THE CRAZY FLICKER 15 



and hammering to hear himself hammer till the 

 big barn boomed and rumbled like a mighty bass 

 drum. 



It is quite likely, however, that he was doing it 

 to show off, to attract the attention of Miss Yarup 

 or High-hole, or Flicker, or whatever name she 

 goes by in your dead trees and telegraph poles 

 (she has thirty-six different names, has this 

 flicker!). I am sure that it was partly for her 

 sake, that he was making the racket; for it was 

 high time he had a family and a house under way. 



I think the thought of a family (flickers always 

 have enormous families!) must suddenly have 

 come to him as he hammered on the roof, for all 

 at once he darted off, and around to the end of 

 the barn, where he caught hold of the straight-up- 

 and-down boards and, bracing himself with Ms 

 spine-pointed tail, began to drill a hole. 



How it sounded! Never before had he struck 

 anything with such a ring to it. What a glorious 

 hole for a nest there must be in there! Why, if 

 the brood should happen to come twenty strong 

 (which was not past hoping for), each young 

 flicker could have a bed and a room all to himself 

 a condition of affairs altogether unheard of, 

 up to this time, in flickerdom. 



