o much bigger and fiercer than any
of the others that none dared accuse him openly or venture to quarrel
with him; but they had a good friend living not far away who was not
afraid of Jim Crow or any one else, so they finally decided to send for
him and ask his assistance.

The starling undertook to be the messenger, and as soon as the meeting
was over he flew away upon his errand.

"What were all you folks talking about?" asked the crow, flying down and
alighting upon a limb near to those who had not yet left the place of
meeting.

"We were talking about you," said the thrush, boldly; "and you wouldn't
care at all to know what we said, Mister Jim Crow."

Jim looked a trifle guilty and ashamed at hearing this, but knowing they
were all afraid of him he burst out into a rude laugh.

"Caw! caw! caw!" he chuckled hoarsely; "what do I care what you say
about me? But don't you get saucy, my pretty thrush, or your friends
will miss you some fine morning, and never see you again."

This awful threat made them all silent, for they remembered the fate of
poor Mrs. Linnet's children, and very few of the birds now had any doubt
but that Jim Crow knew more about the death of those helpless little
ones than he cared to tell.

Finding they would not talk with him, the crow flew back to his tree,
where he sat sullenly perched upon a branch near his nest. And they were
very glad to get rid of him so easily.

Chapter V
Jim Crow Meets Policeman Blue Jay

NEXT morning Jim Crow woke up hungry, and as he sat lazily in his big
nest, he remembered that he had seen four pretty brown eggs, speckled
with white, in the nest of the oriole that lived at the edge of the
forest.

"Those eggs will taste very good for breakfast," he thought. "I'll go at
once and get them; and if old Mammy Oriole makes a fuss, I'll eat her,
too."

He hopped out of his nest and on to a branch, and the first thing his
sharp eye saw was a big and strange bird sitting upon the tree just
opposite him and looking steadily in his direction.

Never having lived among other birds until now, the crow did not know
what kind of bird this was, but as he faced the new-comer he had a sort
of shiver in his heart that warned him to beware an enemy. Indeed, it
was none other than the Blue Jay that had appeared so suddenly, and he
had arrived that morning because the starling had told him of the thefts
that had taken place, and the Blue Jay is well known as the policem