32 WITHIN AN HOUR OF LONDON TOWN. 



both his wings well up over his back, he fans them 

 backwards and forwards for a few seconds. Then 

 he shakes himself with his feathers puffed out, mak- 

 ing himself look double his natural size; and he 

 puts on the finishing touches by running his wing- 

 feathers through his bill. 



He is now ready for action. His blue-black eyes 

 are wide open, and he is off on the forage. Clearing 

 the tree-tops, he flits here and there, to right and 

 left, over the more open parts, now high up, now 

 close to the ground. He has caught sight of some 

 creature and hangs for a moment in his flight. 

 Down he goes with outstretched wings, and the 

 next moment rises with a young rabbit, whose 

 mother's warning stamp came too late to save him. 

 His squeak when the owl gripped him has warned 

 the others, who dash off to their burrows at the top 

 of their speed. The owl returns to his mate, who 

 salutes him with a loud hoot. After they have 

 finished that slight repast they will both hunt 

 through the night, and keep on calling to each other. 



In suitable localities their hooting can be heard 

 far and near, as the brown owl is a common bird. 

 They store up for future use all that they catch, ex- 



