The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1921-11-14
BURGESS BED
TIME STORIES
BLACKY MAKES MORE DIS
COVERIES
BY THORNTON w. BURGESS


Little things you fail to see
May important prove to bet
-BIacky the Crow.
One of the secrets OF BIacky's sue
cess in life is the fact that he never
falls to take note OF little things
Long ago he learned that little
things. which in themselves seem
harmless and not worth noticing,
may together prove the most impor-
tant things In life. So no matter how
unimportant thing may be. Blacky
examines 1t closely with those sharp
eyes of his and remembers It.
The very first thing Black did as
soon as he was awake the morning
after he discovered the man scat
tering corn in the PUSHES at a certain
place on the edge of the Big River
was to fly over to the pond of Paddy
the Beaver and again warn Mr. ana
Mrs. Qpack to keep away from the
Big River If they and their six chill
dren would remain safe. Then he got
some breakfast He ate it in a hurry
and flew straight over to the Big
River to the place where he had seen
that yellow corn scattered.
Blacky wasn't wholly surprised TO
find Dusky the Black Duck, own
cousin to Mr.. and Mrs. Quack the NAL
lard Ducks, with number of his
relatives in among the rushes and
wild rice at the very place where
that corn had been scattered. They
seemed quite contented and in the
A1t af LIT
Not a single grain of that yellow
corn could Blacky see. He knew the
ways of Dusky and his relatives. AAs
knew that they must hdv< come in
there just at dusk the night before
and at once found that corn. He
knew that they would remain hiding
there until frightened out, and that
then they would spend the day In
some little pond, where they would
not be likely to be disturbed. or
where at least no danger could ap-
proach them without being seen in
plenty of time. There they would rest
all day and when the Black Shadows
came creeping out from the Purple
Hills they would return to that place
on the Big River to feed. for that is
the time when they like best to hunt
for their food.
Duohy lOOKeQ up as BlaCky IleW
over him, but Blacky said nothing and
Dusky said nothing, But IL Blacky
didn't use his tongue he did use his
eyes. He saw just on the edge of the
shore what looked like a lot of small
bushes growing close together on
the very edge of the water. Mixed
In with them were lot of the brown
rushes. They looked very harmless
and innocent But Blacky knew every
foot of that shore along the Big River
and he knew that those bushes
hadn't been there during the summer.
He knew that they hadn't grown
there.
He flew directly over them. Just
back of them were a couple OF logs.
These logs hadn't been there when
he passed that way a few days ago.
He was sure of 1t.
"Ha!" exclaimed Biacky under his
breath. Those look to me as II they
might be very handy, very handy
indeed for hunter to sit on. Sitting
there behind those bushes he would
be hidden from any Duck who might
come In to look for nice yellow corn
scattered out there among the rashes.
IL doesn't look right to me. I think
III keep an eye on this place"
So Blacky came back to the Big
River several times that day. The
second time back he found that Dus-
ky the Black Duck and his flock had
left. When he returned in the after
noon he saw, the same man he had
seen there the afternoon before and
he was doing the same thing-scat-
tering yellow corn out in the rushes.
And as before he went away in a
boat
Il don't like it." muttered Blacky.
shaking his head. "I don't like It,"
Copyright. 1921. by T. w. Burgess.)
The next story: 'Blacky Drops a
Hint"