come back and devour them.

"I was also angry, by that time; so I flew to the shrike's nest and
found him all scratched and torn and his feathers plucked in many
places.

"'What has happened to you?' I asked.

"'I had a fight with a weasel last night,' answered the shrike, 'and
both of us are rather used up, today.'

"'Still,' said I, sternly, 'you had strength enough to kill the six
little titmice, and to eat two of them.'

"'I never did,' said he, earnestly; 'my wings are too stiff to fly.'

"'Do not lie about it, I beg of you,' said I; 'for we have found four
of the dead titmice stuck on the thorns of a bush, and your people have
been known to do such things before.'

"At this the shrike looked worried.

"'Really,' said he, 'I cannot understand it. But I assure you I am
innocent.'

"Nevertheless, I arrested him, and made him fly with me to the Judgment
Tree, where all the birds had congregated. He was really stiff and
sore, and I could see it hurt him to fly; but my duty was plain. We
selected a jury of twelve birds, and Judge Bullfinch took his seat on a
bough, and then the trial began.

"Tom Titmouse accused the shrike of murder, and so did Nancy, who had
nearly cried her eyes out. I also gave my evidence. But the prisoner
insisted strongly that he was innocent, and claimed he had not left his
nest since his fight with the weasel, and so was guiltless of the
crime.

"But no one had any sympathy for him, or believed what he said; for it
is often the case that when one has earned a bad character he is
thought capable of any wickedness. So the jury declared him guilty, and
the judge condemned him to die at sundown. We were all to fall upon the
prisoner together, and tear him into bits with bill and claw; but while
we waited for the sun to sink Will Sparrow flew up to the Judgment Tree
and said:

"'Hello! What's going on here?'

"'We are just about to execute a criminal,' replied the judge.

"'What has he been doing?' asked Will, eyeing the shrike curiously.

"'He killed the titmice children this morning, and ate two of them, and
stuck the other four upon a thorn bush,' explained the judge.

"'Oh, no; the shrike did not do that!' cried Will Sparrow. 'I saw the
crime committed with my own eyes, and it was the cunning weasel--the
one that lives in the pine stump--that did the dreadful murder.'

"At this all the birds set up an excited chatter, and the shrike again
screamed that he was innocent. So