The Burgess Bird Book for Children | Page 8

I am in the Old Orchard to stay!"
shrieked Bully. "If you don't like it, why don't you fight? I am not

afraid of any of you or all of you together." This was boasting, plain
boasting, but it was effective. He actually made the other birds believe
it. Not one of them dared stand up to him and fight. They were content
to call him a bully and all the bad names they could think of, but that
did nothing to help Jenny and Mr. Wren recover their house. Calling
another bad names never hurts him. Brave deeds and not brave words
are what count.
How long that disgraceful squabble in the Old Orchard would have
lasted had it not been for something which happened, no one knows.
Right in the midst of it some one discovered Black Pussy, the cat who
lives in Farmer Brown's house, stealing up through the Old Orchard,
her tail twitching and her yellow eyes glaring eagerly. She had heard
that dreadful racket and suspected that in the midst of such excitement
she might have a chance to catch one of the feathered folks. You can
always trust Black Pussy to be on hand at a time like that.
No sooner was she discovered than everything else was forgotten. With
Bully in the lead, and Jenny and Mr. Wren close behind him, all the
birds turned their attention to Black Pussy. She was the enemy of all,
and they straightway forgot their own quarrel. Only Mrs. Bully
remained where she was, in the little round doorway of her house. She
intended to take no chances, but she added her voice to the general
racket. How those birds did shriek and scream! They darted down
almost into the face of Black Pussy, and none went nearer than Bully
the English Sparrow and Jenny Wren.
Now Black Pussy hates to be the center of so much attention. She knew
that, now she had been discovered, there wasn't a chance in the world
for her to catch one of those Old Orchard folks. So, with tail still
twitching angrily, she turned and, with such dignity as she could, left
the Old Orchard. Clear to the edge of it the birds followed, shrieking,
screaming, calling her bad names, and threatening to do all sorts of
dreadful things to her, quite as if they really could.
When finally she disappeared towards Farmer Brown's barn, those
angry voices changed. It was such a funny change that Peter Rabbit
laughed right out. Instead of anger there was triumph in every note as

everybody returned to attend to his own affairs. Jenny and Mr. Wren
seemed to have forgotten all about Bully and his wife in their old house.
They flew to another part of the Old Orchard, there to talk it all over
and rest and get their breath. Peter Rabbit waited to see if they would
not come over near enough to him for a little more gossip. But they
didn't, and finally Peter started for his home in the dear Old Briar-patch.
All the way there he chuckled as he thought of the spunky way in
which Jenny and Mr. Wren had stood up for their rights.
CHAPTER III
Jenny Has a Good Word for Some Sparrows.
The morning after the fight between Jenny and Mr. Wren and Bully the
English Sparrow found Peter Rabbit in the Old Orchard again. He was
so curious to know what Jenny Wren would do for a house that nothing
but some very great danger could have kept him away from there. Truth
to tell, Peter was afraid that not being able to have their old house,
Jenny and Mr. Wren would decide to leave the Old Orchard altogether.
So it was with a great deal of relief that as he hopped over a low place
in the old stone wall he heard Mr. Wren singing with all his might.
The song was coming from quite the other side of the Old Orchard
from where Bully and Mrs. Bully had set up housekeeping. Peter
hurried over. He found Mr. Wren right away, but at first saw nothing of
Jenny. He was just about to ask after her when he caught sight of her
with a tiny stick in her bill. She snapped her sharp little eyes at him, but
for once her tongue was still. You see, she couldn't talk and carry that
stick at the same time. Peter watched her and saw her disappear in a
little hole in a big branch of one of the old apple-trees. Hardly had she
popped in than she popped out again. This time her mouth was free,
and so was her tongue.
"You'd better stop singing and help me," she said to Mr. Wren sharply.
Mr. Wren