ir scent and thus warn him.

He had almost reached the edge of Paddy's pond when from the
farther shore there came a sudden crash. It startled Lightfoot
terribly for just an instant. Then he guessed what it meant.
That crash was the falling of a tree. There wasn't enough wind to
blow over even the most shaky dead tree. There had been no sound
of axes, so he knew it could not have been chopped down by men.
It must be that Paddy the Beaver had cut it, and if Paddy had been
working in daylight, it was certain that no one had been around
that pond for a long time.

So Lightfoot hurried forward eagerly, cautiously. When he reached
the bank he looked across towards where the sound of that falling
tree had come from; a branch of a tree was moving along in the
water and half hidden by it was a brown head. It was Paddy the
Beaver taking the branch to his food pile.

CHAPTER XIII: Lightfoot And Paddy Become Partners

The instant Lightfoot saw Paddy the Beaver he knew that for the
time being, at least, there was no danger. He knew that Paddy is
one of the shyest of all the little people of the Green Forest
and that when he is found working in the daytime it means that he
has been undisturbed for a long time; otherwise he would work
only at night.

Paddy saw Lightfoot almost as soon as he stepped out on the
bank. He kept right on swimming with the branch of a poplar-tree
until he reached his food pile, which, you know, is in the
water. There he forced the branch down until it was held by other
branches already sunken in the pond. This done, he swam over to
where Lightfoot was watching. "Hello, Lightfoot!" he exclaimed.
"You are looking handsomer than ever. How are you feeling
these fine autumn days?"

"Anxious," replied Lightfoot. "I am feeling terribly anxious.
Do you know what day this is?"

"No," replied Paddy, "I don't know what day it is, and I don't
particularly care. It is enough for me that it is one of the
finest days we've had for a long time."

"I wish I could feel that way," said Lightfoot wistfully. "I wish
I could feel that way, Paddy, but I can't. No, Sir, I can't.
You see, this is the first of the most dreadful days in all the year
for me. The hunters started looking for me before Mr. Sun was
really out of bed. At least one hunter did, and I don't doubt
there are others. I fooled that one, but from now to the end of
the hunting season there will not be a single moment of daylight