shot out from the big oak tree and swooped 
down upon him. Jim did not see it coming and 
scarcely struggled when close by the spot where 
the owl cage used to stand and the coon ran 
to and fro, a great, fierce-eyed bird with long, 
sharp claws seized him and bore him to the earth. 
The next morning an old colored man stopped 
in the yard and looked at the feathers scattered 
about on the ground. “I declar’ to goodness,” 
he said, scratching his head, “Ill bet I knows 
whar them black feathers come from! I told 
that Jim Crow long time ago he better quit 
sassin’ that old owl.” 
152 
