One December morning a
troop of jays discovered a little screech-owl secreted in the hollow
trunk of an old apple-tree near my house. How they found the owl out
is a mystery, since it never ventures forth in the light of day;
but they did, and proclaimed the fact with great emphasis. I suspect
the bluebirds first told them, for these birds are constantly peeping
into holes and crannies, both spring and fall. Some unsuspecting bird
had probably entered the cavity prospecting for a place for next year's
nest, or else looking out a likely place to pass a cold night, and then
had rushed out with important news. A boy who should unwittingly
venture into a bear's den when Bruin was at home could not be more
astonished and alarmed than a bluebird would be on finding itself in
the cavity of a decayed tree with an owl. At any rate the bluebirds
joined the jays in calling the attention of all whom it might concern
to the fact that a culprit of some sort was hiding from the light of
day in the old apple-tree. I heard the notes of warning and alarm and
approached to within eye-shot.
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