

Tito 



toward her home. Thrilled with new fear, 

 she hid the Bird she was carrying, then followed 

 the trail of the man. Within a few minutes she 

 could hear him in the thicket, and Tito realized 

 the terrible danger that was threatening. She 

 went swiftly, quietly around to the den hollow, 

 came on the heedless little roisterers, after giv- 

 ing the signal-call, which prevented them taking 

 alarm at her approach ; but she must have had 

 a shock when she saw how marked the hollow 

 •fL and the den were now, all drifted over with 



2l^?~"~'£ feathers white as snow. Then she gave the 



danger-call that sent them all to earth, and the 

 little glade was still. 



Her own nose was so thoroughly and always 



her guide that it was not likely she thought of 



the white feathers being the telltale. But now 



pS* she realized that a man, one she knew of old as 



a treacherous character, one whose scent had 

 always meant mischief to her, that had been 

 associated with all her own troubles and the 

 -r cause of nearly all her desperate danger, was 

 close to her darlings ; was tracking them down ; 

 in a few minutes would surely have them in his 

 merciless power. 



334 



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