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Tale of Jasper Jay

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<h2>XII</h2><h3>SOLOMON OWL'S EYES</h3> After a while Jasper Jay saw that his friends were growing tired of teasing Solomon Owl. So he said to them suddenly, in what was for him a low voice, "Let's go hunt acorns now!" And he flew off with a pleased grin upon his face, for he hoped that he had made trouble for Noisy Jake. His friends all followed him, too, while Noisy Jake hurried on behind them, trying to overtake and pass Jasper Jay. But he never headed Jasper all the way to the oak woods. And Jasper had a good time there, making all the noise he pleased and eating so many acorns that he made himself almost ill.... If that isn't having a good time, then somebody must be mistaken. Now, it was quite natural for Jasper Jay to think that he had nothing to fear from Solomon Owl. To be sure, he had flown back and forth in front of Solomon's round, staring eyes; and he had dropped hemlock seeds upon Solomon's head. But he felt quite safe, because he was sure Solomon Owl couldn't see him in the daylight. Furthermore, he had said hardly a word, so Solomon shouldn't know, from his voice, that Jasper was teasing him. When he met Solomon, therefore, right after sunset that same day, as Jasper was hurrying home from the oak woods to get his night's sleep and Solomon Owl was just starting out on his nightly wanderings, Jasper spoke boldly to the big, bulky fellow. "Good-evening, Mr. Owl!" said he. "I hope you're well, and that you had a good rest to-day." Solomon Owl turned his head in Jasper's direction and stared at him for a moment. And then he hooted long and loud. "I'm glad to know it," said Jasper—though he had no idea what Solomon Owl was saying. In spite of himself, Jasper began to feel a bit uneasy. There was something terrifying in Solomon's odd cry, especially when the dark was falling fast and Jasper Jay was still some distance from home. "Wait a moment, young fellow!" said Solomon Owl in a deep, hollow voice. "I've something to say to you. Weren't you roaming through the woods with a crowd of rowdies this afternoon?" Jasper Jay couldn't deny it. But he didn't want to admit it, either. So he said: "I believe Noisy Jake led a nutting party this way." "Ha!" exclaimed Solomon Owl. "They didn't pick any hemlock seeds, I suppose?" "I'll ask them," Jasper Jay murmured. "And I'll let you know to-morrow." He turned away, because he didn't care to talk any longer. His voice was too faint. And his legs felt strangely weak. For Jasper Jay was thoroughly frightened. "Don't be in a hurry!" Solomon Owl's queer voice boomed. "Some people think I can't see in the daytime. But they're very much mistaken. And nobody ever dropped hemlock seeds on my head yet without my knowing it." Jasper Jay did not wait to hear anything more. He sprang into the air and tore off through the forest, just before Solomon Owl jumped. For a heavy gentleman who was big around the waist, Solomon Owl was surprisingly quick. But Jasper Jay was even quicker. And it was lucky for him that he left when he did, for Solomon felt very, very hungry. He had had nothing to eat since dawn. But he made his rush in vain. Missing Jasper Jay by a few inches, he crashed head foremost into a tree before he could stop. And the pain in the top of his head made him hoot at the top of his voice. Perhaps he was angry, too. Anyhow, to Jasper Jay the horrid cry sounded as if it were just behind him. He never knew before that he could fly so fast. And some of his friends, who saw a blue streak in the twilight, did not even recognize him. For several days afterward, Noisy Jake, whom Jasper passed in his headlong flight, talked about the blue lightning he had seen when he was going home from the nutting party. And since nobody could prove that he was mistaken, no one was so foolish as to dispute him. And that was the way that Jasper Jay learned something about Solomon Owl's eyes—and something about manners, too. <hr class="chapter" /> <div style="break-after:column;"></div>

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