oung tree was wire
netting. Peter couldn't get even a nibble of that bark. He tried the
next tree with no better result. Then he hurried on from tree to tree,
always with the same result. You see Farmer Brown knew all about Peter's
liking for the bark of young fruit trees, and he had been wise enough to
protect his young orchard.

At last Peter gave up and hopped over to the Old Orchard. As he passed a
certain big tree he was startled by a voice. "What's the matter, Peter?"
said the voice. "You don't look happy."

Peter stopped short and stared up in the big apple-tree. Look as he
would he couldn't see anybody. Of course there wasn't a leaf on that
tree, and he could see all through it. Peter blinked and felt foolish.
He knew that had there been any one sitting on any one of those branches
he couldn't have helped seeing him.

"Don't look so high, Peter; don't look so high," said the voice with a
chuckle. This time it sounded as if it came right out of the trunk of
the tree. Peter stared at the trunk and then suddenly laughed right out.
Just a few feet above the ground was a good sized hole in the tree, and
poking his head out of it was a funny little fellow with big eyes and a
hooked beak.

"You certainly did fool me that time, Spooky," cried Peter. "I ought to
have recognized your voice, but I didn't."

Spooky the Screech Owl, for that is who it was, came out of the hole in
the tree and without a sound from his wings flew over and perched just
above Peter's head. He was a little fellow, not over eight inches high,
but there was no mistaking the family to which he belonged. In fact he
looked very much like a small copy of Hooty the Great Horned Owl, so
much so that Peter felt a little cold shiver run over him, although he
had nothing in the world to fear from Spooky.

His head seemed to be almost as big around as his body, and he seemed
to leave no neck at all. He was dressed in bright reddish-brown, with
little streaks and bars of black. Underneath he was whitish, with little
streaks and bars of black and brown. On each side of his head was a tuft
of feathers. They looked like ears and some people think they are ears,
which is a mistake. His eyes were round and yellow with a fierce hungry
look in them. His bill was small and almost hidden among the feathers of
his face, but it was hooked just like the bill of Hooty. As he settled
himself he turned his head around until he could look squarely behind
him, then bro