autiful stranger.

All this Sammy Jay guessed, and after a while he grew tired of
following Lightfoot for nothing. "I'll have to take a hand in
this thing myself," muttered Sammy. "At this rate, Lightfoot
never will find that big stranger!"

So Sammy stopped following Lightfoot and began to search through
the Green Forest for the big stranger. It didn't take very long
to find him. He was over near the pond of Paddy the Beaver.
As soon as he saw him, Sammy began to scream at the top of his
lungs. At once he heard the sound of snapping twigs at the top of
a little ridge back of Paddy's pond and knew that Lightfoot had
heard and understood.

CHAPTER XXXVII: The Great Fight

Down from the top of the ridge back of the pond of Paddy the
Beaver plunged Lightfoot the Deer, his eyes blazing with rage.
He had understood the screaming of Sammy Jay. He knew that somewhere
down there was the big stranger he had been looking for.

The big stranger had understood Sammy's screaming quite as well
as Lightfoot. He knew that to run away now would be to prove
himself a coward and forever disgrace himself in the eyes of Miss
Daintyfoot, for that was the name of the beautiful stranger he
had been seeking. He MUST fight. There was no way out of it, he
MUST fight. The hair on the back of his neck stood up with anger
just as did the hair on the neck of Lightfoot. His eyes also
blazed. He bounded out into a little open place by the pond of
Paddy the Beaver and there he waited.

Meanwhile Sammy Jay was flying about in the greatest excitement,
screaming at the top of his lungs, "A fight! A fight! A fight!"
Blacky the Crow, over in another part of the Green Forest, heard
him and took up the cry and at once hurried over to Paddy's pond.
Everybody who was near enough hurried there. Bobby Coon and
Unc' Billy Possum climbed trees from which they could see and at
the same time be safe. Billy Mink hurried to a safe place on the
dam of Paddy the Beaver. Paddy himself climbed up on the roof of
his house out in the pond. Peter Rabbit and Jumper the Hare, who
happened to be not far away, hurried over where they could peep
out from under some young hemlock-trees. Buster Bear shuffled
down the hill and watched from the other side of the pond.
Reddy and Granny Fox were both there.

For what seemed like the longest time, but which was for only a
minute, Lightfoot and the big stranger stood still, glaring at
each other. Then, snort