"And now he is their best friend," spoke up Peter.

Blacky nodded. "Right, Peter," said he. "That is why the Quacks are
safe here and will be as long as they stay."



CHAPTER XV: Blacky Does A Little Looking About

Do not take the word of others
That things are or are not so
When there is a chance that you may
Find out for yourself and know.
- Blacky the Crow.

Blacky the Crow is a shrewd fellow. He is one of the smartest and
shrewdest of all the little people in the Green Forest and on the
Green Meadows. Everybody knows it. And because of this, all his
neighbors have a great deal of respect for him, despite his
mischievous ways.

Of course, Blacky had noticed that Johnny Chuck had dug his house
deeper than usual and had stuffed himself until he was fatter than
ever before. He had noticed that Jerry Muskrat was making the walls
of his house thicker than in other years, and that Paddy the Beaver
was doing the same thing to his house. You know there is very little
that escapes the sharp eyes of Blacky the Crow.

He had guessed what these things meant. "They think we are going to