But Father Oriole kept about his work, hunting for the little brown
crawling things and the green crawling things that made their food.

He would whistle every once in a while to tell Mother Oriole that he was
near. Sometimes it was just a few notes to say:

"I'm still here--my dear,
Still here, still here, still here."

Sometimes:

"All right, my love!"

Sometimes just:

"All's well!"

But if a strange man came too near the tree his song was sharp and angry.

"Look out, look out, look out!
He's a rogue, an awful rogue, look out, I say!"

But somehow he didn't seem to mind the children.

"Why does Mother Oriole sit so quietly on her nest?" Marmaduke asked his
own mother.

"I wish I could lift you up so that you could see. But the nest is too high
up. It's out of harm's way. Dicky Means, who has a cruel heart and robs
birds' nests, can't reach it way up there!"