Silverspot 



But with the morning their courage comes 

 a2 ain and arousing themselves they ransack 

 Twoods for a mile around till they find tha 

 owl and if they do not kill him they at least 



:;:!; y htm *** *-* - d drive Mm twenty 



miles away. r 



In 1803 the crows had come as usual to Cas- 

 tle Frank. I was walking in these woods a few 

 days afterward when I chanced upon the track 

 of a rabbit that had been running at full speed 

 over the snow and dodging about among the 

 trees as though pursued. Strange to ell, I 

 could see no track of the pursuer. I followed 

 the trail and presently saw a drop of blood on 

 the snow, and a little farther on found the part- 

 ly devoured remains of a little brown bunny. 

 What had killed him was a mystery until a care- 

 ful search showed in the snow a great double- 

 toed track and a beautifully pencilled brown 

 feather. Then all was clear-* horned owl 

 Half an hour later, in passing again by the place 

 there, in a tree, within ten feet of the bones o 

 his victim, was the fierce-eyed owl himself. The 

 murderer still hung about the scene of his crime. 

 For once circumstantial evidence had not lied. 



84 



