oh!</q> exclaimed Mr. Frog. <q>That's
+the hood! Knowing that you spend your
+winters here in Pleasant Valley, I made a
+hood to go over your head.... You'll
+find it very comfortable in cold weather—and
+it's the latest style, too. All the winter
+coats this year will have hoods, with
+holes to see through, you know.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl looked relieved at Mr.
+Frog's explanation. But there was still
+something more that appeared to trouble
+him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>How shall I get into the coat?</q> he inquired.
+<q>It doesn't open in front, as it
+should.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Another cold-weather style!</q> Mr.
+Frog assured him. <q>It's wind-proof!
+And instead of buttoning the coat, you
+pull it on over your head.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl said he didn't like that
+style very well.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="022" /><anchor id="Pg022" />
+<p>
+<q>Then I can easily change it,</q> the tailor
+told him. <q>But just try it on!</q> he urged.
+<q>It may please you, after all.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+So Solomon Owl pulled the coat over his
+head. And it fell down about him, almost
+reaching his feet. But the coat did not
+seem to suit him at all, for he began to
+splutter and choke.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>What's the matter now?</q> Mr. Frog
+asked him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I can't see—that's what's the matter!</q>
+Solomon Owl cried in a voice that sounded
+hollower than ever, because it was muffled
+by the hood, which covered his head.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I declare—I haven't cut the holes for
+your eyes!</q> the tailor exclaimed. <q>Just
+wait a moment and I'll make everything
+satisfactory.</q> He clinked his shears together
+sharply as he spoke.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But Solomon Owl told him that he
+wouldn't <hi rend="font-style: italic">think</hi> of letting anybody use
+shears so near his eyes.
+</p>
+
+<p rend="text-align: center"><anchor id="image-001" />
+<figure rend="w95" url="images/image-001.jpg">
+<head rend="text-align: center">Solomon Found Mr. Frog's Shop Was Closed
+</head>
+<figDesc><hi rend="font-style: italic">Illustration 1</hi></figDesc>
+</figure></p><p></p>
+
+<pb n="023" /><anchor id="Pg023" />
+
+<p>
+<q>I'll take off the coat,</q> he said. <q>And
+I know now that you're a very poor tailor,
+or you wouldn't have made such a mistake.</q>
+He began to tug at the coat. But
+he soon found that taking it off was not so
+easy as putting it on. Solomon's sharp
+claws caught in the cloth; and his hooked
+beak, too, fastened itself in the hood the
+moment he tried to pull the coat over his
+head. <q>Here!</q> he cried to Mr. Frog.
+<q>Just lend me a hand! I can't see to help
+myself.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But Mr. Frog did not even answer him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Don't you hear me?</q> Solomon Owl
+shouted, as he struggled with his new coat,
+only to become tangled in it more than
+ever.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Still, the tailor said never a word,
+though something very like a giggle, followed
+by a splash, caught Solomon's ear.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>He's left me!</q> Solomon Owl groaned.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="024" /><anchor id="Pg024" />
+
+<p>
+<q>Mr. Frog has left me to get out of this
+coat alone. And goodness knows how I'm
+ever a-going to do it.</q> He threshed about
+so vigorously that he tripped himself and
+fell upon the bank of the brook, rolling
+over and over toward the water.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+He had a very narrow escape. If he
+hadn't happened to bring up against an
+old stump he would certainly have tumbled
+into the stream.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Though Solomon couldn't see, he knew
+that he was in danger. So he lay on his
+back on the ground and carefully tore his
+new coat into strings and ribbons.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+At last he was free. And he rose to his
+feet feeling very sheepish, for he knew
+that Mr. Frog had played a sly trick on
+him.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="025" /><anchor id="Pg025" />
+<p>
+<q>Nevermind!</q> said Solomon Owl, as he
+flew way. <q>I'll come back to-morrow
+and ask Mr. Frog to make me a waistcoat
+and trousers. And then&qdash;</q> He did not
+finish what he was saying. But there is
+no doubt that whatever it was, it could not
+have been very pleasant for Mr. Frog.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Just as he had planned, Solomon Owl
+returned to the brook the next day. And
+he was both surprised and disappointed
+at what he found.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+The door of Mr. Frog's tailor's shop was
+shut and locked. And on it there was a
+sign, which said:
+</p>
+
+<p>
+TO LET
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>He's moved away!</q> cried Solomon
+Owl. And he went off feeling that he had
+been cheated out of a good dinner—to
+say nothing of a new waistcoat—and new
+trousers, too.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="026" /><anchor id="Pg026" />
+<p>
+He had not been gone long when the
+door opened. And Mr. Frog leaped nimbly
+outside. He took the sign off the door;
+and sitting down cross-legged upon the
+bank, he began to sew upon Jasper Jay's
+new blue suit, while his face wore a wider
+smile than ever.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+He had suddenly decided not to let his
+shop, after all.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="027" /><anchor id="Pg027" />
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="VI - Solomon Needs a Change" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="VI - Solomon Needs a Change" />
+<head>VI<lb />
+Solomon Needs a Change</head>
+
+<p>
+For some time Solomon Owl had known
+that a queer feeling was coming over him.
+And he could not think what it meant. He
+noticed, too, that his appetite was leaving
+him. Nothing seemed to taste good any
+more.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+So at last, one fine fall evening he went
+to see Aunt Polly Woodchuck, who was an
+herb doctor; for he had begun to worry
+about his health.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="028" /><anchor id="Pg028" />
+<p>
+<q>It's lucky you came to-day,</q> said Aunt
+Polly. <q>Because to-night I'm going to begin
+my winter's nap. And you couldn't
+have seen me again till spring—unless you
+happened to come here on ground-hog day,
+next February.... What appears to be
+your trouble?</q> she inquired.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>It's my appetite, partly,</q> Solomon
+Owl said. <q>Nothing tastes as it did when
+I was a youngster. And I keep longing
+for something, though what it is I can't
+just tell.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Aunt Polly Woodchuck nodded her
+head wisely.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>What have you been eating lately?</q>
+she asked.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl replied that he hadn't
+eaten anything but mice since the leaves
+began to turn.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>H-m—the leaves are nearly all off the
+trees now,</q> the old lady remarked. <q>How
+many mice have you eaten in that time?</q>
+</p>
+
+<pb n="029" /><anchor id="Pg029" />
+<p>
+Solomon said that as nearly as he could
+remember he had eaten twenty-seven—or
+a hundred and twenty-seven. He couldn't
+say which—but one of those numbers was
+correct.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Aunt Polly Woodchuck threw up her
+hands.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Sakes alive!</q> she cried. <q>It's no wonder
+you don't feel well! What you need
+is a change of food. And it's lucky you
+came to me now. If you'd gone on like
+that much longer I'd hate to say what
+might have happened to you. You'd have
+had dyspepsia, or some other sort of misery
+in your stomach.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>What shall I do?</q> asked Solomon Owl.
+<q>Insects are scarce at this season of the
+year. Of course, there are frogs—but I
+don't seem to care for them. And there
+are fish—but they're not easy to get, for
+they don't come out of the water and sit
+on the bank, as the frogs do.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>How about pullets?</q> Aunt Polly inquired.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="030" /><anchor id="Pg030" />
+
+<p>
+At that Solomon Owl let out a long row
+of hoots, because he was pleased.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>The very thing!</q> he cried. <q>That's
+what I've been wanting all this time. And
+I never guessed it.... I'll pay you for
+your advice the next time I see you,</q> he
+told Aunt Polly. And Solomon Owl hurried
+away before she could stop him.
+Since he had no intention of visiting her
+on ground-hog day, he knew it would be
+spring before he saw Aunt Polly Woodchuck
+again.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+The old lady scolded a bit. And it did
+not make her feel any pleasanter to hear
+Solomon's mocking laughter, which grew
+fainter and fainter as he left the pasture
+behind him. Then she went inside her
+house, for she was fast growing sleepy.
+And she wanted to set things to rights before
+she began her long winter's nap.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="031" /><anchor id="Pg031" />
+<p>
+Meanwhile, Solomon Owl roamed restlessly
+through the woods. There was only
+one place in the neighborhood where he
+could get a pullet. That was at Farmer
+Green's chicken house. And for some
+reason he did not care to visit the farm
+buildings until it grew darker.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+So he amused himself by making the
+woods echo with his strange cry, <q><hi rend="font-style: italic">Whoo-whoo-whoo,
+whoo-whoo, to-whoo-ah!</hi></q>
+And now and then he threw in a few
+<q><hi rend="font-style: italic">wha-whas</hi>,</q> just for extra measure.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Many of the forest folk who heard him
+remarked that Solomon Owl seemed to be
+in extra fine spirits.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Probably it's the hunter's moon that
+pleases him!</q> Jimmy Rabbit remarked to
+a friend of his. <q>I've always noticed
+that old Solomon makes more noise on
+moonlight nights than at any other time.</q>
+</p>
+
+<pb n="032" /><anchor id="Pg032" />
+<p>
+The hunter's moon, big and yellow and
+round, was just rising over Blue Mountain.
+But for once it was not the moon
+that made Solomon Owl so talkative. He
+was in fine feather, so to speak, because
+he was hoping to have a fat pullet for his
+supper. And as for the moon, he would
+have been just as pleased had there been
+none at all that night. For Solomon Owl
+never cared to be seen when he visited
+Farmer Green's chicken house.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="033" /><anchor id="Pg033" />
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="VII - The Blazing Eyes" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="VII - The Blazing Eyes" />
+<head>VII<lb />
+The Blazing Eyes</head>
+
+<p>
+It was some three hours after sunset when
+Solomon Owl at last reached Farmer
+Green's place. All was quiet in the
+chicken house because the hens and roosters
+and their families had long since gone
+to roost. And except for a light that shone
+through a window, the farmhouse showed
+not a sign of life.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Everything was as Solomon Owl wished
+it—or so he thought, at least, as he alighted
+in a tree in the yard to look about him.
+He wanted no one to interrupt him when
+he should go nosing around the chicken
+house, to find an opening.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="034" /><anchor id="Pg034" />
+
+<p>
+To his annoyance, he had not sat long
+in the tree when the wood-shed door opened.
+And Solomon stared in amazement at
+the strange sight he saw.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+A great head appeared, with eyes and
+mouth—yes! and nose, too—all a glaring
+flame color. Solomon had never seen
+such a horrible face on man or bird or
+beast. But he was sure it was a man, for
+he heard a laugh that was not to be mistaken
+for either a beast's or a bird's. And
+the worst of it was, those blazing eyes were
+turned squarely toward Farmer Green's
+chicken house!
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl was too wary to go for his
+fat pullet just then. He decided that he
+would wait quietly in the tree for a time,
+hoping that the man would go away.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="035" /><anchor id="Pg035" />
+<p>
+While Solomon watched him the
+stranger neither moved nor spoke. And,
+of course, Solomon Owl was growing hungrier
+every minute. So at last he felt that
+he simply <hi rend="font-style: italic">must</hi> say something.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Who-who-who-are-you?</q> he called out
+from his tree.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But the strange man did not answer.
+He did not even turn his head.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>He must be some city person,</q> Solomon
+Owl said to himself. <q>He thinks he's
+too good to speak to a countryman like
+me.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Then Solomon sat up and listened. He
+heard a scratching sound. And soon he
+saw a plump figure crawl right up into his
+tree-top.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+It was Fatty Coon!
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>What are you doing here?</q> Solomon
+Owl asked in a low voice, which was not
+any too pleasant.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I'm out for an airing,</q> Fatty answered.
+<q>Beautiful night—isn't it?</q>
+</p>
+
+<pb n="036" /><anchor id="Pg036" />
+<p>
+But Solomon Owl was not interested in
+the weather. <q>I don't suppose you've
+come down here to get a chicken, have
+you?</q> he inquired.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Fatty Coon seemed greatly surprised at
+the question.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Why—no!</q> he exclaimed. <q>But now
+that you speak of it, it reminds me
+that Farmer Green's saving a pullet for
+me. He was heard to say not long ago
+that he would like to catch me taking one
+of his hens. So he must have one for me.
+And I don't want to disappoint him.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+At first Solomon Owl didn't know what
+answer to make. But at last he turned
+his head toward Fatty.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Why don't you go and get your pullet
+now?</q> he asked.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="037" /><anchor id="Pg037" />
+<p>
+<q>There's that man down below, with the
+glaring eyes—</q> said Fatty Coon. <q>I've
+been waiting around here for quite a long
+time and he hasn't looked away from the
+chicken house even once.... Do you
+know him?</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>No! And I don't want to!</q> said Solomon
+Owl.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>S-sh!</q> Fatty Coon held up a warning
+hand. <q>Who's that?</q> he asked, peering
+down at a dark object at the foot of their
+tree.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Then both he and Solomon saw that it
+was Tommy Fox, sitting on his haunches
+and staring at the big head, with its blazing
+eyes and nose and mouth.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Not looking for chickens, I suppose?</q>
+Solomon Owl called in a low tone, which
+was hardly more than a whisper.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But Tommy Fox's sharp ears heard him
+easily. And he looked up, licking his
+chops as if he were very hungry indeed.
+And all the while the stranger continued
+to stare straight at the chicken house, as
+if he did not intend to let anybody go
+</p>
+
+<pb n="038" /><anchor id="Pg038" />
+<p>
+prowling about that long, low building to
+steal any of Farmer Green's poultry.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+It was no wonder that the three chicken-lovers
+(two in the tree and one beneath it)
+hesitated. If the queer man had only
+spoken they might not have been so timid.
+But he said never a word.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="039" /><anchor id="Pg039" />
+</div>
+
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="VIII - Watching The Chickens" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="VIII - Watching The Chickens" />
+<head>VIII<lb />
+Watching The Chickens</head>
+
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl and Fatty Coon couldn't
+help laughing at what Tommy Fox said to
+them, as they sat in their tree near the
+farmhouse, looking down at him in the
+moonlight.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I'm here to watch Farmer Green's
+chickens for him—</q> said he—<q>to see that
+no rat—or anybody else—runs away with
+a pullet.</q>
+</p>
+
+<pb n="040" /><anchor id="Pg040" />
+<p>
+<q>Farmer Green has someone else watching
+for him to-night,</q> said Solomon Owl,
+when he had stopped laughing. <q>There's
+that strange man! You can see how he
+keeps his glaring eyes fixed on the chicken
+house. And unless I'm mistaken, he's on
+the lookout for <hi rend="font-style: italic">you</hi>.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>No such thing!</q> Tommy Fox snapped.
+And he looked up at Solomon as if he
+wished that he could climb the tree.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Here comes somebody else!</q> Fatty
+Coon exclaimed suddenly. His keen eyes
+had caught sight of Jimmy Rabbit, hopping
+along on his way to the vegetable garden,
+to see if he couldn't find a stray cabbage
+or a turnip.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl called to him. Whereupon,
+Jimmy Rabbit promptly sat up and
+looked at the odd trio. If it hadn't been
+for Tommy Fox he would have drawn
+nearer.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Do you know that stranger?</q> Solomon
+Owl asked him, pointing out the horrible
+head to Jimmy.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I haven't the pleasure,</q> said Jimmy
+Rabbit, after he had taken a good look.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="041" /><anchor id="Pg041" />
+
+<p>
+<q>Well,</q> said Solomon, <q>won't you
+kindly speak to him; and ask him to go
+away?</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Certainly!</q> answered Jimmy Rabbit,
+who always tried to be obliging.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I hope the stranger won't eat him,</q>
+remarked Tommy Fox, <q>because I hope
+to do that some day, myself.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+It was queer—but Jimmy Rabbit was
+the only one of the four that wasn't afraid
+of those glaring features. He hopped
+straight up to the big round head, which
+was just a bit higher than one of the fence
+posts, against which the stranger seemed
+to be leaning. And after a moment or two
+Jimmy Rabbit called to Solomon and
+Fatty and Tommy Fox:
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>He won't go away! He's going to stay
+right where he is!</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Come here a minute!</q> said Tommy.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Jimmy Rabbit shook his head.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="042" /><anchor id="Pg042" />
+
+<p>
+<q>You come over here!</q> he answered.
+And he did not stir from the side of the
+stranger. He knew very well that Tommy
+Fox was afraid of the man with the head
+with the glaring eyes.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+As for Tommy Fox, he did not even
+reply—that is, to Jimmy Rabbit. But he
+spoke his mind freely enough to his two
+friends in the tree.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>It seems to me one of you ought to do
+something,</q> said he. <q>We'll eat no pullets
+to-night if we can't get rid of this meddlesome
+stranger.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Fatty Coon quite agreed with him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>The one who was here first is the one
+to act!</q> Fatty declared. <q>That's <hi rend="font-style: italic">you</hi>!</q>
+he told Solomon Owl.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+So Solomon Owl felt most uncomfortable.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="043" /><anchor id="Pg043" />
+<p>
+<q>I don't know what I can do,</q> he said.
+<q>I spoke to the stranger—asked him who
+he was. And he wouldn't answer me.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Can't you frighten him away?</q> Tommy
+Fox inquired. <q>Fly right over his
+head and give him a blow with your wing
+as you pass!</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl coughed. He was embarrassed,
+to say the least.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>He's afraid!</q> Fatty Coon cried. And
+both he and Tommy Fox kept repeating,
+over and over again, <q>He's afraid! He's
+afraid! He's afraid!</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+It was really more than Solomon Owl
+could stand.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="044" /><anchor id="Pg044" />
+<p>
+<q>I'm not!</q> he retorted angrily.
+<q>Watch me and you'll see!</q> And without
+another word he darted out of the tree
+and swooped down upon the stranger, just
+brushing the top of his head. Solomon
+Owl knew at once that he had knocked
+something off the top of that dreadful
+head—something that fell to the ground
+and made Jimmy Rabbit jump nervously.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Then Solomon returned to his perch in
+the tree.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>He hasn't moved,</q> he said. <q>But I
+knocked off his hat.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>You took off the top of his head!</q>
+cried Fatty Coon in great excitement.
+<q>Look! The inside of his head is afire.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+And peering down from the tree-top,
+Solomon Owl saw that Fatty Coon had
+told the truth.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="045" /><anchor id="Pg045" />
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="IX - Hallowe'en" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="IX - Hallowe'en" />
+<head>IX<lb />
+Hallowe'en</head>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl was afraid of fire. And
+when he looked down from his perch in the
+tree and saw, through the hole in the stranger's
+crown, that all was aglow inside his
+big, round head, Solomon couldn't help
+voicing his horror. He <q><hi rend="font-style: italic">whoo-whooed</hi></q>
+so loudly that Tommy Fox, at the foot of
+the tree, asked him what on earth was the
+matter.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="046" /><anchor id="Pg046" />
+<p>
+<q>His head's all afire!</q> Solomon Owl
+told him. <q>That's what makes his eyes
+glare so. And that's why the fire shines
+through his mouth and his nose, too. It's
+no wonder he didn't answer my question—for,
+of course, his tongue must certainly
+be burned to a cinder.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Then it ought to be safe for anybody
+to enter the chicken house,</q> Tommy Fox
+observed. <q>What could the stranger do,
+when he's in such a fix?</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>He could set the chicken house afire, if
+he followed you inside,</q> replied Solomon
+Owl wisely. <q>And I, for one, am not going
+near the pullets to-night.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Nor I!</q> Fatty Coon echoed. <q>I'm going
+straight to the cornfield. The corn is
+still standing there in shocks; and I ought
+to find enough ears to make a good meal.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But Solomon Owl and Tommy Fox were
+not interested in corn. They never ate it.
+And so it is not surprising that they should
+be greatly disappointed. After a person
+has his mouth all made up for chicken it
+is hard to think of anything that would
+taste even half as good.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="047" /><anchor id="Pg047" />
+
+<p>
+<q>It's queer he doesn't go and hold his
+head under the pump,</q> said Solomon Owl.
+<q>That's what I should do, if I were he.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Jimmy Rabbit had better not go too
+near him, or he'll get singed,</q> said Tommy
+Fox, anxiously. <q>I don't want anything
+to happen to <hi rend="font-style: italic">him</hi>.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Jimmy Rabbit is very careless,</q> Solomon
+declared. <q>I don't see what he's
+thinking of—going so near a fire! It
+makes me altogether too nervous to stay
+here. And I'm going away at once.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Tommy Fox said that he felt the same
+way. And the moment Fatty Coon, with
+his sharp claws, started to crawl down the
+tree on his way to the cornfield, Tommy
+Fox hurried off without even stopping to
+say good-bye.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q><hi rend="font-style: italic">Haw-haw-haw-hoo</hi>!</q> laughed Solomon
+Owl. <q>Tommy Fox is afraid of
+you!</q> he told Fatty Coon.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="048" /><anchor id="Pg048" />
+
+<p>
+But Fatty didn't seem to hear him. He
+was thinking only of the supper of corn
+that he was going to have.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Better come away!</q> Solomon Owl called
+to Jimmy Rabbit, turning his head toward
+the fence where Jimmy had been
+lingering near the hot-headed stranger.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But Jimmy Rabbit didn't answer him,
+either. He was no longer there. The moment
+he had seen Tommy Fox bounding
+off across the meadow Jimmy had started
+at once for Farmer Green's vegetable garden.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+So Solomon Owl was the last to leave.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>There's really nothing else I can do,</q>
+he remarked to himself. <q>I don't know
+what Aunt Polly Woodchuck would say if
+she knew that I didn't follow her advice
+to-night and eat a pullet for my supper.... But
+I've tried my best.... And
+that's all anybody can do.</q>
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="049" /><anchor id="Pg049" />
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl was upset all the rest of
+that night. And just before daybreak he
+visited the farmyard again, to see whether
+the strange man with the flaring head still
+watched the chicken house. And Solomon
+found that he had vanished.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+So Solomon Owl alighted on the fence.
+There was nothing there except a hollowed-out
+pumpkin, with a few holes cut
+in it, which someone had left on one of the
+fence-posts.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Good!</q> said he. <q>Maybe I can get my
+pullet after all!</q> He turned to fly to the
+chicken house. But just then the woodshed
+door opened again. And Farmer
+Green stepped outside, with a lantern in
+his hand. He was going to the barn to
+milk the cows. But Solomon Owl did not
+wait to learn anything more.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="050" /><anchor id="Pg050" />
+<p>
+He hurried away to his house among
+the hemlocks. And having quickly settled
+himself for a good nap, he was soon fast
+asleep.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+That was how Johnnie Green's jack-o'-lantern
+kept Tommy Fox and Fatty Coon
+and Solomon Owl from taking any chickens
+on Hallowe'en.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="051" /><anchor id="Pg051" />
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="X - A Troublesome Wishbone" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="X - A Troublesome Wishbone" />
+<head>X<lb />
+A Troublesome Wishbone</head>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl had pains—sharp pains—underneath
+his waistcoat. And not knowing
+what else to do, he set off at once for
+Aunt Polly Woodchuck's house under the
+hill, in the pasture, which he had not visited
+since the previous fall. Luckily, he
+found the old lady at home. And quickly
+he told her of his trouble.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>What have you been eating?</q> she inquired.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I've followed your advice. I've been
+eating chickens,</q> said he—<q>very small
+chickens, because they were all I could
+get.</q>
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="052" /><anchor id="Pg052" />
+
+<p>
+Aunt Polly Woodchuck, who was an
+herb doctor—and a good one—regarded
+him through her spectacles.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I'm afraid,</q> said she, <q>you don't chew
+your food properly. Bolting one's food is
+very harmful. It's as bad as not eating
+anything at all, almost.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl showed plainly that her
+remark surprised him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Why,</q> he exclaimed, <q>I always swallow
+my food whole—when it isn't too big!</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Gracious me!</q> cried Aunt Polly,
+throwing up both her hands. <q>It's no
+wonder you're ill. It's no wonder you
+have pains; and now I know exactly
+what's the matter with you. You have a
+wishbone inside you. I can feel it!</q> she
+told him, as she prodded him in the waistcoat.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I wish you could get it out for me!</q>
+said Solomon with a look of distress.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="053" /><anchor id="Pg053" />
+
+<p>
+<q>All the wishing in the world won't
+help you,</q> she answered, <q>unless we can
+find some way of removing the wishbone
+so you can wish on that. Then I'm sure
+you would feel better at once.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>This is strange,</q> Solomon mused.
+<q>All my life I've been swallowing my food
+without chewing it. And it has never
+given me any trouble before.... What
+shall I do?</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Don't eat anything for a week,</q> she
+directed. <q>And fly against tree-trunks as
+hard as you can. Then come back here
+after seven days.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl went off in a most doleful
+frame of mind. It seemed to him that he
+had never seen so many mice and frogs
+and chipmunks as he came across during
+the following week. But he didn't dare
+catch a single one, on account of what
+Aunt Polly Woodchuck had said.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="054" /><anchor id="Pg054" />
+
+<p>
+His pains, however, grew less from day
+to day—at least, the pains that had first
+troubled him. But he had others to take
+their place. Hunger pangs, these were!
+And they were almost as bad as those that
+had sent him hurrying to see Aunt Polly
+Woodchuck.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+On the whole, Solomon passed a very
+unhappy week. Flying head foremost
+into tree-trunks (as Aunt Polly had instructed
+him to do) gave him many bumps
+and bruises. So he was glad when the time
+came for him to return to her house in the
+pasture.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="055" /><anchor id="Pg055" />
+<p>
+Solomon's neighbors had been so interested
+in watching him that they were all
+sorry when he ceased his strange actions.
+Indeed, there was a rumor that Solomon
+had become very angry with Farmer
+Green and that he was trying to knock
+down some of Farmer Green's trees. Before
+the end of that unpleasant week Solomon
+had often noticed as many as twenty-four
+of the forest folk following him
+about, hoping to see a tree fall.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But they were all disappointed. However,
+they enjoyed the sight of Solomon
+hurling himself against tree-trunks. And
+the louder he groaned, the more people
+gathered around him.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="056" /><anchor id="Pg056" />
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="XI - Cured At Last" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="XI - Cured At Last" />
+<head>XI<lb />
+Cured At Last</head>
+
+<p>
+<q>How do you feel now?</q> Aunt Polly
+Woodchuck asked Solomon Owl, when he
+had come back to her house after a week's
+absence.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>No better!</q> he groaned. <q>I still have
+pains. But they seem to have moved and
+scattered all over me.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Good!</q> she exclaimed with a smile.
+<q>You <hi rend="font-style: italic">are</hi> much better, though you didn't
+know it. The wishbone is broken. You
+broke it by flying against the trees. And
+you ought not to have any more trouble.
+But let me examine you!</q> she said, prodding
+him in the waistcoat once more.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="057" /><anchor id="Pg057" />
+
+<p>
+<q>This is odd!</q> she continued a bit later.
+<q>I can feel the wishbone more plainly
+than ever.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>That's my own wishbone!</q> Solomon
+cried indignantly. <q>I've grown so thin
+through not eating that it's a wonder you
+can't feel my backbone, too.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Aunt Polly Woodchuck looked surprised.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Perhaps you're right!</q> said she. <q>Not
+having a wishbone of my own, I forgot
+that you had one.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+A look of disgust came over Solomon
+Owl's face.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>You're a very poor doctor,</q> he told
+her. <q>Here you've kept me from eating
+for a whole week—and I don't believe it
+was necessary at all!</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Well, you're better, aren't you?</q> she
+asked him.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="058" /><anchor id="Pg058" />
+<p>
+<q>I shall be as soon as I have a good
+meal,</q> replied Solomon Owl, hopefully.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>You ought not to eat anything for another
+week,</q> Aunt Polly told him solemnly.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Nonsense!</q> he cried.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I'm a doctor; and I ought to know
+best,</q> she insisted.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But Solomon Owl hooted rudely.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I'll never come to you for advice any
+more,</q> he declared. <q>I firmly believe
+that my whole trouble was simply that I've
+been eating too sparingly. And I shall
+take good care to see that it doesn't happen
+again.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+No one had ever spoken to Aunt Polly
+in quite that fashion—though old Mr.
+Crow had complained one time that she
+had cured him <hi rend="font-style: italic">too quickly</hi>. But she did
+not lose her temper, in spite of Solomon's
+jeers.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="059" /><anchor id="Pg059" />
+<p>
+<q>You'll be back here again the very
+next time you're ill,</q> she remarked.
+<q>And if you continue to swallow your
+food whole&qdash;</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But Solomon Owl did not even wait to
+hear what she said. He was so impolite
+that he flew away while she was talking.
+And since it was then almost dark, and a
+good time to look for field mice, he began
+his night's hunting right there in Farmer
+Green's pasture.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+By morning Solomon was so plump that
+Aunt Polly Woodchuck would have had
+a good deal of trouble finding his wishbone.
+But since he did not visit her again,
+she had no further chance to prod him in
+the waistcoat.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Afterward, Solomon heard a bit of gossip
+that annoyed him. A friend of his
+reported that Aunt Polly Woodchuck was
+going about and telling everybody how she
+had saved Solomon's life.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="060" /><anchor id="Pg060" />
+
+<p>
+<q>Mice!</q> he exclaimed (he often said
+that when some would have said <q>Rats!</q>).
+<q>There's not a word of truth in her claim.
+And if people in this neighborhood keep
+on taking her advice and her catnip tea
+they're going to be sorry some day. For
+they'll be really ill the first thing they
+know. And then what will they do?</q>
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="061" /><anchor id="Pg061" />
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="XII - Benjamin Bat" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="XII - Benjamin Bat" />
+<head>XII<lb />
+Benjamin Bat</head>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl was by no means the only
+night-prowler in Pleasant Valley. He had
+neighbors that chose to sleep in the daytime,
+so they might roam through the
+woods and fields after dark. One of these
+was Benjamin Bat. And furthermore, he
+was the color of night itself.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="062" /><anchor id="Pg062" />
+<p>
+Now, Benjamin Bat was an odd chap.
+When he was still he liked to hang by his
+feet, upside down. And when he was flying
+he sailed about in a zigzag, helter-skelter
+fashion. He went in so many different
+directions, turning this way and that, one
+could never tell where he was going. One
+might say that his life was just one continual
+dodge—when he wasn't resting
+with his heels where his head ought to be.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+A good many of Benjamin Bat's friends
+said he certainly must be crazy, because
+he didn't do as they did. But that never
+made the slightest difference in Benjamin
+Bat's habits. He continued to zigzag
+through life—and hang by his heels—just
+the same. Perhaps he thought that all
+other people were crazy because they
+didn't do likewise.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Benjamin often dodged across Solomon
+Owl's path, when Solomon was hunting
+for field mice. And since Benjamin was
+the least bit like a mouse himself—except
+for his wings—there was a time, once,
+when Solomon tried to catch him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But Solomon Owl soon found that chasing
+Benjamin Bat made him dizzy. If
+Benjamin hadn't been used to hanging
+head downward, maybe he would have
+been dizzy, too.
+</p>
+<pb n="063" /><anchor id="Pg063" />
+
+<p>
+Though the two often saw each other,
+Benjamin Bat never seemed to care to
+stop for a chat with Solomon Owl. One
+night, however, Benjamin actually called
+to Solomon and asked his advice. He was
+in trouble. And he knew that Solomon
+Owl was supposed by some to be the wisest
+old fellow for miles around.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+It was almost morning. And Solomon
+Owl was hurrying home, because a terrible
+storm had arisen. The lightning was
+flashing, and peals of thunder crashed
+through the woods. Big drops of rain
+were already pattering down. But Solomon
+Owl did not care, for he had almost
+reached his house in the hollow hemlock
+near the foot of Blue Mountain.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="064" /><anchor id="Pg064" />
+<p>
+It was different with Benjamin Bat.
+That night he had strayed a long distance
+from his home in Cedar Swamp. And
+he didn't know what to do. <q>I want to get
+under cover, somewhere,</q> he told Solomon
+Owl. <q>You don't know of a good place
+near-by, do you, where I can get out of the
+storm and take a nap?</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Why, yes!</q> answered Solomon Owl.
+<q>Come right along to my house and spend
+the day with me!</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But Benjamin Bat did not like the suggestion
+at all.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I'm afraid I might crowd, you,</q> he
+said. He was thinking of the time when
+Solomon Owl had chased him. And sleeping
+in Solomon Owl's house seemed far
+from a safe thing to do.
+</p>
+
+<p rend="text-align: center"><anchor id="image-002" />
+<figure rend="w95" url="images/image-002.jpg">
+<head rend="text-align: center">Benjamin Asked Solomon's Advice
+</head>
+<figDesc><hi rend="font-style: italic">Illustration 2</hi></figDesc>
+</figure></p><p></p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon was wise enough to guess what
+was going on inside Benjamin's head.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="065" /><anchor id="Pg065" />
+<p>
+<q>Come along!</q> he said. <q>We'll both be
+asleep before we know it. I'm sorry I
+can't offer you something to eat. But I
+haven't a morsel of food in my house. No
+doubt, though, you've just had a good
+meal. <hi rend="font-style: italic">I</hi> ate seven mice to-night. And I
+certainly couldn't eat anything more.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+When Solomon Owl told him that, Benjamin
+Bat thought perhaps there was no
+danger, after all. And since the rain was
+falling harder and harder every moment,
+he thanked Solomon and said he would be
+glad to accent his invitation.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Follow me, then!</q> said Solomon Owl.
+And he led the way to his home in the hemlock.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+For once, Benjamin Bat flew in a fairly
+straight line, though he did a little dodging,
+because he couldn't help it.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+There was more room inside Solomon's
+house than Benjamin Bat had supposed.
+While Benjamin was looking about and
+telling Solomon that he had a fine home,
+his host quickly made a bed of leaves in
+one corner of the room—there was only
+one room, of course.
+</p>
+<pb n="066" /><anchor id="Pg066" />
+
+<p>
+<q>That's for you!</q> said Solomon Owl.
+<q>I always sleep on the other side of the
+house.</q> And without waiting even to
+make sure that his guest was comfortable,
+Solomon Owl lay down and began to snore—for
+he was very sleepy.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+It was so cozy there that Benjamin Bat
+was glad, already, that he had accepted
+Solomon's invitation.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="067" /><anchor id="Pg067" />
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="XIII - The Lucky Guest" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="XIII - The Lucky Guest" />
+<head>XIII<lb />
+The Lucky Guest</head>
+
+<p>
+In the middle of the day Solomon Owl
+happened to awake. He was sorry that he
+hadn't slept until sunset, because he was
+very hungry. Knowing that it was light
+outside his hollow tree, he didn't want to
+leave home to find something to eat.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Then, suddenly, he remembered that he
+had brought Benjamin Bat to his house
+early that morning, so Benjamin might
+escape the storm.... Why not eat Benjamin
+Bat?
+</p>
+
+<p>
+As soon as the thought occurred to him,
+Solomon Owl liked it. And he moved
+stealthily over to the bed of leaves he had
+made for his guest just before daybreak.
+</p>
+<pb n="068" /><anchor id="Pg068" />
+
+<p>
+But Benjamin Bat was not there.
+Though Solomon looked in every nook and
+cranny of his one-room house, he did not
+find him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>He must have left as soon as it stopped
+raining,</q> said Solomon Owl to himself.
+<q>He might at least have waited to thank
+me for giving him a day's lodging. It's
+the last time I'll ever bring any worthless
+vagabond into my house. And I ought to
+have known better than to have anything
+to do with a crazy person like Benjamin
+Bat.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Anybody can see that Solomon Owl was
+displeased. But it was not at all astonishing,
+if one stops to remember how hungry
+he was, and that he had expected to enjoy
+a good meal without the trouble of going
+away from home to get it.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="069" /><anchor id="Pg069" />
+<p>
+Solomon Owl went to the door of his
+house and looked out. The sun was shining
+so brightly that after blinking in his
+doorway for a few minutes he decided that
+he would go to bed again and try to sleep
+until dusk. He never liked bright days.
+<q>They're so dismal!</q> he used to say.
+<q>Give me a good, dark night and I'm
+happy, for there's nothing more cheering
+than gloom.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+In spite of the pangs of hunger that
+gnawed inside him, Solomon at last succeeded
+in falling asleep once more. And
+he dreamed that he chased Benjamin Bat
+three times around Blue Mountain, and
+then three times back again, in the opposite
+direction. But he never could catch
+him, because Benjamin Bat simply
+wouldn't fly straight. His zigzag course
+was so confusing that even in his dream
+Solomon Owl grew dizzy.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="070" /><anchor id="Pg070" />
+<p>
+Now, Benjamin Bat was in Solomon's
+house all the time. And the reason why
+Solomon Owl hadn't found him was a very
+simple one. It was merely that Solomon
+hadn't looked in the right place.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Benjamin Bat was hidden—as you
+might say—where his hungry host never
+once thought of looking for him. And
+being asleep all the while, Benjamin didn't
+once move or make the slightest noise.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+If he had snored, or sneezed, or rustled
+his wings, no doubt Solomon Owl would
+have found him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+When Benjamin awakened, late in the
+afternoon, Solomon was still sleeping.
+And Benjamin crept through the door and
+went out into the gathering twilight, without
+arousing Solomon.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I'll thank him the next time I meet
+him,</q> Benjamin Bat decided. And he
+staggered away through the air as if he did
+not quite know, himself, where he was going.
+But, of course, that was only his
+queer way of flying.
+</p>
+<pb n="071" /><anchor id="Pg071" />
+
+<p>
+When he told his friends where he had
+spent the day they were astonished.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>How did you ever dare do anything so
+dangerous as sleeping in Solomon Owl's
+house?</q> they all asked him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But Benjamin Bat only said, <q>Oh!
+There was nothing to be afraid of.</q> And
+he began to feel quite important.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="072" /><anchor id="Pg072" />
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="XIV - Hanging By The Heels" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="XIV - Hanging By The Heels" />
+<head>XIV<lb />
+Hanging By The Heels</head>
+
+<p>
+It was several nights before Solomon Owl
+and Benjamin Bat chanced to meet again
+in the forest.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Hullo!</q> said Solomon.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Hullo!</q> said Benjamin Bat. <q>I'm
+glad to see you, because I want to thank
+you for letting me spend the day in your
+house, so I wouldn't have to stay out in
+the storm.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>You must be a light sleeper,</q> Solomon
+observed. (He did not tell Benjamin
+that he was welcome!)
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>What makes you think that?</q> Benjamin
+Bat inquired.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="073" /><anchor id="Pg073" />
+
+<p>
+<q>Why—you left my house before
+noon,</q> Solomon told him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Oh, no!</q> said Benjamin. <q>I slept
+soundly until sunset. When I came away
+the crickets were chirping. And I was
+surprised that you hadn't waked up yourself.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>You were gone before midday,</q> Solomon
+Owl insisted. And they had something
+very like a dispute, while Solomon
+Owl sat in one tree and Benjamin Bat
+hung head downward from another. <q>I
+ought to know,</q> said Solomon. <q>I was
+awake about noon; and I looked everywhere
+for you.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>What for?</q> asked Benjamin.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Naturally, Solomon didn't like to tell
+him that he had intended to eat him. So
+he looked wise—and said nothing.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>You didn't look on the ceiling, did
+you?</q> Benjamin Bat inquired.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="074" /><anchor id="Pg074" />
+
+<p>
+<q>No, indeed!</q> Solomon Owl exclaimed.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Well, that's where I was, hanging by
+my feet,</q> Benjamin Bat informed him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl certainly was surprised
+to hear that.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>The idea!</q> he cried. <q>You're a queer
+one! I never once thought of looking <hi rend="font-style: italic">on
+the ceiling</hi> for a <hi rend="font-style: italic">luncheon</hi>!</q> He was so
+astonished that he spoke before he thought
+how oddly his remark would sound to another.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+When he heard what Solomon Owl said,
+Benjamin Bat knew at once that Solomon
+had meant to eat him. And he was so
+frightened that he dropped from the limb
+to which he was clinging and flew off as
+fast as he could go. For once in his life
+he flew in a straight line, with no zigzags
+at all, he was in such a hurry to get away
+from Solomon Owl, who—for all he knew—might
+still be very hungry.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="075" /><anchor id="Pg075" />
+
+<p>
+But Solomon Owl had caught so many
+mice that night that he didn't feel like
+chasing anybody. So he sat motionless in
+the tree, merely turning his head to watch
+Benjamin sailing away through the dusky
+woods. He noticed that Benjamin didn't
+dodge at all—except when there was a tree
+in his way. And he wondered what the
+reason was.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Perhaps he's not so crazy as I supposed,</q>
+said Solomon Owl to himself.
+And ever afterward, when he happened
+to awake and feel hungry, Solomon Owl
+used to look up at the ceiling above him
+and wish that Benjamin Bat was there.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But Benjamin Bat never cared to have
+anything more to do with Solomon Owl.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+He said he had a good reason for avoiding
+him.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="076" /><anchor id="Pg076" />
+<p>
+And ever afterward he passed for a very
+brave person among his friends. They
+often pointed him out to strangers, saying,
+<q>There's Benjamin Bat! <hi rend="font-style: italic">He</hi> doesn't
+know what fear is. Why, once he even
+spent a whole day asleep in Solomon Owl's
+house! And if you don't think <hi rend="font-style: italic">that</hi> was a
+bold thing to do, then I guess you don't
+know Solomon Owl.</q>
+</p>
+
+<pb n="077" /><anchor id="Pg077" />
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="XV - Disputes Settled" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="XV - Disputes Settled" />
+<head>XV<lb />
+Disputes Settled</head>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl looked so wise that many
+of his neighbors fell into the habit of going
+to him for advice. If two of the forest
+folk chanced to have a dispute which
+they could not settle between them they
+frequently visited Solomon and asked him
+to decide which was in the right. And in
+the course of time Solomon became known
+far and wide for his ability to patch up a
+quarrel.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+At last Jimmy Rabbit stopped Solomon
+Owl one night and suggested that he hang
+a sign outside his house, so that there
+shouldn't be anybody in the whole valley
+that wouldn't know what to do in case he
+found himself in an argument.
+</p>
+<pb n="078" /><anchor id="Pg078" />
+
+<p>
+Solomon decided on the spot that Jimmy
+Rabbit's idea was a good one. So he
+hurried home and before morning he had
+his sign made, and put out where everyone
+could see it. It looked like this:
+</p>
+
+<p>
+DISPUTES SETTLED WITHIN
+</p>
+
+<p>
+There was only one objection to the
+sign. As soon as Jimmy Rabbit saw it he
+told Solomon that it should have said:
+</p>
+
+<p>
+DISPUTES SETTLED WITHOUT
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Without what?</q> Solomon Owl inquired.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="079" /><anchor id="Pg079" />
+<p>
+<q>Why, without going into your house!</q>
+said Jimmy Rabbit. <q>I can't climb a tree,
+you know. And neither can Tommy Fox.
+We might have a dispute to-night; and
+how could you ever settle it?</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Oh, I shall be willing to step outside,</q>
+Solomon told him. And he refused to
+change the sign, declaring that he liked it
+just as it was.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Now, there was only one trouble with
+Solomon Owl's settling of disputes.
+Many of the forest folk wanted to see him
+in the daytime. And <hi rend="font-style: italic">night</hi> was the only
+time <hi rend="font-style: italic">he</hi> was willing to see them. But he
+heard so many objections to that arrangement
+that in the end Solomon agreed to
+meet people at dusk and at dawn, when it
+was neither very dark nor very light. On
+the whole he found that way very satisfactory,
+because there was just enough
+light at dusk and at dawn to make him
+blink. And when Solomon blinked he
+looked even wiser than ever.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="080" /><anchor id="Pg080" />
+<p>
+Well, the first disputing pair that came
+to Solomon's tree after he hung out his
+new sign were old Mr. Crow and Jasper
+Jay. They reached the hemlock grove
+soon after sunset and squalled loudly for
+Solomon. <q>Hurry!</q> Mr. Crow cried, as
+soon as Solomon Owl stepped outside his
+door. <q>It will be dark before we know it;
+and it's almost our bedtime.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>What's your difficulty?</q> Solomon
+asked them.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Mr. Crow looked at Jasper Jay. And
+then he looked at Solomon again.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Maybe you won't like to hear it,</q> he
+said. And he winked at Jasper. <q>But
+you've put out this sign—so we've come
+here.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>You've done just right!</q> exclaimed
+Solomon Owl. <q>And as for my not liking
+to hear the trouble, it's your dispute and
+not mine. So I don't see how it concerns
+me—except to settle it.</q>
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="081" /><anchor id="Pg081" />
+
+<p>
+<q>Very Well,</q> Mr. Crow answered.
+<q>The dispute, then, is this: Jasper says
+that in spite of your looking so wise,
+you're really the stupidest person in
+Pleasant Valley.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>He does, eh?</q> cried Solomon Owl,
+while Jasper Jay laughed loudly. <q>And
+you, of course, do not agree with him,</q>
+Solomon continued.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I do not!</q> Mr. Crow declared.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Good!</q> said Solomon, nodding his
+head approvingly.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>No, I do not agree with Jasper Jay,</q>
+Mr. Crow said. <q>I claim that there's one
+other person more stupid than you are—and
+that's Fatty Coon.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Well, Solomon Owl certainly was displeased.
+And it didn't make him feel any
+happier to hear Jasper Jay's boisterous
+shouts, or the hoarse <q><hi rend="font-style: italic">haw-haw</hi></q> of old
+Mr. Crow.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="082" /><anchor id="Pg082" />
+
+<p>
+<q>I hope you can decide which one of us
+is right,</q> Mr. Crow ventured.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I am, of course!</q> cried Jasper Jay.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>You're not!</q> Mr. Crow shouted. And
+to Solomon Owl he said, <q>We've been disputing
+like this all day long.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl didn't know what to say.
+If he announced that Jasper was right it
+would be the same as admitting that he
+was the stupidest person in the whole
+neighborhood. And if he said that old
+Mr. Crow's opinion was correct he would
+not be much better off. Naturally he
+didn't want to tell either of them that he
+was right.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I'll have to think about this,</q> Solomon
+observed at last.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>We don't want to wait,</q> said Mr.
+Crow. <q>If we keep on disputing we're
+likely to have a fight.</q>
+</p>
+
+<pb n="083" /><anchor id="Pg083" />
+<p>
+Now, Solomon Owl hoped that they
+would have a fight. So he was determined
+to keep them waiting for his decision.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Come back to-morrow at this time,</q>
+he said.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="084" /><anchor id="Pg084" />
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="XVI - Nine Fights" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="XVI - Nine Fights" />
+<head>XVI<lb />
+Nine Fights</head>
+
+<p>
+The next evening, just at dusk, Jasper
+Jay and old Mr. Crow returned to Solomon
+Owl's house, looking much bedraggled.
+One of Mr. Crow's eyes was almost
+closed; and Jasper Jay's crest seemed to
+have been torn half off his head.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>What's the matter?</q> asked Solomon,
+as soon as he saw them.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>We've had three fights,</q> said Jasper
+Jay.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Yes! And I've whipped him each
+time!</q> cried Mr. Crow. <q>So I must be in
+the right. And you'd better decide our
+dispute in my favor at once.</q>
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="085" /><anchor id="Pg085" />
+
+<p>
+But Solomon Owl was still in no hurry.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>It's a difficult question to settle,<q> said
+he. </q>I don't want to make any mistake.
+So I shall have to ask you to come back
+here to-morrow at this time.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Both Jasper and Mr. Crow seemed disappointed.
+Although Mr. Crow had won
+each fight, he was very weary, for he was
+older than Jasper Jay.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+As they went off, Solomon Owl began
+to feel much pleased with himself.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+The following evening, at sunset, old
+Mr. Crow and Jasper Jay visited Solomon
+Owl once more. And they looked
+more battered than ever.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>We've had three more fights,</q> said
+Mr. Crow.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Yes! And I won each time!</q> Jasper
+Jay piped up. <q>So I must be in the right.
+And you'd better decide in my favor without
+any further delay.</q>
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="086" /><anchor id="Pg086" />
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl thought deeply for some
+time.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Maybe I ought to wait until to-morrow&qdash;</q>
+he began.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But his callers both shouted <q>No!</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Well,</q> said Solomon, <q>Mr. Crow has
+won three fights; and Jasper Jay has won
+three. So it is certain that each must be
+in the wrong.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But that announcement did not satisfy
+Jasper and Mr. Crow. And they left the
+hemlock grove, disputing more loudly than
+ever.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+And the next day, at dusk, they came
+back again.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>We've had three more fights; and I
+won!</q> they both cried at the same time.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>That proves my claim,</q> said Solomon
+Owl. <q>You're both wrong.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+They whispered together for a few minutes.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="087" /><anchor id="Pg087" />
+
+<p>
+<q>We don't like your way of settling disputes,</q>
+Mr. Crow remarked shortly. <q>But
+we've decided to stop quarreling.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Good!</q> said Solomon Owl. <q>That
+shows that you are sensible.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Yes!</q> replied Jasper. <q>We've decided
+to stop quarreling and fight <hi rend="font-style: italic">you</hi>!</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Wait a moment!</q> said Solomon Owl
+hastily, as they drew nearer. <q>I don't
+want my new suit spoiled.</q> And he
+ducked inside the hollow tree before they
+could reach him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Jasper and Mr. Crow waited and
+waited. But Solomon Owl did not reappear.
+And since his two visitors did not
+dare follow him into the dark cavern
+where he lived, they decided at last that
+they would go home—and get into bed.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Let's take away his sign, anyhow!</q>
+Jasper Jay suggested.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="088" /><anchor id="Pg088" />
+<p>
+So they pulled down Solomon's sign,
+which said <q>Disputes Settled Within,</q>
+and they carried it off with them and hid
+it in some bushes.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+That same night Solomon Owl hunted
+for it for a long time. But he never found
+it.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+He decided not to hang out another,
+for he saw that settling disputes was a
+dangerous business.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="089" /><anchor id="Pg089" />
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="XVII - Cousin Simon Screecher" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="XVII - Cousin Simon Screecher" />
+<head>XVII<lb />
+Cousin Simon Screecher</head>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl had a small cousin named
+Simon Screecher. He was unlike Solomon
+in some respects, because he always
+wore ear-tufts, and his eyes were yellow
+instead of black. But in some other ways
+he was no different from Solomon Owl, for
+he was a noisy chap and dearly loved mice—to
+eat.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+It happened that the two met in the
+woods one fine fall evening; and they
+agreed to go hunting mice together.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="090" /><anchor id="Pg090" />
+<p>
+Now, being so much smaller than Solomon,
+Simon Screecher was all the spryer.
+In fact, he was so active that he could
+catch mice faster than Solomon Owl could
+capture them. And they had not hunted
+long before Solomon discovered that
+Simon had succeeded in disposing of six
+mice to his three.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+That discovery did not please Solomon
+at all.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Look here!</q> he said. <q>Since we are
+hunting together it's only fair to divide
+what we catch, half and half.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Simon Screecher hesitated. But after
+reflecting that his cousin was very big and
+very strong, he agreed to Solomon's suggestion.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+So they resumed their hunting. And
+every time one of them caught two mice,
+he gave one mouse to his cousin.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Still Solomon Owl was not satisfied.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="091" /><anchor id="Pg091" />
+<p>
+<q>Wait a moment!</q> Solomon called to
+Simon Screecher. <q>It has just occurred
+to me that I am more than twice as big
+as you are; so I ought to have twice as
+many mice as you.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+This time Simon Screecher hesitated
+longer. He did not like the second suggestion
+even as well as the first. And in
+the end he said as much, too.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But Solomon Owl insisted that it was
+only fair.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>You surely ought to be glad to please
+your own cousin,</q> he told Simon.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>It's not that,</q> said Simon Screecher.
+<q>It seems to me that since I'm not half
+your size, I ought to have twice as many
+mice to eat, so I'll grow bigger.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Well, Solomon Owl hadn't thought of
+that. He was puzzled to know what to
+say. And he wanted time in which to
+ponder.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="092" /><anchor id="Pg092" />
+<p>
+<q>I'll think over what you say,</q> he told
+Simon Screecher. <q>And now, since it's
+almost dawn, we'd better not hunt any
+longer to-night. But I'll meet you again
+at dusk if you'll come to my house.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Very well, Cousin Solomon!</q> Simon
+answered. <q>I'm sure that after you've
+had a good sleep you'll be ready to agree
+with me.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>If that's the case, I may not take any
+nap at all,</q> Solomon replied.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Oh! You ought to have your rest!</q>
+his cousin exclaimed. Simon knew that if
+Solomon went all day without sleep he
+would be frightfully peevish by nightfall.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Well—I'll try to get forty winks,</q>
+Solomon promised. <q>But I don't believe
+I can get more than that, because I have
+so much on my mind that I'm sure to be
+wakeful.</q>
+</p>
+
+<pb n="093" /><anchor id="Pg093" />
+<p>
+Simon Screecher was somewhat worried
+as they parted. His wailing, tremulous
+whistle, which floated through the shadowy
+woods, showed that he was far from
+happy.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="094" /><anchor id="Pg094" />
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="XVIII - A Cousinly Quarrel" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="XVIII - A Cousinly Quarrel" />
+<head>XVIII<lb />
+XVIII - A Cousinly Quarrel</head>
+
+<p>
+It proved to be just as Solomon Owl had
+told his cousin, Simon Screecher. Solomon
+had so much on his mind that he had
+no sooner fallen asleep than he awoke
+again, to study over the question that perplexed
+him. He certainly did not want
+Simon to have twice as many mice as he.
+But Simon's argument was a good one.
+He had said that since Solomon was more
+than twice his size, it was proper that he
+should have a chance to grow. And everybody
+knew—Solomon reflected—everybody
+knew that <hi rend="font-style: italic">eating</hi> made one larger.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="095" /><anchor id="Pg095" />
+<p>
+The longer Solomon pondered, the farther
+he seemed from any answer that he
+liked. And he had begun to fear that he
+would not succeed in getting more than
+thirty-nine winks all day—instead of
+forty—when all at once an idea came into
+his mind.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon knew right away that he had
+nothing more to worry about. He dropped
+into a sound sleep with a pleasant smile
+upon his usually solemn face. And when
+he opened his eyes again it was time for
+Simon Screecher to arrive.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Yes! Solomon could hear his cousin's
+whistle even then. So he hurried to his
+door; and there was Simon, sitting on a
+limb of the big hemlock waiting for him!
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>It's all right!</q> said Solomon to his
+cousin. <q>I agree to your suggestion.
+We'll hunt together again to-night; and if
+you will give me one-third of all the mice
+you catch, I promise to give you two-thirds
+of all the mice that I capture.</q>
+</p>
+<pb n="096" /><anchor id="Pg096" />
+
+<p>
+<q>Good!</q> said Simon Screecher. And
+he looked vastly relieved. <q>Just hoot
+when you have any mice for me!</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Whistle when you have any for me!</q>
+Solomon Owl replied.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+And at that they started out for their
+night's sport. It was not long before
+Simon Screecher's well known whistle
+brought Solomon hurrying to him. Simon
+already had three mice, one of which he
+gave to Solomon, according to their agreement.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+That same thing happened several
+times; until at last Simon Screecher began
+to grumble.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>What's the matter?</q> he asked his
+cousin. <q>You are not hooting, as you
+promised you would.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>But I haven't caught any mice yet!</q>
+Solomon Owl replied.
+</p>
+
+<p rend="text-align: center"><anchor id="image-003" />
+<figure rend="w95" url="images/image-003.jpg">
+<head rend="text-align: center"><q>It's All Right,</q> Said Solomon
+</head>
+<figDesc><hi rend="font-style: italic">Illustration 3</hi></figDesc>
+</figure></p><p></p>
+
+<pb n="097" /><anchor id="Pg097" />
+
+<p>
+Again and again and again Simon's
+call summoned Solomon. But not once
+did Solomon's summon Simon. And all
+the time Simon Screecher grew more discontented.
+Toward the end of the night
+he declared flatly that he wasn't going to
+hunt any more with his cousin.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I've done exactly as I agreed!</q> Solomon
+Owl protested.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>You're altogether too slow and
+clumsy,</q> Simon Screecher told him bluntly.
+<q>If I'm going to hunt with anybody
+after this I'm going to choose someone
+that's as spry as I am. There's no sense
+in my working for you. Here I've toiled
+all night long and I'm still hungry, for
+I've given you a third of my food.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+They parted then—and none too pleasantly.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="098" /><anchor id="Pg098" />
+<p>
+In Simon's whistle, as he flew away toward
+his home, there was unmistakable
+anger. But Solomon Owl's answering
+hoots—while they were not exactly sweet—seemed
+to carry more than a hint of
+laughter.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+One would naturally think that Solomon
+might have been even hungrier than
+his small cousin. But it was not so. He
+had had more to eat than usual; for he had
+been very busy catching locusts and katydids—and
+frogs, too. Solomon Owl had
+not tried to catch a single mouse that
+night.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+You know now the idea that had come
+to him while he was lying awake in his
+house during the daytime. He had made
+up his mind that he would not hunt for
+<hi rend="font-style: italic">mice</hi>. And since he had not promised
+Simon to give him anything else, there was
+no reason why he should not eat all the
+frogs and katydids and locusts that he
+could find.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="099" /><anchor id="Pg099" />
+
+<p>
+Perhaps it was not surprising that
+Simon Screecher never guessed the truth.
+But he seemed to know that there was
+something queer about that night's hunting,
+for he never came to Solomon Owl's
+house again.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="100" /><anchor id="Pg100" />
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="XIX - The Sleet Storm" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="XIX - The Sleet Storm" />
+<head>XIX<lb />
+The Sleet Storm</head>
+
+<p>
+It was winter. And for several days a
+strong south wind had swept up Pleasant
+Valley. That—as Solomon Owl knew
+very well—that meant a thaw was coming.
+He was not sorry, because the weather had
+been bitterly cold.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Well, the thaw came. And the weather
+grew so warm that Solomon Owl could
+stay out all night without once feeling
+chilled. He found the change so agreeable
+that he strayed further from home
+than was his custom. Indeed, he was far
+away on the other side of Blue Mountain
+at midnight, when it began to rain.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="101" /><anchor id="Pg101" />
+
+<p>
+Now, that was not quite so pleasant.
+But still Solomon did not mind greatly. It
+was not until later that he began to feel
+alarmed, when he noticed that flying did
+not seem so easy as usual.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon had grown heavy all at once—and
+goodness knows it was not because he
+had overeaten, for food was scarce at that
+season of the year. Moreover, Solomon's
+wings were strangely stiff. When he
+moved them they <hi rend="font-style: italic">crackled</hi>.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>It must be my joints,</q> he said to himself.
+<q>I'm afraid this wetting has given
+me rheumatism.</q> So he started home at
+once—though it was only midnight. But
+the further he went, the worse he felt—and
+the harder it was to fly.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I'll have to rest a while,</q> he said to
+himself at last. So he alighted on a limb;
+for he was more tired than he had ever
+been in all his life.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="102" /><anchor id="Pg102" />
+
+<p>
+But he soon felt so much better that he
+was ready to start on again. And then,
+to his dismay, Solomon Owl found that he
+could hardly stir. The moment he left
+his perch he floundered down upon the
+ground. And though he tried his hardest,
+he couldn't reach the tree again.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+The rain was still beating down steadily.
+And Solomon began to think it a bad
+night to be out. What was worse, the
+weather was fast turning cold.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I'm afraid I'll have to stay in bed a
+week after this,</q> he groaned. <q>If I sit
+here long, as wet as I am, while the thaw
+turns into a <hi rend="font-style: italic">freeze</hi>, I shall certainly be ill.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Now, if it hadn't been for the rain, Solomon
+Owl would have had no trouble at all.
+Or if it hadn't been for the freezing cold
+he would have been in no difficulty.
+Though he didn't know it, his trouble was
+simply this: The rain froze upon him as
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="103" /><anchor id="Pg103" />
+
+<p>
+fast as it fell, covering him with a coating
+of ice. It was no wonder that he felt
+strangely heavy—no wonder that he
+couldn't fly.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+There he crouched on the ground, while
+the rain and sleet beat upon him. And
+the only comforting thought that entered
+his head was that on so stormy a night
+Tommy Fox and Fatty Coon would be
+snug and warm in their beds. <hi rend="font-style: italic">They</hi>
+wouldn't go out in such weather.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+And Solomon Owl wished that he, too,
+had stayed at home that night.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+From midnight until almost dawn Solomon
+Owl sat there. Now and then he tried
+to fly. But it was no use. He could
+scarcely raise himself off the ground.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+At last he decided he would have to <hi rend="font-style: italic">walk</hi>
+home. Fortunately, a hard crust covered
+the soft snow. So Solomon started off on
+his long journey.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="104" /><anchor id="Pg104" />
+
+<p>
+Flying, Solomon could have covered the
+distance in a few minutes. But he was a
+slow walker. By the time he reached his
+home among the hemlocks the sun was
+shining brightly—for the rain had stopped
+before daybreak.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon wondered how he would ever
+succeed in reaching his doorway, high up
+in the hollow tree. He gazed helplessly
+upward. And as he sat there mournfully
+the bright sunshine melted the ice that
+bound his wings. After a time he discovered
+that he could move freely once more.
+And then he rose quickly in the air and in
+a twinkling he had disappeared into the
+darkness of his home—that darkness
+which to him was always so pleasant.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="105" /><anchor id="Pg105" />
+
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="XX - A Pair Of Red-Heads" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="XX - A Pair Of Red-Heads" />
+<head>XX<lb />
+A Pair Of Red-Heads</head>
+
+<p>
+In the woods there was hardly one of Solomon
+Owl's neighbors that couldn't point
+out the big hemlock tree where he lived.
+And mischievous fellows like Reddy
+Woodpecker sometimes annoyed Solomon
+a good deal by rapping loudly on his door.
+When he thrust his head angrily out of his
+house and blinked in the sunlight, his tormentors
+would skip away and laugh. They
+laughed because they knew that they had
+awakened Solomon Owl. And they dodged
+out of his reach because he was always ill-tempered
+when anybody disturbed his rest
+in the daytime.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="106" /><anchor id="Pg106" />
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl did not mind so <hi rend="font-style: italic">very</hi> much
+so long as that trick was not played on
+him too often. But after a time it became
+one of Reddy Woodpecker's favorite
+sports. Not only once, but several times
+a day did he go to the hemlock grove to
+hammer upon Solomon's hollow tree. And
+each time that he brought Solomon Owl
+to his door Reddy Woodpecker laughed
+more loudly than ever before.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Once Solomon forgot to take off his
+nightcap (though he wore it in the daytime,
+it really was a nightcap). And Reddy
+Woodpecker was so amused that he
+shouted at the top of his lungs.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>What's the joke?</q> asked Solomon Owl
+in his deep, rumbling voice. He tried to
+look very severe. But it is hard to look
+any way except funny with a nightcap on
+one's head.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="107" /><anchor id="Pg107" />
+<p>
+As luck had it, Jasper Jay came hurrying
+up just then. He had heard Reddy
+Woodpecker's laughter. And if there
+was a joke he wanted to enjoy it, too.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Jasper Jay, alighting in a small hemlock
+near Reddy Woodpecker, asked the
+same question that Solomon Owl had just
+put to his rude caller.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>What's the joke?</q> inquired Jasper
+Jay.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Reddy could not speak. He was rocking
+back and forth upon a limb, choking
+and gasping for breath. But he managed
+to point to the big tree where Solomon Owl
+lived.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+And when Jasper looked, and saw Solomon's
+great, round, pale, questioning face,
+all tied up in a red nightcap, he began to
+scream.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="108" /><anchor id="Pg108" />
+<p>
+They were no ordinary screams—those
+shrieks of Jasper Jay's. That blue-coated
+rascal was the noisiest of all the feathered
+folk in Pleasant Valley. And now he fairly
+made the woods echo with his hoarse
+cries.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>This is the funniest sight I've ever
+seen!</q> Jasper Jay said at last, to nobody
+in particular. <q>I declare, there's a pair
+of them!</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+At that, Reddy Woodpecker suddenly
+stopped laughing.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>A pair of what?</q> he asked.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>A pair of red-heads, of course!</q> Jasper
+Jay replied. <q>You've a red cap—and
+so has he!</q> Jasper pointed at Solomon
+Owl (a very rude thing to do!).
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Then two things happened all at once.
+Solomon Owl snatched off his red
+night-cap—which he had quite forgotten. And
+Reddy Woodpecker dashed at Jasper
+Jay. He couldn't pull off <hi rend="font-style: italic">his</hi> red cap, for
+it grew right on his head.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="109" /><anchor id="Pg109" />
+<p>
+<q>So that's what you're laughing at, is
+it?</q> he cried angrily. And then nobody
+laughed any more—that is, nobody but
+Solomon Owl.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon was so pleased by the fight that
+followed between Jasper Jay and Reddy
+Woodpecker that his deep, rumbling
+laughter could be heard for half an hour—even
+if it <hi rend="font-style: italic">was</hi> midday. <q><hi rend="font-style: italic">Wha-wha!
+Whoo-ah!</hi></q> The sound reached the ears
+of Farmer Green, who was just crossing
+a neighboring field, on his way home to
+dinner.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Well, well!</q> he exclaimed. <q>I wonder
+what's happened to that old owl!
+Something must have tickled him—for I
+never heard an owl laugh in broad daylight
+before.</q>
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="110" /><anchor id="Pg110" />
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="XXI - At Home In The Haystack" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="XXI - At Home In The Haystack" />
+<head>XXI<lb />
+At Home In The Haystack</head>
+
+<p>
+After what happened when he came to
+his door without remembering to take off
+his red nightcap, Solomon Owl hoped that
+Reddy Woodpecker would stop teasing
+him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But it was not so. Having once viewed
+Solomon's red cap, Reddy Woodpecker
+wanted to see it some more. So he came
+again and again and knocked on Solomon's
+door.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="111" /><anchor id="Pg111" />
+<p>
+Solomon Owl, however, remembered
+each time to remove his nightcap before
+sticking his head out. And it might be
+said that neither of them was exactly
+pleased. For Reddy Woodpecker was
+disappointed; and Solomon Owl was angry.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Not a day passed that Reddy Woodpecker
+didn't disturb Solomon's rest at
+least a dozen times. Perhaps if Solomon
+had just kept still inside his house Reddy
+would have grown tired of bothering him.
+But Solomon Owl—for all he looked so
+wise—never thought of that.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But he saw before a great while that he
+would have to make a change of some
+sort—if he wanted to enjoy a good, quiet
+sleep again.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+For a long time Solomon Owl pondered.
+It was a great puzzle—to know just how to
+outwit Reddy Woodpecker. And Solomon
+almost despaired of finding a way out
+of the difficulty. But at last an idea came
+to him, all in a flash. He would take his
+daytime naps somewhere else!
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="112" /><anchor id="Pg112" />
+
+<p>
+Solomon spent several nights looking
+for a good place to pass his days. And in
+the end he decided on the meadow. It
+would be convenient, he thought, when he
+was hunting meadow mice at dawn, if he
+could stay right there, without bothering
+to go into the woods to sleep.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Since there were no trees in the
+meadow, but only a few scrubby bushes
+along the stone wall, one might naturally
+make the mistake of thinking that there
+could not possibly be a nook of any kind
+that would suit Solomon Owl, who could
+never sleep soundly unless his bedroom
+was quite dark.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But there was one hiding place that Solomon
+liked almost as well as his home in
+the hollow hemlock. And that was Farmer
+Green's haystack. He burrowed into one
+side of it and made himself a snug chamber,
+which was as dark as a pocket—and
+ever so much quieter. What pleased Solomon
+most, however, was this: Nobody
+knew about that new retreat except himself.
+</p>
+<pb n="113" /><anchor id="Pg113" />
+
+<p>
+Even if Reddy Woodpecker should succeed
+in finding it, he never could disturb
+Solomon by drumming upon the haystack.
+If Reddy tried that trick, his bill would
+merely sink noiselessly into the hay.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+So Solomon Owl at last had a good day's
+rest. And when he met Reddy Woodpecker
+just after sunset, Solomon was
+feeling so cheerful that he said <q>Good-evening!</q>
+quite pleasantly, before he remembered
+that it was Reddy who had
+teased him so often.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Good-evening!</q> Reddy Woodpecker
+replied. He seemed much surprised that
+Solomon Owl should be so agreeable.
+<q>Can you hear me?</q> Reddy asked him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Perfectly!</q> said Solomon.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="114" /><anchor id="Pg114" />
+
+<p>
+<q>That's strange!</q> Reddy Woodpecker
+exclaimed. <q>I was almost sure you had
+suddenly grown deaf.</q> And he could not
+understand why Solomon Owl laughed
+loud and long.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q><hi rend="font-style: italic">Wha-wha! Whoo-ah!</hi></q> Solomon's
+deep-voiced laughter rolled and echoed
+through the woodland.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But Reddy Woodpecker did not laugh
+at all.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="115" /><anchor id="Pg115" />
+</div>
+
+<div rend="page-break-before: always">
+<index index="toc" level1="XXII - It Was Solomon's Fault" />
+<index index="pdf" level1="XXII - It Was Solomon's Fault" />
+<head>XXII<lb />
+It Was Solomon's Fault</head>
+
+<p>
+Reddy Woodpecker had a very good reason
+for not laughing when he met Solomon
+Owl. Of course, he knew nothing
+whatever of Solomon's new hiding place
+in the haystack. And that very morning
+Reddy had invited a party of friends to
+go with him to the hemlock grove where
+Solomon Owl had always lived, <q>to have
+some fun,</q> as Reddy had explained.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+For a long time he had knocked and
+hammered and pounded at Solomon Owl's
+door. But for once Solomon's great pale
+face did not appear.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="116" /><anchor id="Pg116" />
+<p>
+<q>Where's the fun?</q> Reddy's friends
+had wanted to know, after they had
+waited until they were impatient.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+And Reddy Woodpecker could only
+shake his head and say:
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>I can't understand it! It's never happened
+like this before. I'm afraid Solomon
+Owl has lost his hearing.</q>
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Reddy Woodpecker's friends were no
+more polite than he. And they began to
+jeer at him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>You didn't hammer loud enough,</q> one
+of them told him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+So he set to work again and rapped and
+rapped until his head felt as if it would
+fly off, and his neck began to ache.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Still, Solomon Owl did not appear.
+And the party broke up in something very
+like a quarrel. For Reddy Woodpecker
+lost his temper when his friends teased
+him; and a good many unpleasant remarks
+passed back and forth.
+</p>
+
+
+<pb n="117" /><anchor id="Pg117" />
+
+<p>
+Somehow, Reddy felt that it was all Solomon
+Owl's fault, because he hadn't come
+to the door.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Of course, Reddy had no means of
+knowing that all that time Solomon Owl
+was sleeping peacefully in Farmer
+Green's haystack in the meadow, a quarter
+of a mile away.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+It was a good joke on Reddy Woodpecker.
+And though no one had told Solomon
+Owl about it, he was not so stupid
+that he couldn't guess at least <hi rend="font-style: italic">a little</hi> that
+had happened.
+</p>
+<milestone unit="tb" />
+<p>
+Solomon Owl continued to have a very
+pleasant time living in the meadow. Since
+there were many mice right close at hand,
+little by little he visited the woods less and
+less. And there came a time at last when
+he hardly left the meadow at all.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="118" /><anchor id="Pg118" />
+<p>
+Not flying any more than he could help,
+and eating too much, and sleeping very
+soundly each day, he grew stouter than
+ever, until his friends hardly knew him
+when they saw him.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<q>Solomon Owl is a sight—he's so fat!</q>
+people began to say.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+But his size never worried Solomon Owl
+in the least. When he became too big for
+his doorway in the haystack, it was a simple
+matter to make the opening larger—much
+simpler than it would have been to
+make himself <hi rend="font-style: italic">smaller</hi>. And that was another
+reason why he was delighted with
+his new home.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+At last, however, something happened
+to put an end to his lazy way of living.
+One day the sound of men's voices awakened
+him, when he was having a good nap
+in the haystack. And he felt his bedroom
+quiver as if an earthquake had shaken it.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="119" /><anchor id="Pg119" />
+<p>
+Scrambling to his doorway and peeping
+slyly out, Solomon saw a sight that made
+him very angry. A hayrack stood alongside
+the stack; and on it stood Farmer
+Green and his hired man. Each had a
+pitchfork in his hands, with which he tore
+great forkfuls of hay off the stack and
+piled it upon the wagon.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+Solomon Owl knew then that his fine
+hiding place was going to be spoiled. As
+soon as the horses had pulled the load of
+hay away, with Farmer Green and the
+hired man riding on top of it, Solomon
+Owl crept out of his snug bedroom and
+hurried off to the woods.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+He was so fat that it was several days
+before he could squeeze inside his old home
+in the hollow hemlock. And for the time
+being he had to sit on a limb and sleep
+in the daylight as best he could.
+</p>
+
+<pb n="120" /><anchor id="Pg120" />
+<p>
+But to his surprise, Reddy Woodpecker
+troubled him no more. Reddy had
+drummed so hard on Solomon's door, in
+the effort to awake him when he wasn't
+there, that Aunt Polly Woodchuck told
+him he would ruin his bill, if he didn't look
+out. And since the warning thoroughly
+alarmed him, Reddy stopped visiting the
+hemlock grove.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+In time Solomon Owl grew to look like
+himself again. And people never really
+knew just what had happened to him. But
+they noticed that he always hooted angrily
+whenever anybody mentioned Farmer
+Green's name.
+</p>
+
+<p>
+<lb /><lb />
+THE END
+</p>
+
+</div>
+
+</body>
+ + <back>
+ <div rend="page-break-before: always"> + <divGen type="pgfooter" /> + </div>
+ </back>
+ + </text>
+</TEI.2>
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+ +--> diff --git a/old/16663-tei/images/image-001.jpg b/old/16663-tei/images/image-001.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..dd18c74 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/16663-tei/images/image-001.jpg diff --git a/old/16663-tei/images/image-002.jpg b/old/16663-tei/images/image-002.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..f6936e3 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/16663-tei/images/image-002.jpg diff --git a/old/16663-tei/images/image-003.jpg b/old/16663-tei/images/image-003.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..b17916f --- /dev/null +++ b/old/16663-tei/images/image-003.jpg diff --git a/old/16663-tei/images/image-fp.jpg b/old/16663-tei/images/image-fp.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..ad74ce5 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/16663-tei/images/image-fp.jpg diff --git a/old/16663.txt b/old/16663.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..65f1f0d --- /dev/null +++ b/old/16663.txt @@ -0,0 +1,2471 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Tale of Solomon Owl by Arthur Scott +Bailey + + + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no +restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under +the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or +online at http://www.gutenberg.org/license + + + +Title: The Tale of Solomon Owl + +Author: Arthur Scott Bailey + +Release Date: 2005-09 [Ebook #16663] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: US-ASCII + + +***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE TALE OF SOLOMON OWL*** + + + + + +The Tale of Solomon Owl +By Arthur Scott Bailey + +Author of "The Tale of Sandy Chipmunk," "The Tale of Tommy Fox," etc. +_Illustrated by Harry L. Smith_ + +New York +Grosset & Dunlap +1917 + + + + + + [_Frontispiece_] + + Solomon Owl Sat Up And Listened. + + + + + + CONTENTS + + +Illustrations +I - Scaring Johnny Green +II - A Newcomer +III - Solomon Likes Frogs +IV - An Odd Bargain +V - The Cold Weather Coat +VI - Solomon Needs a Change +VII - The Blazing Eyes +VIII - Watching The Chickens +IX - Hallowe'en +X - A Troublesome Wishbone +XI - Cured At Last +XII - Benjamin Bat +XIII - The Lucky Guest +XIV - Hanging By The Heels +XV - Disputes Settled +XVI - Nine Fights +XVII - Cousin Simon Screecher +XVIII - A Cousinly Quarrel +XIX - The Sleet Storm +XX - A Pair Of Red-Heads +XXI - At Home In The Haystack +XXII - It Was Solomon's Fault + + + + + +ILLUSTRATIONS + + + Solomon Owl Sat Up And Listened _Frontispiece_ + Solomon Found Mr. Frog's Shop Was Closed + Benjamin Bat Asked Solomon's Advice + "It's All Right!" Said Solomon + + + + + + +THE TALE OF SOLOMON OWL + + + + + +I +SCARING JOHNNY GREEN + + +When Johnnie Green was younger, it always scared him to hear Solomon Owl's +deep-toned voice calling in the woods after dark. + +"_Whoo-whoo-whoo, whoo-whoo, to-whoo-ah_!" That weird cry was enough to +send Johnnie Green hurrying into the farmhouse, though sometimes he paused +in the doorway to listen--especially if Solomon Owl happened to be +laughing. His "_haw-haw-hoo-hoo_," booming across the meadow on a crisp +fall evening, when the big yellow moon hung over the fields of corn-shocks +and pumpkins, sounded almost as if Solomon were laughing at the little boy +he had frightened. There was certainly a mocking, jeering note in his +laughter. + +Of course, as he grew older, Johnnie Green no longer shivered on hearing +Solomon's rolling call. When Solomon laughed, Johnnie Green would laugh, +too. But Solomon Owl never knew that, for often he was half a mile from +the farm buildings. + +A "hoot owl," Johnnie Green termed him. And anyone who heard Solomon +hooting of an evening, or just before sunrise, would have agreed that it +was a good name for him. But he was really a _barred_ owl, for he had bars +of white across his feathers. + +If you had happened to catch Solomon Owl resting among the thick hemlocks +near the foot of Blue Mountain, where he lived, you would have thought +that he looked strangely like a human being. He had no "horns," or +ear-tufts, such as some of the other owls wore; and his great pale face, +with its black eyes, made him seem very wise and solemn. + +In spite of the mild, questioning look upon his face whenever anyone +surprised him in the daytime, Solomon Owl was the noisiest of all the +different families of owls in Pleasant Valley. There were the barn owls, +the long-eared owls, the short-eared owls, the saw-whet owls, the screech +owls--but there! there's no use of naming them all. There wasn't one of +them that could equal Solomon Owl's laughing and hooting and shrieking and +wailing--at night. + +During the day, however, Solomon Owl he was quiet about it. One reason for +his silence then was that he generally slept when the sun was shining. And +when most people were sleeping, Solomon Owl was as wide awake as he could +be. + +He was a night-prowler--if ever there was one. And he could see a mouse on +the darkest night, even if it stirred ever so slightly. + +That was unfortunate for the mice. But luckily for them, Solomon Owl +couldn't be in more than one place at a time. Otherwise, there wouldn't +have been a mouse left in Pleasant Valley--if he could have had _his_ way. + +And though he didn't help the mice, he helped Farmer Green by catching +them. If he did take a fat pullet once in a while, it is certain that he +more than paid for it. + +So, on the whole, Farmer Green did not wood-lot. And for a long time +Solomon raised no objection to Farmer Green's living near Swift River. + +But later Solomon Owl claimed that it would be a good thing for the forest +folk if they could get rid of the whole Green family--and the hired man, +too. + + + + + +II +A NEWCOMER + + +Upon his arrival, as a stranger, in Pleasant Valley, Solomon Owl looked +about carefully for a place to live. What he wanted especially was a good, +_dark_ hole, for he thought that sunshine was very dismal. + +Though he was willing to bestir himself enough to suit anybody, when it +came to _hunting_, Solomon Owl did not like to work. He was no busy +nest-builder, like Rusty Wren. In his search for a house he looked several +times at the home of old Mr. Crow. If it had suited him better, Solomon +would not have hesitated to take that it was altogether _too light_ to +please him. + +That was lucky for old Mr. Crow. And the black rascal knew it, too. He had +noticed that Solomon Owl was hanging about the neighborhood. And several +times he caught Solomon examining his nest. + +But Mr. Crow did not have to worry long. For as it happened, Solomon Owl +at last found exactly what he wanted. In an old, hollow hemlock, he came +across a cozy, dark cavity. As soon as he saw it he knew that it was the +very thing! So he moved in at once. And except for the time that he spent +in the meadow--which was considerably later--he lived there for a good many +years. + +Once Fatty Coon thought that he would drive Solomon out of his snug house +and live in it himself. But he soon changed Solomon Owl--so Fatty +discovered--had sharp, strong claws and a sharp, strong beak as well, which +curled over his face in a cruel hook. + +It was really a good thing for Solomon Owl--the fight he had with Fatty +Coon. For afterward his neighbors seldom troubled him--except when Jasper +Jay brought a crowd of his noisy friends to tease Solomon, or Reddy +Woodpecker annoyed him by rapping on his door when he was asleep. + +But those rowdies always took good care to skip out of Solomon's reach. +And when Jasper Jay met Solomon alone in the woods at dawn or dusk he was +most polite to the solemn old chap. _Then_ it was "How-dy-do, Mr. Owl!" +and "I hope you're well to-day!" And when Solomon Jasper, that bold fellow +always felt quite uneasy; and he was glad when Solomon Owl looked away. + +If Solomon Owl chanced to _hoot_ on those occasions, Jasper Jay would jump +almost out of his bright blue coat. Then Solomon's deep laughter would +echo mockingly through the woods. + +You see, though not nearly so wise as he appeared, Solomon Owl knew well +enough how to frighten some people. + + + + + +III +SOLOMON LIKES FROGS + + +It was a warm summer's evening--so warm that Mr. Frog, the tailor, had +taken his sewing outside his tailor's shop and seated himself cross-legged +upon the bank of the brook, where he sang and sewed without ceasing--except +to take a swim now and then in the cool water, "to stretch his legs," as +he claimed. + +He was making a new suit of blue clothes for Jasper Jay. And since Jasper +was a great dandy, and very particular Mr. Frog was taking special pains +with his sewing. + +Usually he did his work quickly. But now after every five stitches that he +put into his work he stopped to take out ten. And naturally he was not +getting on very fast. He had been working busily since early morning; and +Jasper Jay's suit was further than ever from being finished. + +Since he was a most cheerful person, Mr. Frog did not mind that. Indeed, +he was more than pleased, because the oftener he took a swim the fewer +stitches he lost. So he sang the merriest songs he knew. + +The light was fast fading when a hollow laugh startled Mr. Frog. It seemed +to come from the willow tree right over his head. And he knew without +looking up that it was Solomon Owl's deep voice. + +Mr. Frog tried to leap into the brook. But when he uncrossed his legs, in +his haste he tangled them up in his sewing. And all he could do was to +turn a somersault backward among some bulrushes, hoping that Solomon Owl +had not seen him. + +It is no secret that Mr. Frog was terribly afraid of Solomon Owl. Some of +Mr. Frog's friends had mysteriously disappeared. And they had last been +seen in Solomon's company. + +As it happened, Mr. Frog had hoped in vain. For Solomon Owl only laughed +more loudly than before. And then he said: + +"What are you afraid of, Mr. Frog?" + +The tailor knew at once that he was caught. So he hopped nimbly to his +feet and answered that there was nothing to be afraid of, so far as he +could see. + +It was a true statement, too; because Mr. Frog had not yet discovered +Solomon Owl's exact whereabouts. + +But he learned them soon; for Solomon immediately dropped down from the +big willow and alighted on the bank near Mr. Frog--altogether _too near_ +him, in fact, for the tailor's comfort. + +Solomon looked at Mr. Frog very solemnly. And he thought that he shivered. + +"What's the matter? Are you ill?" Solomon Owl inquired. "You seem to be +shaking." + +"Just a touch of chills and fever, probably!" replied Mr. Frog with an +uneasy smile. "You know it's very damp here." + +"You don't look in the best of health--that's a fact!" Solomon Owl +remarked. "You appear to me to be somewhat green in the face." And he +laughed once more--that same hollow, mirthless laugh. + +Mr. Frog couldn't help jumping, because the sound alarmed him. + +"Don't be disturbed!" said Solomon Owl. "I like all the Frog family." + +At that remark, Mr. Frog started violently That was exactly the trouble! +Solomon Owl was _altogether too fond_ of frogs, whether they were old or +young, big or little. + +It was no wonder that Mr. Frog swallowed rapidly sixteen times before he +could say another word. + + + + + +IV +AN ODD BARGAIN + + +While Mr. Frog was swallowing nothing rapidly, he was thinking rapidly, +too. There was something about Solomon Owl's big, staring eyes that made +Mr. Frog feel uncomfortable. And if he had thought he had any chance of +escaping he would have dived into the brook and swum under the bank. + +But Solomon Owl was too near him for that. And Mr. Frog was afraid his +caller would pounce upon him any moment. So he quickly thought of a plan +to save himself. "No doubt----" he began. But Solomon Owl interrupted him. + +"There!" cried Solomon. "You _can_ speak, after all. I supposed you'd +swallowed your tongue. And I was just waiting to see what you'd do next. I +thought maybe you would swallow your _head_." + +Mr. Frog managed to laugh at the joke, though, to tell the truth, he felt +more nervous than ever. He saw what was in Solomon Owl's mind, for Solomon +was thinking of swallowing Mr. Frog's head himself. + +"No doubt--" Mr. Frog resumed--"no doubt you've come to ask me to make you a +new suit of clothes." + +Now, Solomon Owl had had no such idea at all. But when it was mentioned to +him, he rather liked it. + +"Will you?" he inquired, with a highly interested air. + +"Why, certainly!" the tailor replied. And for the first time since he had +turned his backward somersault into the bulrushes, he smiled widely. "I'll +tell you what I'll do!" he said. "First, I'll make you a coat free. And +second, if you like it I will then make you a waistcoat and trousers, at +double rates." + +Solomon Owl liked the thought of getting a coat for nothing. But for all +that, he looked at the tailor somewhat doubtfully. + +"Will it take you long?" he asked. + +"No, indeed!" Mr. Frog told him. "I'll make your coat while you wait." + +"Oh, I wasn't going away," Solomon assured him with an odd look which made +Mr. Frog shiver again. "Be quick, please! Because I have some important +business to attend to." + +Mr. Frog couldn't help wondering if it wasn't he himself that Solomon Owl +was going to attend to. In spite of his fears, to work to cut up some +cloth that hung just outside his door. + +"Stop!" Solomon Owl cried in a voice that seemed to shake the very ground. +"You haven't measured me yet!" + +"It's not necessary," Mr. Frog explained glibly. "I've become so skilful +that one look at an elegant figure like yours is all that I need." + +Naturally, Mr. Frog's remark pleased Solomon Owl. And he uttered ten rapid +hoots, which served to make Mr. Frog's fingers fly all the faster. Soon he +was sewing Solomon's coat with long stitches; and though his needle +slipped now and then, he did not pause to take out a single stitch. For +some reason, Mr. Frog was in a great hurry. + +Solomon Owl did not appear to notice that the tailor was not taking much +pains with his sewing. Perhaps Mr. Frog worked so fast that Solomon could +not see what he was doing. + +Anyhow, he was delighted when Mr. Frog suddenly cried: + +"It's finished!" And then he tossed the coat to Solomon. "Try it on!" he +said. "I want to see how well it fits you." + +Solomon Owl held up the garment and looked at it very carefully. And as he +examined it a puzzled look came over his great pale face. + +There was something about his new coat that he did not understand. + + + + + +V +THE COLD WEATHER COAT + + +Yes! As he held up his new coat and looked at it, Solomon Owl was puzzled. +He turned his head toward Mr. Frog and stared at him for a moment. And +then he turned his head away from the tailor and gazed upon the coat +again. + +Mr. Frog was most uncomfortable--especially when Solomon looked at _him_. + +"Everything's all right, isn't it?" he inquired. + +Solomon Owl slowly shook his head. + +"This is a queer coat!" he said. "What's this bag at the top of it?" + +"Oh!" exclaimed Mr. Frog. "That's the hood! Knowing that you spend your +winters here in Pleasant Valley, I made a hood to go over your head.... +You'll find it very comfortable in cold weather--and it's the latest style, +too. All the winter coats this year will have hoods, with holes to see +through, you know." + +Solomon Owl looked relieved at Mr. Frog's explanation. But there was still +something more that appeared to trouble him. + +"How shall I get into the coat?" he inquired. "It doesn't open in front, +as it should." + +"Another cold-weather style!" Mr. Frog assured him. "It's wind-proof! And +instead of buttoning the coat, you pull it on over your head." + +Solomon Owl said he didn't like that style very well. + +"Then I can easily change it," the tailor told him. "But just try it on!" +he urged. "It may please you, after all." + +So Solomon Owl pulled the coat over his head. And it fell down about him, +almost reaching his feet. But the coat did not seem to suit him at all, +for he began to splutter and choke. + +"What's the matter now?" Mr. Frog asked him. + +"I can't see--that's what's the matter!" Solomon Owl cried in a voice that +sounded hollower than ever, because it was muffled by the hood, which +covered his head. + +"I declare--I haven't cut the holes for your eyes!" the tailor exclaimed. +"Just wait a moment and I'll make everything satisfactory." He clinked his +shears together sharply as he spoke. + +But Solomon Owl told him that he wouldn't _think_ of letting anybody use +shears so near his eyes. + + [_Illustration 1_] + + Solomon Found Mr. Frog's Shop Was Closed + + +"I'll take off the coat," he said. "And I know now that you're a very poor +tailor, or you wouldn't have made such a mistake." He began to tug at the +coat. But he soon found that taking it off was not so easy as putting it +on. Solomon's sharp claws caught in the cloth; and his hooked beak, too, +fastened itself in the hood the moment he tried to pull the coat over his +head. "Here!" he cried to Mr. Frog. "Just lend me a hand! I can't see to +help myself." + +But Mr. Frog did not even answer him. + +"Don't you hear me?" Solomon Owl shouted, as he struggled with his new +coat, only to become tangled in it more than ever. + +Still, the tailor said never a word, though something very like a giggle, +followed by a splash, caught Solomon's ear. + +"He's left me!" Solomon Owl groaned. + +"Mr. Frog has left me to get out of this coat alone. And goodness knows +how I'm ever a-going to do it." He threshed about so vigorously that he +tripped himself and fell upon the bank of the brook, rolling over and over +toward the water. + +He had a very narrow escape. If he hadn't happened to bring up against an +old stump he would certainly have tumbled into the stream. + +Though Solomon couldn't see, he knew that he was in danger. So he lay on +his back on the ground and carefully tore his new coat into strings and +ribbons. + +At last he was free. And he rose to his feet feeling very sheepish, for he +knew that Mr. Frog had played a sly trick on him. + +"Nevermind!" said Solomon Owl, as he flew way. "I'll come back to-morrow +and ask Mr. Frog to make me a waistcoat and trousers. And then----" He did +not finish what he was saying. But there is no doubt that whatever it was, +it could not have been very pleasant for Mr. Frog. + +Just as he had planned, Solomon Owl returned to the brook the next day. +And he was both surprised and disappointed at what he found. + +The door of Mr. Frog's tailor's shop was shut and locked. And on it there +was a sign, which said: + +TO LET + +"He's moved away!" cried Solomon Owl. And he went off feeling that he had +been cheated out of a good dinner--to say nothing of a new waistcoat--and +new trousers, too. + +He had not been gone long when the door opened. And Mr. Frog leaped nimbly +outside. He took the sign off the door; and sitting down cross-legged upon +the bank, he began to sew upon Jasper Jay's new blue suit, while his face +wore a wider smile than ever. + +He had suddenly decided not to let his shop, after all. + + + + + +VI +SOLOMON NEEDS A CHANGE + + +For some time Solomon Owl had known that a queer feeling was coming over +him. And he could not think what it meant. He noticed, too, that his +appetite was leaving him. Nothing seemed to taste good any more. + +So at last, one fine fall evening he went to see Aunt Polly Woodchuck, who +was an herb doctor; for he had begun to worry about his health. + +"It's lucky you came to-day," said Aunt Polly. "Because to-night I'm going +to begin my winter's nap. And you couldn't have seen me again till +spring--unless you happened to come here on ground-hog day, next +February.... What appears to be your trouble?" she inquired. + +"It's my appetite, partly," Solomon Owl said. "Nothing tastes as it did +when I was a youngster. And I keep longing for something, though what it +is I can't just tell." + +Aunt Polly Woodchuck nodded her head wisely. + +"What have you been eating lately?" she asked. + +Solomon Owl replied that he hadn't eaten anything but mice since the +leaves began to turn. + +"H-m--the leaves are nearly all off the trees now," the old lady remarked. +"How many mice have you eaten in that time?" + +Solomon said that as nearly as he could remember he had eaten +twenty-seven--or a hundred and twenty-seven. He couldn't say which--but one +of those numbers was correct. + +Aunt Polly Woodchuck threw up her hands. + +"Sakes alive!" she cried. "It's no wonder you don't feel well! What you +need is a change of food. And it's lucky you came to me now. If you'd gone +on like that much longer I'd hate to say what might have happened to you. +You'd have had dyspepsia, or some other sort of misery in your stomach." + +"What shall I do?" asked Solomon Owl. "Insects are scarce at this season +of the year. Of course, there are frogs--but I don't seem to care for them. +And there are fish--but they're not easy to get, for they don't come out of +the water and sit on the bank, as the frogs do." + +"How about pullets?" Aunt Polly inquired. + +At that Solomon Owl let out a long row of hoots, because he was pleased. + +"The very thing!" he cried. "That's what I've been wanting all this time. +And I never guessed it.... I'll pay you for your advice the next time I +see you," he told Aunt Polly. And Solomon Owl hurried away before she +could stop him. Since he had no intention of visiting her on ground-hog +day, he knew it would be spring before he saw Aunt Polly Woodchuck again. + +The old lady scolded a bit. And it did not make her feel any pleasanter to +hear Solomon's mocking laughter, which grew fainter and fainter as he left +the pasture behind him. Then she went inside her house, for she was fast +growing sleepy. And she wanted to set things to rights before she began +her long winter's nap. + +Meanwhile, Solomon Owl roamed restlessly through the woods. There was only +one place in the neighborhood where he could get a pullet. That was at +Farmer Green's chicken house. And for some reason he did not care to visit +the farm buildings until it grew darker. + +So he amused himself by making the woods echo with his strange cry, +"_Whoo-whoo-whoo, whoo-whoo, to-whoo-ah!_" And now and then he threw in a +few "_wha-whas_," just for extra measure. + +Many of the forest folk who heard him remarked that Solomon Owl seemed to +be in extra fine spirits. + +"Probably it's the hunter's moon that pleases him!" Jimmy Rabbit remarked +to a friend of his. "I've always noticed that old Solomon makes more noise +on moonlight nights than at any other time." + +The hunter's moon, big and yellow and round, was just rising over Blue +Mountain. But for once it was not the moon that made Solomon Owl so +talkative. He was in fine feather, so to speak, because he was hoping to +have a fat pullet for his supper. And as for the moon, he would have been +just as pleased had there been none at all that night. For Solomon Owl +never cared to be seen when he visited Farmer Green's chicken house. + + + + + +VII +THE BLAZING EYES + + +It was some three hours after sunset when Solomon Owl at last reached +Farmer Green's place. All was quiet in the chicken house because the hens +and roosters and their families had long since gone to roost. And except +for a light that shone through a window, the farmhouse showed not a sign +of life. + +Everything was as Solomon Owl wished it--or so he thought, at least, as he +alighted in a tree in the yard to look about him. He wanted no one to +interrupt him when he should go nosing around the chicken house, to find +an opening. + +To his annoyance, he had not sat long in the tree when the wood-shed door +opened. And Solomon stared in amazement at the strange sight he saw. + +A great head appeared, with eyes and mouth--yes! and nose, too--all a +glaring flame color. Solomon had never seen such a horrible face on man or +bird or beast. But he was sure it was a man, for he heard a laugh that was +not to be mistaken for either a beast's or a bird's. And the worst of it +was, those blazing eyes were turned squarely toward Farmer Green's chicken +house! + +Solomon Owl was too wary to go for his fat pullet just then. He decided +that he would wait quietly in the tree for a time, hoping that the man +would go away. + +While Solomon watched him the stranger neither moved nor spoke. And, of +course, Solomon Owl was growing hungrier every minute. So at last he felt +that he simply _must_ say something. + +"Who-who-who-are-you?" he called out from his tree. + +But the strange man did not answer. He did not even turn his head. + +"He must be some city person," Solomon Owl said to himself. "He thinks +he's too good to speak to a countryman like me." + +Then Solomon sat up and listened. He heard a scratching sound. And soon he +saw a plump figure crawl right up into his tree-top. + +It was Fatty Coon! + +"What are you doing here?" Solomon Owl asked in a low voice, which was not +any too pleasant. + +"I'm out for an airing," Fatty answered. "Beautiful night--isn't it?" + +But Solomon Owl was not interested in the weather. "I don't suppose you've +come down here to get a chicken, have you?" he inquired. + +Fatty Coon seemed greatly surprised at the question. + +"Why--no!" he exclaimed. "But now that you speak of it, it reminds me that +Farmer Green's saving a pullet for me. He was heard to say not long ago +that he would like to catch me taking one of his hens. So he must have one +for me. And I don't want to disappoint him." + +At first Solomon Owl didn't know what answer to make. But at last he +turned his head toward Fatty. + +"Why don't you go and get your pullet now?" he asked. + +"There's that man down below, with the glaring eyes--" said Fatty Coon. +"I've been waiting around here for quite a long time and he hasn't looked +away from the chicken house even once.... Do you know him?" + +"No! And I don't want to!" said Solomon Owl. + +"S-sh!" Fatty Coon held up a warning hand. "Who's that?" he asked, peering +down at a dark object at the foot of their tree. + +Then both he and Solomon saw that it was Tommy Fox, sitting on his +haunches and staring at the big head, with its blazing eyes and nose and +mouth. + +"Not looking for chickens, I suppose?" Solomon Owl called in a low tone, +which was hardly more than a whisper. + +But Tommy Fox's sharp ears heard him easily. And he looked up, licking his +chops as if he were very hungry indeed. And all the while the stranger +continued to stare straight at the chicken house, as if he did not intend +to let anybody go + +prowling about that long, low building to steal any of Farmer Green's +poultry. + +It was no wonder that the three chicken-lovers (two in the tree and one +beneath it) hesitated. If the queer man had only spoken they might not +have been so timid. But he said never a word. + + + + + +VIII +WATCHING THE CHICKENS + + +Solomon Owl and Fatty Coon couldn't help laughing at what Tommy Fox said +to them, as they sat in their tree near the farmhouse, looking down at him +in the moonlight. + +"I'm here to watch Farmer Green's chickens for him--" said he--"to see that +no rat--or anybody else--runs away with a pullet." + +"Farmer Green has someone else watching for him to-night," said Solomon +Owl, when he had stopped laughing. "There's that strange man! You can see +how he keeps his glaring eyes fixed on the chicken house. And unless I'm +mistaken, he's on the lookout for _you_." + +"No such thing!" Tommy Fox snapped. And he looked up at Solomon as if he +wished that he could climb the tree. + +"Here comes somebody else!" Fatty Coon exclaimed suddenly. His keen eyes +had caught sight of Jimmy Rabbit, hopping along on his way to the +vegetable garden, to see if he couldn't find a stray cabbage or a turnip. + +Solomon Owl called to him. Whereupon, Jimmy Rabbit promptly sat up and +looked at the odd trio. If it hadn't been for Tommy Fox he would have +drawn nearer. + +"Do you know that stranger?" Solomon Owl asked him, pointing out the +horrible head to Jimmy. + +"I haven't the pleasure," said Jimmy Rabbit, after he had taken a good +look. + +"Well," said Solomon, "won't you kindly speak to him; and ask him to go +away?" + +"Certainly!" answered Jimmy Rabbit, who always tried to be obliging. + +"I hope the stranger won't eat him," remarked Tommy Fox, "because I hope +to do that some day, myself." + +It was queer--but Jimmy Rabbit was the only one of the four that wasn't +afraid of those glaring features. He hopped straight up to the big round +head, which was just a bit higher than one of the fence posts, against +which the stranger seemed to be leaning. And after a moment or two Jimmy +Rabbit called to Solomon and Fatty and Tommy Fox: + +"He won't go away! He's going to stay right where he is!" + +"Come here a minute!" said Tommy. + +Jimmy Rabbit shook his head. + +"You come over here!" he answered. And he did not stir from the side of +the stranger. He knew very well that Tommy Fox was afraid of the man with +the head with the glaring eyes. + +As for Tommy Fox, he did not even reply--that is, to Jimmy Rabbit. But he +spoke his mind freely enough to his two friends in the tree. + +"It seems to me one of you ought to do something," said he. "We'll eat no +pullets to-night if we can't get rid of this meddlesome stranger." + +Fatty Coon quite agreed with him. + +"The one who was here first is the one to act!" Fatty declared. "That's +_you_!" he told Solomon Owl. + +So Solomon Owl felt most uncomfortable. + +"I don't know what I can do," he said. "I spoke to the stranger--asked him +who he was. And he wouldn't answer me." + +"Can't you frighten him away?" Tommy Fox inquired. "Fly right over his +head and give him a blow with your wing as you pass!" + +Solomon Owl coughed. He was embarrassed, to say the least. + +"He's afraid!" Fatty Coon cried. And both he and Tommy Fox kept repeating, +over and over again, "He's afraid! He's afraid! He's afraid!" + +It was really more than Solomon Owl could stand. + +"I'm not!" he retorted angrily. "Watch me and you'll see!" And without +another word he darted out of the tree and swooped down upon the stranger, +just brushing the top of his head. Solomon Owl knew at once that he had +knocked something off the top of that dreadful head--something that fell to +the ground and made Jimmy Rabbit jump nervously. + +Then Solomon returned to his perch in the tree. + +"He hasn't moved," he said. "But I knocked off his hat." + +"You took off the top of his head!" cried Fatty Coon in great excitement. +"Look! The inside of his head is afire." + +And peering down from the tree-top, Solomon Owl saw that Fatty Coon had +told the truth. + + + + + +IX +HALLOWE'EN + + +Solomon Owl was afraid of fire. And when he looked down from his perch in +the tree and saw, through the hole in the stranger's crown, that all was +aglow inside his big, round head, Solomon couldn't help voicing his +horror. He "_whoo-whooed_" so loudly that Tommy Fox, at the foot of the +tree, asked him what on earth was the matter. + +"His head's all afire!" Solomon Owl told him. "That's what makes his eyes +glare so. And that's why the fire shines through his mouth and his nose, +too. It's no wonder he didn't answer my question--for, of course, his +tongue must certainly be burned to a cinder." + +"Then it ought to be safe for anybody to enter the chicken house," Tommy +Fox observed. "What could the stranger do, when he's in such a fix?" + +"He could set the chicken house afire, if he followed you inside," replied +Solomon Owl wisely. "And I, for one, am not going near the pullets +to-night." + +"Nor I!" Fatty Coon echoed. "I'm going straight to the cornfield. The corn +is still standing there in shocks; and I ought to find enough ears to make +a good meal." + +But Solomon Owl and Tommy Fox were not interested in corn. They never ate +it. And so it is not surprising that they should be greatly disappointed. +After a person has his mouth all made up for chicken it is hard to think +of anything that would taste even half as good. + +"It's queer he doesn't go and hold his head under the pump," said Solomon +Owl. "That's what I should do, if I were he." + +"Jimmy Rabbit had better not go too near him, or he'll get singed," said +Tommy Fox, anxiously. "I don't want anything to happen to _him_." + +"Jimmy Rabbit is very careless," Solomon declared. "I don't see what he's +thinking of--going so near a fire! It makes me altogether too nervous to +stay here. And I'm going away at once." + +Tommy Fox said that he felt the same way. And the moment Fatty Coon, with +his sharp claws, started to crawl down the tree on his way to the +cornfield, Tommy Fox hurried off without even stopping to say good-bye. + +"_Haw-haw-haw-hoo_!" laughed Solomon Owl. "Tommy Fox is afraid of you!" he +told Fatty Coon. + +But Fatty didn't seem to hear him. He was thinking only of the supper of +corn that he was going to have. + +"Better come away!" Solomon Owl called to Jimmy Rabbit, turning his head +toward the fence where Jimmy had been lingering near the hot-headed +stranger. + +But Jimmy Rabbit didn't answer him, either. He was no longer there. The +moment he had seen Tommy Fox bounding off across the meadow Jimmy had +started at once for Farmer Green's vegetable garden. + +So Solomon Owl was the last to leave. + +"There's really nothing else I can do," he remarked to himself. "I don't +know what Aunt Polly Woodchuck would say if she knew that I didn't follow +her advice to-night and eat a pullet for my supper.... But I've tried my +best.... And that's all anybody can do." + +Solomon Owl was upset all the rest of that night. And just before daybreak +he visited the farmyard again, to see whether the strange man with the +flaring head still watched the chicken house. And Solomon found that he +had vanished. + +So Solomon Owl alighted on the fence. There was nothing there except a +hollowed-out pumpkin, with a few holes cut in it, which someone had left +on one of the fence-posts. + +"Good!" said he. "Maybe I can get my pullet after all!" He turned to fly +to the chicken house. But just then the woodshed door opened again. And +Farmer Green stepped outside, with a lantern in his hand. He was going to +the barn to milk the cows. But Solomon Owl did not wait to learn anything +more. + +He hurried away to his house among the hemlocks. And having quickly +settled himself for a good nap, he was soon fast asleep. + +That was how Johnnie Green's jack-o'-lantern kept Tommy Fox and Fatty Coon +and Solomon Owl from taking any chickens on Hallowe'en. + + + + + +X +A TROUBLESOME WISHBONE + + +Solomon Owl had pains--sharp pains--underneath his waistcoat. And not +knowing what else to do, he set off at once for Aunt Polly Woodchuck's +house under the hill, in the pasture, which he had not visited since the +previous fall. Luckily, he found the old lady at home. And quickly he told +her of his trouble. + +"What have you been eating?" she inquired. + +"I've followed your advice. I've been eating chickens," said he--"very +small chickens, because they were all I could get." + +Aunt Polly Woodchuck, who was an herb doctor--and a good one--regarded him +through her spectacles. + +"I'm afraid," said she, "you don't chew your food properly. Bolting one's +food is very harmful. It's as bad as not eating anything at all, almost." + +Solomon Owl showed plainly that her remark surprised him. + +"Why," he exclaimed, "I always swallow my food whole--when it isn't too +big!" + +"Gracious me!" cried Aunt Polly, throwing up both her hands. "It's no +wonder you're ill. It's no wonder you have pains; and now I know exactly +what's the matter with you. You have a wishbone inside you. I can feel +it!" she told him, as she prodded him in the waistcoat. + +"I wish you could get it out for me!" said Solomon with a look of +distress. + +"All the wishing in the world won't help you," she answered, "unless we +can find some way of removing the wishbone so you can wish on that. Then +I'm sure you would feel better at once." + +"This is strange," Solomon mused. "All my life I've been swallowing my +food without chewing it. And it has never given me any trouble before.... +What shall I do?" + +"Don't eat anything for a week," she directed. "And fly against +tree-trunks as hard as you can. Then come back here after seven days." + +Solomon Owl went off in a most doleful frame of mind. It seemed to him +that he had never seen so many mice and frogs and chipmunks as he came +across during the following week. But he didn't dare catch a single one, +on account of what Aunt Polly Woodchuck had said. + +His pains, however, grew less from day to day--at least, the pains that had +first troubled him. But he had others to take their place. Hunger pangs, +these were! And they were almost as bad as those that had sent him +hurrying to see Aunt Polly Woodchuck. + +On the whole, Solomon passed a very unhappy week. Flying head foremost +into tree-trunks (as Aunt Polly had instructed him to do) gave him many +bumps and bruises. So he was glad when the time came for him to return to +her house in the pasture. + +Solomon's neighbors had been so interested in watching him that they were +all sorry when he ceased his strange actions. Indeed, there was a rumor +that Solomon had become very angry with Farmer Green and that he was +trying to knock down some of Farmer Green's trees. Before the end of that +unpleasant week Solomon had often noticed as many as twenty-four of the +forest folk following him about, hoping to see a tree fall. + +But they were all disappointed. However, they enjoyed the sight of Solomon +hurling himself against tree-trunks. And the louder he groaned, the more +people gathered around him. + + + + + +XI +CURED AT LAST + + +"How do you feel now?" Aunt Polly Woodchuck asked Solomon Owl, when he had +come back to her house after a week's absence. + +"No better!" he groaned. "I still have pains. But they seem to have moved +and scattered all over me." + +"Good!" she exclaimed with a smile. "You _are_ much better, though you +didn't know it. The wishbone is broken. You broke it by flying against the +trees. And you ought not to have any more trouble. But let me examine +you!" she said, prodding him in the waistcoat once more. + +"This is odd!" she continued a bit later. "I can feel the wishbone more +plainly than ever." + +"That's my own wishbone!" Solomon cried indignantly. "I've grown so thin +through not eating that it's a wonder you can't feel my backbone, too." + +Aunt Polly Woodchuck looked surprised. + +"Perhaps you're right!" said she. "Not having a wishbone of my own, I +forgot that you had one." + +A look of disgust came over Solomon Owl's face. + +"You're a very poor doctor," he told her. "Here you've kept me from eating +for a whole week--and I don't believe it was necessary at all!" + +"Well, you're better, aren't you?" she asked him. + +"I shall be as soon as I have a good meal," replied Solomon Owl, +hopefully. + +"You ought not to eat anything for another week," Aunt Polly told him +solemnly. + +"Nonsense!" he cried. + +"I'm a doctor; and I ought to know best," she insisted. + +But Solomon Owl hooted rudely. + +"I'll never come to you for advice any more," he declared. "I firmly +believe that my whole trouble was simply that I've been eating too +sparingly. And I shall take good care to see that it doesn't happen +again." + +No one had ever spoken to Aunt Polly in quite that fashion--though old Mr. +Crow had complained one time that she had cured him _too quickly_. But she +did not lose her temper, in spite of Solomon's jeers. + +"You'll be back here again the very next time you're ill," she remarked. +"And if you continue to swallow your food whole----" + +But Solomon Owl did not even wait to hear what she said. He was so +impolite that he flew away while she was talking. And since it was then +almost dark, and a good time to look for field mice, he began his night's +hunting right there in Farmer Green's pasture. + +By morning Solomon was so plump that Aunt Polly Woodchuck would have had a +good deal of trouble finding his wishbone. But since he did not visit her +again, she had no further chance to prod him in the waistcoat. + +Afterward, Solomon heard a bit of gossip that annoyed him. A friend of his +reported that Aunt Polly Woodchuck was going about and telling everybody +how she had saved Solomon's life. + +"Mice!" he exclaimed (he often said that when some would have said +"Rats!"). "There's not a word of truth in her claim. And if people in this +neighborhood keep on taking her advice and her catnip tea they're going to +be sorry some day. For they'll be really ill the first thing they know. +And then what will they do?" + + + + + +XII +BENJAMIN BAT + + +Solomon Owl was by no means the only night-prowler in Pleasant Valley. He +had neighbors that chose to sleep in the daytime, so they might roam +through the woods and fields after dark. One of these was Benjamin Bat. +And furthermore, he was the color of night itself. + +Now, Benjamin Bat was an odd chap. When he was still he liked to hang by +his feet, upside down. And when he was flying he sailed about in a zigzag, +helter-skelter fashion. He went in so many different directions, turning +this way and that, one could never tell where he was going. One might say +that his life was just one continual dodge--when he wasn't resting with his +heels where his head ought to be. + +A good many of Benjamin Bat's friends said he certainly must be crazy, +because he didn't do as they did. But that never made the slightest +difference in Benjamin Bat's habits. He continued to zigzag through +life--and hang by his heels--just the same. Perhaps he thought that all +other people were crazy because they didn't do likewise. + +Benjamin often dodged across Solomon Owl's path, when Solomon was hunting +for field mice. And since Benjamin was the least bit like a mouse +himself--except for his wings--there was a time, once, when Solomon tried to +catch him. + +But Solomon Owl soon found that chasing Benjamin Bat made him dizzy. If +Benjamin hadn't been used to hanging head downward, maybe he would have +been dizzy, too. + +Though the two often saw each other, Benjamin Bat never seemed to care to +stop for a chat with Solomon Owl. One night, however, Benjamin actually +called to Solomon and asked his advice. He was in trouble. And he knew +that Solomon Owl was supposed by some to be the wisest old fellow for +miles around. + +It was almost morning. And Solomon Owl was hurrying home, because a +terrible storm had arisen. The lightning was flashing, and peals of +thunder crashed through the woods. Big drops of rain were already +pattering down. But Solomon Owl did not care, for he had almost reached +his house in the hollow hemlock near the foot of Blue Mountain. + +It was different with Benjamin Bat. That night he had strayed a long +distance from his home in Cedar Swamp. And he didn't know what to do. "I +want to get under cover, somewhere," he told Solomon Owl. "You don't know +of a good place near-by, do you, where I can get out of the storm and take +a nap?" + +"Why, yes!" answered Solomon Owl. "Come right along to my house and spend +the day with me!" + +But Benjamin Bat did not like the suggestion at all. + +"I'm afraid I might crowd, you," he said. He was thinking of the time when +Solomon Owl had chased him. And sleeping in Solomon Owl's house seemed far +from a safe thing to do. + + [_Illustration 2_] + + Benjamin Asked Solomon's Advice + + +Solomon was wise enough to guess what was going on inside Benjamin's head. + +"Come along!" he said. "We'll both be asleep before we know it. I'm sorry +I can't offer you something to eat. But I haven't a morsel of food in my +house. No doubt, though, you've just had a good meal. _I_ ate seven mice +to-night. And I certainly couldn't eat anything more." + +When Solomon Owl told him that, Benjamin Bat thought perhaps there was no +danger, after all. And since the rain was falling harder and harder every +moment, he thanked Solomon and said he would be glad to accent his +invitation. + +"Follow me, then!" said Solomon Owl. And he led the way to his home in the +hemlock. + +For once, Benjamin Bat flew in a fairly straight line, though he did a +little dodging, because he couldn't help it. + +There was more room inside Solomon's house than Benjamin Bat had supposed. +While Benjamin was looking about and telling Solomon that he had a fine +home, his host quickly made a bed of leaves in one corner of the +room--there was only one room, of course. + +"That's for you!" said Solomon Owl. "I always sleep on the other side of +the house." And without waiting even to make sure that his guest was +comfortable, Solomon Owl lay down and began to snore--for he was very +sleepy. + +It was so cozy there that Benjamin Bat was glad, already, that he had +accepted Solomon's invitation. + + + + + +XIII +THE LUCKY GUEST + + +In the middle of the day Solomon Owl happened to awake. He was sorry that +he hadn't slept until sunset, because he was very hungry. Knowing that it +was light outside his hollow tree, he didn't want to leave home to find +something to eat. + +Then, suddenly, he remembered that he had brought Benjamin Bat to his +house early that morning, so Benjamin might escape the storm.... Why not +eat Benjamin Bat? + +As soon as the thought occurred to him, Solomon Owl liked it. And he moved +stealthily over to the bed of leaves he had made for his guest just before +daybreak. + +But Benjamin Bat was not there. Though Solomon looked in every nook and +cranny of his one-room house, he did not find him. + +"He must have left as soon as it stopped raining," said Solomon Owl to +himself. "He might at least have waited to thank me for giving him a day's +lodging. It's the last time I'll ever bring any worthless vagabond into my +house. And I ought to have known better than to have anything to do with a +crazy person like Benjamin Bat." + +Anybody can see that Solomon Owl was displeased. But it was not at all +astonishing, if one stops to remember how hungry he was, and that he had +expected to enjoy a good meal without the trouble of going away from home +to get it. + +Solomon Owl went to the door of his house and looked out. The sun was +shining so brightly that after blinking in his doorway for a few minutes +he decided that he would go to bed again and try to sleep until dusk. He +never liked bright days. "They're so dismal!" he used to say. "Give me a +good, dark night and I'm happy, for there's nothing more cheering than +gloom." + +In spite of the pangs of hunger that gnawed inside him, Solomon at last +succeeded in falling asleep once more. And he dreamed that he chased +Benjamin Bat three times around Blue Mountain, and then three times back +again, in the opposite direction. But he never could catch him, because +Benjamin Bat simply wouldn't fly straight. His zigzag course was so +confusing that even in his dream Solomon Owl grew dizzy. + +Now, Benjamin Bat was in Solomon's house all the time. And the reason why +Solomon Owl hadn't found him was a very simple one. It was merely that +Solomon hadn't looked in the right place. + +Benjamin Bat was hidden--as you might say--where his hungry host never once +thought of looking for him. And being asleep all the while, Benjamin +didn't once move or make the slightest noise. + +If he had snored, or sneezed, or rustled his wings, no doubt Solomon Owl +would have found him. + +When Benjamin awakened, late in the afternoon, Solomon was still sleeping. +And Benjamin crept through the door and went out into the gathering +twilight, without arousing Solomon. + +"I'll thank him the next time I meet him," Benjamin Bat decided. And he +staggered away through the air as if he did not quite know, himself, where +he was going. But, of course, that was only his queer way of flying. + +When he told his friends where he had spent the day they were astonished. + +"How did you ever dare do anything so dangerous as sleeping in Solomon +Owl's house?" they all asked him. + +But Benjamin Bat only said, "Oh! There was nothing to be afraid of." And +he began to feel quite important. + + + + + +XIV +HANGING BY THE HEELS + + +It was several nights before Solomon Owl and Benjamin Bat chanced to meet +again in the forest. + +"Hullo!" said Solomon. + +"Hullo!" said Benjamin Bat. "I'm glad to see you, because I want to thank +you for letting me spend the day in your house, so I wouldn't have to stay +out in the storm." + +"You must be a light sleeper," Solomon observed. (He did not tell Benjamin +that he was welcome!) + +"What makes you think that?" Benjamin Bat inquired. + +"Why--you left my house before noon," Solomon told him. + +"Oh, no!" said Benjamin. "I slept soundly until sunset. When I came away +the crickets were chirping. And I was surprised that you hadn't waked up +yourself." + +"You were gone before midday," Solomon Owl insisted. And they had +something very like a dispute, while Solomon Owl sat in one tree and +Benjamin Bat hung head downward from another. "I ought to know," said +Solomon. "I was awake about noon; and I looked everywhere for you." + +"What for?" asked Benjamin. + +Naturally, Solomon didn't like to tell him that he had intended to eat +him. So he looked wise--and said nothing. + +"You didn't look on the ceiling, did you?" Benjamin Bat inquired. + +"No, indeed!" Solomon Owl exclaimed. + +"Well, that's where I was, hanging by my feet," Benjamin Bat informed him. + +Solomon Owl certainly was surprised to hear that. + +"The idea!" he cried. "You're a queer one! I never once thought of looking +_on the ceiling_ for a _luncheon_!" He was so astonished that he spoke +before he thought how oddly his remark would sound to another. + +When he heard what Solomon Owl said, Benjamin Bat knew at once that +Solomon had meant to eat him. And he was so frightened that he dropped +from the limb to which he was clinging and flew off as fast as he could +go. For once in his life he flew in a straight line, with no zigzags at +all, he was in such a hurry to get away from Solomon Owl, who--for all he +knew--might still be very hungry. + +But Solomon Owl had caught so many mice that night that he didn't feel +like chasing anybody. So he sat motionless in the tree, merely turning his +head to watch Benjamin sailing away through the dusky woods. He noticed +that Benjamin didn't dodge at all--except when there was a tree in his way. +And he wondered what the reason was. + +"Perhaps he's not so crazy as I supposed," said Solomon Owl to himself. +And ever afterward, when he happened to awake and feel hungry, Solomon Owl +used to look up at the ceiling above him and wish that Benjamin Bat was +there. + +But Benjamin Bat never cared to have anything more to do with Solomon Owl. + +He said he had a good reason for avoiding him. + +And ever afterward he passed for a very brave person among his friends. +They often pointed him out to strangers, saying, "There's Benjamin Bat! +_He_ doesn't know what fear is. Why, once he even spent a whole day asleep +in Solomon Owl's house! And if you don't think _that_ was a bold thing to +do, then I guess you don't know Solomon Owl." + + + + + +XV +DISPUTES SETTLED + + +Solomon Owl looked so wise that many of his neighbors fell into the habit +of going to him for advice. If two of the forest folk chanced to have a +dispute which they could not settle between them they frequently visited +Solomon and asked him to decide which was in the right. And in the course +of time Solomon became known far and wide for his ability to patch up a +quarrel. + +At last Jimmy Rabbit stopped Solomon Owl one night and suggested that he +hang a sign outside his house, so that there shouldn't be anybody in the +whole valley that wouldn't know what to do in case he found himself in an +argument. + +Solomon decided on the spot that Jimmy Rabbit's idea was a good one. So he +hurried home and before morning he had his sign made, and put out where +everyone could see it. It looked like this: + +DISPUTES SETTLED WITHIN + +There was only one objection to the sign. As soon as Jimmy Rabbit saw it +he told Solomon that it should have said: + +DISPUTES SETTLED WITHOUT + +"Without what?" Solomon Owl inquired. + +"Why, without going into your house!" said Jimmy Rabbit. "I can't climb a +tree, you know. And neither can Tommy Fox. We might have a dispute +to-night; and how could you ever settle it?" + +"Oh, I shall be willing to step outside," Solomon told him. And he refused +to change the sign, declaring that he liked it just as it was. + +Now, there was only one trouble with Solomon Owl's settling of disputes. +Many of the forest folk wanted to see him in the daytime. And _night_ was +the only time _he_ was willing to see them. But he heard so many +objections to that arrangement that in the end Solomon agreed to meet +people at dusk and at dawn, when it was neither very dark nor very light. +On the whole he found that way very satisfactory, because there was just +enough light at dusk and at dawn to make him blink. And when Solomon +blinked he looked even wiser than ever. + +Well, the first disputing pair that came to Solomon's tree after he hung +out his new sign were old Mr. Crow and Jasper Jay. They reached the +hemlock grove soon after sunset and squalled loudly for Solomon. "Hurry!" +Mr. Crow cried, as soon as Solomon Owl stepped outside his door. "It will +be dark before we know it; and it's almost our bedtime." + +"What's your difficulty?" Solomon asked them. + +Mr. Crow looked at Jasper Jay. And then he looked at Solomon again. + +"Maybe you won't like to hear it," he said. And he winked at Jasper. "But +you've put out this sign--so we've come here." + +"You've done just right!" exclaimed Solomon Owl. "And as for my not liking +to hear the trouble, it's your dispute and not mine. So I don't see how it +concerns me--except to settle it." + +"Very Well," Mr. Crow answered. "The dispute, then, is this: Jasper says +that in spite of your looking so wise, you're really the stupidest person +in Pleasant Valley." + +"He does, eh?" cried Solomon Owl, while Jasper Jay laughed loudly. "And +you, of course, do not agree with him," Solomon continued. + +"I do not!" Mr. Crow declared. + +"Good!" said Solomon, nodding his head approvingly. + +"No, I do not agree with Jasper Jay," Mr. Crow said. "I claim that there's +one other person more stupid than you are--and that's Fatty Coon." + +Well, Solomon Owl certainly was displeased. And it didn't make him feel +any happier to hear Jasper Jay's boisterous shouts, or the hoarse +"_haw-haw_" of old Mr. Crow. + +"I hope you can decide which one of us is right," Mr. Crow ventured. + +"I am, of course!" cried Jasper Jay. + +"You're not!" Mr. Crow shouted. And to Solomon Owl he said, "We've been +disputing like this all day long." + +Solomon Owl didn't know what to say. If he announced that Jasper was right +it would be the same as admitting that he was the stupidest person in the +whole neighborhood. And if he said that old Mr. Crow's opinion was correct +he would not be much better off. Naturally he didn't want to tell either +of them that he was right. + +"I'll have to think about this," Solomon observed at last. + +"We don't want to wait," said Mr. Crow. "If we keep on disputing we're +likely to have a fight." + +Now, Solomon Owl hoped that they would have a fight. So he was determined +to keep them waiting for his decision. + +"Come back to-morrow at this time," he said. + + + + + +XVI +NINE FIGHTS + + +The next evening, just at dusk, Jasper Jay and old Mr. Crow returned to +Solomon Owl's house, looking much bedraggled. One of Mr. Crow's eyes was +almost closed; and Jasper Jay's crest seemed to have been torn half off +his head. + +"What's the matter?" asked Solomon, as soon as he saw them. + +"We've had three fights," said Jasper Jay. + +"Yes! And I've whipped him each time!" cried Mr. Crow. "So I must be in +the right. And you'd better decide our dispute in my favor at once." + +But Solomon Owl was still in no hurry. + +"It's a difficult question to settle,' said he. 'I don't want to make any +mistake. So I shall have to ask you to come back here to-morrow at this +time." + +Both Jasper and Mr. Crow seemed disappointed. Although Mr. Crow had won +each fight, he was very weary, for he was older than Jasper Jay. + +As they went off, Solomon Owl began to feel much pleased with himself. + +The following evening, at sunset, old Mr. Crow and Jasper Jay visited +Solomon Owl once more. And they looked more battered than ever. + +"We've had three more fights," said Mr. Crow. + +"Yes! And I won each time!" Jasper Jay piped up. "So I must be in the +right. And you'd better decide in my favor without any further delay." + +Solomon Owl thought deeply for some time. + +"Maybe I ought to wait until to-morrow----" he began. + +But his callers both shouted "No!" + +"Well," said Solomon, "Mr. Crow has won three fights; and Jasper Jay has +won three. So it is certain that each must be in the wrong." + +But that announcement did not satisfy Jasper and Mr. Crow. And they left +the hemlock grove, disputing more loudly than ever. + +And the next day, at dusk, they came back again. + +"We've had three more fights; and I won!" they both cried at the same +time. + +"That proves my claim," said Solomon Owl. "You're both wrong." + +They whispered together for a few minutes. + +"We don't like your way of settling disputes," Mr. Crow remarked shortly. +"But we've decided to stop quarreling." + +"Good!" said Solomon Owl. "That shows that you are sensible." + +"Yes!" replied Jasper. "We've decided to stop quarreling and fight _you_!" + +"Wait a moment!" said Solomon Owl hastily, as they drew nearer. "I don't +want my new suit spoiled." And he ducked inside the hollow tree before +they could reach him. + +Jasper and Mr. Crow waited and waited. But Solomon Owl did not reappear. +And since his two visitors did not dare follow him into the dark cavern +where he lived, they decided at last that they would go home--and get into +bed. + +"Let's take away his sign, anyhow!" Jasper Jay suggested. + +So they pulled down Solomon's sign, which said "Disputes Settled Within," +and they carried it off with them and hid it in some bushes. + +That same night Solomon Owl hunted for it for a long time. But he never +found it. + +He decided not to hang out another, for he saw that settling disputes was +a dangerous business. + + + + + +XVII +COUSIN SIMON SCREECHER + + +Solomon Owl had a small cousin named Simon Screecher. He was unlike +Solomon in some respects, because he always wore ear-tufts, and his eyes +were yellow instead of black. But in some other ways he was no different +from Solomon Owl, for he was a noisy chap and dearly loved mice--to eat. + +It happened that the two met in the woods one fine fall evening; and they +agreed to go hunting mice together. + +Now, being so much smaller than Solomon, Simon Screecher was all the +spryer. In fact, he was so active that he could catch mice faster than +Solomon Owl could capture them. And they had not hunted long before +Solomon discovered that Simon had succeeded in disposing of six mice to +his three. + +That discovery did not please Solomon at all. + +"Look here!" he said. "Since we are hunting together it's only fair to +divide what we catch, half and half." + +Simon Screecher hesitated. But after reflecting that his cousin was very +big and very strong, he agreed to Solomon's suggestion. + +So they resumed their hunting. And every time one of them caught two mice, +he gave one mouse to his cousin. + +Still Solomon Owl was not satisfied. + +"Wait a moment!" Solomon called to Simon Screecher. "It has just occurred +to me that I am more than twice as big as you are; so I ought to have +twice as many mice as you." + +This time Simon Screecher hesitated longer. He did not like the second +suggestion even as well as the first. And in the end he said as much, too. + +But Solomon Owl insisted that it was only fair. + +"You surely ought to be glad to please your own cousin," he told Simon. + +"It's not that," said Simon Screecher. "It seems to me that since I'm not +half your size, I ought to have twice as many mice to eat, so I'll grow +bigger." + +Well, Solomon Owl hadn't thought of that. He was puzzled to know what to +say. And he wanted time in which to ponder. + +"I'll think over what you say," he told Simon Screecher. "And now, since +it's almost dawn, we'd better not hunt any longer to-night. But I'll meet +you again at dusk if you'll come to my house." + +"Very well, Cousin Solomon!" Simon answered. "I'm sure that after you've +had a good sleep you'll be ready to agree with me." + +"If that's the case, I may not take any nap at all," Solomon replied. + +"Oh! You ought to have your rest!" his cousin exclaimed. Simon knew that +if Solomon went all day without sleep he would be frightfully peevish by +nightfall. + +"Well--I'll try to get forty winks," Solomon promised. "But I don't believe +I can get more than that, because I have so much on my mind that I'm sure +to be wakeful." + +Simon Screecher was somewhat worried as they parted. His wailing, +tremulous whistle, which floated through the shadowy woods, showed that he +was far from happy. + + + + + +XVIII +XVIII - A COUSINLY QUARREL + + +It proved to be just as Solomon Owl had told his cousin, Simon Screecher. +Solomon had so much on his mind that he had no sooner fallen asleep than +he awoke again, to study over the question that perplexed him. He +certainly did not want Simon to have twice as many mice as he. But Simon's +argument was a good one. He had said that since Solomon was more than +twice his size, it was proper that he should have a chance to grow. And +everybody knew--Solomon reflected--everybody knew that _eating_ made one +larger. + +The longer Solomon pondered, the farther he seemed from any answer that he +liked. And he had begun to fear that he would not succeed in getting more +than thirty-nine winks all day--instead of forty--when all at once an idea +came into his mind. + +Solomon knew right away that he had nothing more to worry about. He +dropped into a sound sleep with a pleasant smile upon his usually solemn +face. And when he opened his eyes again it was time for Simon Screecher to +arrive. + +Yes! Solomon could hear his cousin's whistle even then. So he hurried to +his door; and there was Simon, sitting on a limb of the big hemlock +waiting for him! + +"It's all right!" said Solomon to his cousin. "I agree to your suggestion. +We'll hunt together again to-night; and if you will give me one-third of +all the mice you catch, I promise to give you two-thirds of all the mice +that I capture." + +"Good!" said Simon Screecher. And he looked vastly relieved. "Just hoot +when you have any mice for me!" + +"Whistle when you have any for me!" Solomon Owl replied. + +And at that they started out for their night's sport. It was not long +before Simon Screecher's well known whistle brought Solomon hurrying to +him. Simon already had three mice, one of which he gave to Solomon, +according to their agreement. + +That same thing happened several times; until at last Simon Screecher +began to grumble. + +"What's the matter?" he asked his cousin. "You are not hooting, as you +promised you would." + +"But I haven't caught any mice yet!" Solomon Owl replied. + + [_Illustration 3_] + + "It's All Right," Said Solomon + + +Again and again and again Simon's call summoned Solomon. But not once did +Solomon's summon Simon. And all the time Simon Screecher grew more +discontented. Toward the end of the night he declared flatly that he +wasn't going to hunt any more with his cousin. + +"I've done exactly as I agreed!" Solomon Owl protested. + +"You're altogether too slow and clumsy," Simon Screecher told him bluntly. +"If I'm going to hunt with anybody after this I'm going to choose someone +that's as spry as I am. There's no sense in my working for you. Here I've +toiled all night long and I'm still hungry, for I've given you a third of +my food." + +They parted then--and none too pleasantly. + +In Simon's whistle, as he flew away toward his home, there was +unmistakable anger. But Solomon Owl's answering hoots--while they were not +exactly sweet--seemed to carry more than a hint of laughter. + +One would naturally think that Solomon might have been even hungrier than +his small cousin. But it was not so. He had had more to eat than usual; +for he had been very busy catching locusts and katydids--and frogs, too. +Solomon Owl had not tried to catch a single mouse that night. + +You know now the idea that had come to him while he was lying awake in his +house during the daytime. He had made up his mind that he would not hunt +for _mice_. And since he had not promised Simon to give him anything else, +there was no reason why he should not eat all the frogs and katydids and +locusts that he could find. + +Perhaps it was not surprising that Simon Screecher never guessed the +truth. But he seemed to know that there was something queer about that +night's hunting, for he never came to Solomon Owl's house again. + + + + + +XIX +THE SLEET STORM + + +It was winter. And for several days a strong south wind had swept up +Pleasant Valley. That--as Solomon Owl knew very well--that meant a thaw was +coming. He was not sorry, because the weather had been bitterly cold. + +Well, the thaw came. And the weather grew so warm that Solomon Owl could +stay out all night without once feeling chilled. He found the change so +agreeable that he strayed further from home than was his custom. Indeed, +he was far away on the other side of Blue Mountain at midnight, when it +began to rain. + +Now, that was not quite so pleasant. But still Solomon did not mind +greatly. It was not until later that he began to feel alarmed, when he +noticed that flying did not seem so easy as usual. + +Solomon had grown heavy all at once--and goodness knows it was not because +he had overeaten, for food was scarce at that season of the year. +Moreover, Solomon's wings were strangely stiff. When he moved them they +_crackled_. + +"It must be my joints," he said to himself. "I'm afraid this wetting has +given me rheumatism." So he started home at once--though it was only +midnight. But the further he went, the worse he felt--and the harder it was +to fly. + +"I'll have to rest a while," he said to himself at last. So he alighted on +a limb; for he was more tired than he had ever been in all his life. + +But he soon felt so much better that he was ready to start on again. And +then, to his dismay, Solomon Owl found that he could hardly stir. The +moment he left his perch he floundered down upon the ground. And though he +tried his hardest, he couldn't reach the tree again. + +The rain was still beating down steadily. And Solomon began to think it a +bad night to be out. What was worse, the weather was fast turning cold. + +"I'm afraid I'll have to stay in bed a week after this," he groaned. "If I +sit here long, as wet as I am, while the thaw turns into a _freeze_, I +shall certainly be ill." + +Now, if it hadn't been for the rain, Solomon Owl would have had no trouble +at all. Or if it hadn't been for the freezing cold he would have been in +no difficulty. Though he didn't know it, his trouble was simply this: The +rain froze upon him as + +fast as it fell, covering him with a coating of ice. It was no wonder that +he felt strangely heavy--no wonder that he couldn't fly. + +There he crouched on the ground, while the rain and sleet beat upon him. +And the only comforting thought that entered his head was that on so +stormy a night Tommy Fox and Fatty Coon would be snug and warm in their +beds. _They_ wouldn't go out in such weather. + +And Solomon Owl wished that he, too, had stayed at home that night. + +From midnight until almost dawn Solomon Owl sat there. Now and then he +tried to fly. But it was no use. He could scarcely raise himself off the +ground. + +At last he decided he would have to _walk_ home. Fortunately, a hard crust +covered the soft snow. So Solomon started off on his long journey. + +Flying, Solomon could have covered the distance in a few minutes. But he +was a slow walker. By the time he reached his home among the hemlocks the +sun was shining brightly--for the rain had stopped before daybreak. + +Solomon wondered how he would ever succeed in reaching his doorway, high +up in the hollow tree. He gazed helplessly upward. And as he sat there +mournfully the bright sunshine melted the ice that bound his wings. After +a time he discovered that he could move freely once more. And then he rose +quickly in the air and in a twinkling he had disappeared into the darkness +of his home--that darkness which to him was always so pleasant. + + + + + +XX +A PAIR OF RED-HEADS + + +In the woods there was hardly one of Solomon Owl's neighbors that couldn't +point out the big hemlock tree where he lived. And mischievous fellows +like Reddy Woodpecker sometimes annoyed Solomon a good deal by rapping +loudly on his door. When he thrust his head angrily out of his house and +blinked in the sunlight, his tormentors would skip away and laugh. They +laughed because they knew that they had awakened Solomon Owl. And they +dodged out of his reach because he was always ill-tempered when anybody +disturbed his rest in the daytime. + +Solomon Owl did not mind so _very_ much so long as that trick was not +played on him too often. But after a time it became one of Reddy +Woodpecker's favorite sports. Not only once, but several times a day did +he go to the hemlock grove to hammer upon Solomon's hollow tree. And each +time that he brought Solomon Owl to his door Reddy Woodpecker laughed more +loudly than ever before. + +Once Solomon forgot to take off his nightcap (though he wore it in the +daytime, it really was a nightcap). And Reddy Woodpecker was so amused +that he shouted at the top of his lungs. + +"What's the joke?" asked Solomon Owl in his deep, rumbling voice. He tried +to look very severe. But it is hard to look any way except funny with a +nightcap on one's head. + +As luck had it, Jasper Jay came hurrying up just then. He had heard Reddy +Woodpecker's laughter. And if there was a joke he wanted to enjoy it, too. + +Jasper Jay, alighting in a small hemlock near Reddy Woodpecker, asked the +same question that Solomon Owl had just put to his rude caller. + +"What's the joke?" inquired Jasper Jay. + +Reddy could not speak. He was rocking back and forth upon a limb, choking +and gasping for breath. But he managed to point to the big tree where +Solomon Owl lived. + +And when Jasper looked, and saw Solomon's great, round, pale, questioning +face, all tied up in a red nightcap, he began to scream. + +They were no ordinary screams--those shrieks of Jasper Jay's. That +blue-coated rascal was the noisiest of all the feathered folk in Pleasant +Valley. And now he fairly made the woods echo with his hoarse cries. + +"This is the funniest sight I've ever seen!" Jasper Jay said at last, to +nobody in particular. "I declare, there's a pair of them!" + +At that, Reddy Woodpecker suddenly stopped laughing. + +"A pair of what?" he asked. + +"A pair of red-heads, of course!" Jasper Jay replied. "You've a red +cap--and so has he!" Jasper pointed at Solomon Owl (a very rude thing to +do!). + +Then two things happened all at once. Solomon Owl snatched off his red +night-cap--which he had quite forgotten. And Reddy Woodpecker dashed at +Jasper Jay. He couldn't pull off _his_ red cap, for it grew right on his +head. + +"So that's what you're laughing at, is it?" he cried angrily. And then +nobody laughed any more--that is, nobody but Solomon Owl. + +Solomon was so pleased by the fight that followed between Jasper Jay and +Reddy Woodpecker that his deep, rumbling laughter could be heard for half +an hour--even if it _was_ midday. "_Wha-wha! Whoo-ah!_" The sound reached +the ears of Farmer Green, who was just crossing a neighboring field, on +his way home to dinner. + +"Well, well!" he exclaimed. "I wonder what's happened to that old owl! +Something must have tickled him--for I never heard an owl laugh in broad +daylight before." + + + + + +XXI +AT HOME IN THE HAYSTACK + + +After what happened when he came to his door without remembering to take +off his red nightcap, Solomon Owl hoped that Reddy Woodpecker would stop +teasing him. + +But it was not so. Having once viewed Solomon's red cap, Reddy Woodpecker +wanted to see it some more. So he came again and again and knocked on +Solomon's door. + +Solomon Owl, however, remembered each time to remove his nightcap before +sticking his head out. And it might be said that neither of them was +exactly pleased. For Reddy Woodpecker was disappointed; and Solomon Owl +was angry. + +Not a day passed that Reddy Woodpecker didn't disturb Solomon's rest at +least a dozen times. Perhaps if Solomon had just kept still inside his +house Reddy would have grown tired of bothering him. But Solomon Owl--for +all he looked so wise--never thought of that. + +But he saw before a great while that he would have to make a change of +some sort--if he wanted to enjoy a good, quiet sleep again. + +For a long time Solomon Owl pondered. It was a great puzzle--to know just +how to outwit Reddy Woodpecker. And Solomon almost despaired of finding a +way out of the difficulty. But at last an idea came to him, all in a +flash. He would take his daytime naps somewhere else! + +Solomon spent several nights looking for a good place to pass his days. +And in the end he decided on the meadow. It would be convenient, he +thought, when he was hunting meadow mice at dawn, if he could stay right +there, without bothering to go into the woods to sleep. + +Since there were no trees in the meadow, but only a few scrubby bushes +along the stone wall, one might naturally make the mistake of thinking +that there could not possibly be a nook of any kind that would suit +Solomon Owl, who could never sleep soundly unless his bedroom was quite +dark. + +But there was one hiding place that Solomon liked almost as well as his +home in the hollow hemlock. And that was Farmer Green's haystack. He +burrowed into one side of it and made himself a snug chamber, which was as +dark as a pocket--and ever so much quieter. What pleased Solomon most, +however, was this: Nobody knew about that new retreat except himself. + +Even if Reddy Woodpecker should succeed in finding it, he never could +disturb Solomon by drumming upon the haystack. If Reddy tried that trick, +his bill would merely sink noiselessly into the hay. + +So Solomon Owl at last had a good day's rest. And when he met Reddy +Woodpecker just after sunset, Solomon was feeling so cheerful that he said +"Good-evening!" quite pleasantly, before he remembered that it was Reddy +who had teased him so often. + +"Good-evening!" Reddy Woodpecker replied. He seemed much surprised that +Solomon Owl should be so agreeable. "Can you hear me?" Reddy asked him. + +"Perfectly!" said Solomon. + +"That's strange!" Reddy Woodpecker exclaimed. "I was almost sure you had +suddenly grown deaf." And he could not understand why Solomon Owl laughed +loud and long. + +"_Wha-wha! Whoo-ah!_" Solomon's deep-voiced laughter rolled and echoed +through the woodland. + +But Reddy Woodpecker did not laugh at all. + + + + + +XXII +IT WAS SOLOMON'S FAULT + + +Reddy Woodpecker had a very good reason for not laughing when he met +Solomon Owl. Of course, he knew nothing whatever of Solomon's new hiding +place in the haystack. And that very morning Reddy had invited a party of +friends to go with him to the hemlock grove where Solomon Owl had always +lived, "to have some fun," as Reddy had explained. + +For a long time he had knocked and hammered and pounded at Solomon Owl's +door. But for once Solomon's great pale face did not appear. + +"Where's the fun?" Reddy's friends had wanted to know, after they had +waited until they were impatient. + +And Reddy Woodpecker could only shake his head and say: + +"I can't understand it! It's never happened like this before. I'm afraid +Solomon Owl has lost his hearing." + +Reddy Woodpecker's friends were no more polite than he. And they began to +jeer at him. + +"You didn't hammer loud enough," one of them told him. + +So he set to work again and rapped and rapped until his head felt as if it +would fly off, and his neck began to ache. + +Still, Solomon Owl did not appear. And the party broke up in something +very like a quarrel. For Reddy Woodpecker lost his temper when his friends +teased him; and a good many unpleasant remarks passed back and forth. + +Somehow, Reddy felt that it was all Solomon Owl's fault, because he hadn't +come to the door. + +Of course, Reddy had no means of knowing that all that time Solomon Owl +was sleeping peacefully in Farmer Green's haystack in the meadow, a +quarter of a mile away. + +It was a good joke on Reddy Woodpecker. And though no one had told Solomon +Owl about it, he was not so stupid that he couldn't guess at least _a +little_ that had happened. + + + +Solomon Owl continued to have a very pleasant time living in the meadow. +Since there were many mice right close at hand, little by little he +visited the woods less and less. And there came a time at last when he +hardly left the meadow at all. + +Not flying any more than he could help, and eating too much, and sleeping +very soundly each day, he grew stouter than ever, until his friends hardly +knew him when they saw him. + +"Solomon Owl is a sight--he's so fat!" people began to say. + +But his size never worried Solomon Owl in the least. When he became too +big for his doorway in the haystack, it was a simple matter to make the +opening larger--much simpler than it would have been to make himself +_smaller_. And that was another reason why he was delighted with his new +home. + +At last, however, something happened to put an end to his lazy way of +living. One day the sound of men's voices awakened him, when he was having +a good nap in the haystack. And he felt his bedroom quiver as if an +earthquake had shaken it. + +Scrambling to his doorway and peeping slyly out, Solomon saw a sight that +made him very angry. A hayrack stood alongside the stack; and on it stood +Farmer Green and his hired man. Each had a pitchfork in his hands, with +which he tore great forkfuls of hay off the stack and piled it upon the +wagon. + +Solomon Owl knew then that his fine hiding place was going to be spoiled. +As soon as the horses had pulled the load of hay away, with Farmer Green +and the hired man riding on top of it, Solomon Owl crept out of his snug +bedroom and hurried off to the woods. + +He was so fat that it was several days before he could squeeze inside his +old home in the hollow hemlock. And for the time being he had to sit on a +limb and sleep in the daylight as best he could. + +But to his surprise, Reddy Woodpecker troubled him no more. Reddy had +drummed so hard on Solomon's door, in the effort to awake him when he +wasn't there, that Aunt Polly Woodchuck told him he would ruin his bill, +if he didn't look out. And since the warning thoroughly alarmed him, Reddy +stopped visiting the hemlock grove. + +In time Solomon Owl grew to look like himself again. And people never +really knew just what had happened to him. But they noticed that he always +hooted angrily whenever anybody mentioned Farmer Green's name. + + + +THE END + + + + + + +***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE TALE OF SOLOMON OWL*** + + + +CREDITS + + +May 2005 + + Project Gutenberg Edition + Roger Frank Online Distributed Proofreading Team + +June 2006 + + Added PGHeader/PGFooter. + Joshua Hutchinson + + + +A WORD FROM PROJECT GUTENBERG + + +This file should be named 16663-0.txt or 16663-0.zip. + +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + + + http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/1/6/6/6/16663/ + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one -- the old editions will be +renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no one +owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and +you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without permission +and without paying copyright royalties. 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