knows how soon the bird would have been stoned 
to death; but just then a most unexpected thing 
took place. | 
A little sharp-shinned hawk darted down the 
street, seized the swinging kingbird, and started 
off with him. The jerk caused the string to slip 
away, from the kingbird’s foot, and the same 
jerk pulled the bird out of the hawk’s claws. 
Dizzy and frightened out of his wits, he flew to 
his apple tree. But what a sad-looking sight he 
was! The hawk had seized him by the tail and 
when the jerk liberated him, the hawk went on 
with the kingbird’s tail-feathers in his claws. 
Just one was left of all those twelve beautiful, 
black, white-tipped, tail quills. As he sat there 
and looked at the ruin the hawk had worked in 
his appearance, he must have been greatly crest- 
fallen, and I am sure he did not utter any brag- 
ging twitters for a long time to come. 
And now they tell me that old John Baukman’s 
house is torn down, and the greenhouse rubbish 
is all cleared away. In the spring a fine resi- 
dence is to be erected on the spot. I wonder if 
the kingbird will know the place when he comes 
Do 
