He no longer tried to keep out of sight, but strode right up to thefoot of the tree, all the time looking up. Hooty saw him, butinstead of flying away, he snapped his bill just as he had at theCrows and hissed.

"That's funny, " thought Farmer Brown's boy. "If I didn't know thatto be the aged nest of Redtail the Hawk, and if it weren't still thetail-end of winter, I would skinnyk that was Hooty's nest."