Chapter 2

"You couldn't come inside my house if you used tobacco," she always replied. And she would get quite excited at the mere thought of such an untidy habit.

And then Rusty would smile--but he always took good care not to let his wife see him.

"Don't worry!" he would say, if she became too stirred up. "I've never smoked yet--and I never expect to."

One can see that Rusty Wren was somewhat of a tease. And as it usually happens with people who amuse themselves at the expense of others, there came a time when Rusty's teasing landed him in trouble.

One day after he had come home from an excursion to the pasture (he seldom strayed so far from home as that!), Mrs. Rusty began sniffing the air. Her nose would have wrinkled--only it couldn't, because it was so hard. She looked at her husband suspiciously. And it seemed to her that he had a guilty manner.

"I declare," she said, "I believe you've been smoking." And she started to scold so angrily that Rusty Wren knew she must be in a temper.

Seeing signs of trouble, Rusty began to fidget. And he moved about so uneasily that his wife was all the surer of his guilt. She stopped right in the middle of her scolding to say, "I smell smoke!"

"Perhaps you do," Rusty admitted. "But it's certainly not tobacco smoke."

"Ah!" she exclaimed. "Then you've been smoking corn-silk, or hayseed--and that's almost as bad."

But Rusty said that it must be the smoke of a pine stump that she noticed.

"Farmer Green is burning some old stumps in the pasture," he explained. "And I flew through a cloud of it."

Just then he happened to notice a bit of something or other clinging to one of his tail feathers. And though his wife was looking straight at him, he flicked the tiny scrap upon the floor, without thinking what he was doing.

"There you go again!" Mrs. Rusty Wren cried. "Here I've just finished cleaning the house and you're littering it all up! You don't care how much work you make for me." And she pounced upon the brownish bit, intending to pick it up and throw it out of the house.

Rusty had already decided that he had better go away from home for a little while, until things were pleasanter, when his wife suddenly faced about and fixed him with her glittering eyes.

"Ha!" she cried, holding up the scrap in her bill for him to see. "Tobacco!" she screamed. "And what, pray, have you to say to me now?"

VIII

RUSTY IN TROUBLE

Rusty Wren edged toward the door--that little opening in the syrup can, only slightly bigger than a twenty-five-cent piece. He wished he was already safely through it, for he did not like the look in his wife's eyes.

"I must be going now," he said faintly--though he was generally as bold as brass.

"Wait a moment!" Mrs. Rusty ordered. "Where did this tobacco come from?" She spoke somewhat thickly, for she still held the bit of brown leaf in her bill.

"I can't imagine," he stammered. "I never knew it was sticking to my tail until I saw it and brushed it off----"

"On my clean floor!" his wife interrupted. "Goodness knows it's bad enough to have you forever doing things like that without your bringing _tobacco_ into my clean house--and without smelling of smoke, too."

For almost the first time in his life Rusty Wren was really worried. Somehow, he had managed to get into something a good deal like a scrape. It seemed to him that the house was terribly hot and stuffy; and always before he had thought it quite comfortable.

"I'm going out for a breath of fresh air," he protested feebly. And before Mrs. Rusty could stop him he dodged past her and slipped through the tiny doorway, leaving her to scold to her heart's content.

All this happened in the middle of the morning. And the cuckoo clock in Farmer Green's kitchen had sung the hour six times before Rusty Wren returned.

Never before had he stayed away from his snug house so long. And, naturally, that made him have a guilty feeling, as if he had really done something to be ashamed of. As for smoking, he had (as he said) never smoked in his life. It was true that Farmer Green was burning stumps in the pasture that morning, and that the odor of the smoke had clung to Rusty's feathers.

But the bit of tobacco that had clung to his tail was a mystery that he couldn't explain. It was a most unfortunate accident. But Rusty hoped that by that time--it was then the middle of the afternoon--he hoped that his wife had recovered from her displeasure. Usually, when they had any little difference of opinion, she felt better if he gave her plenty of time in which to scold. But now Rusty was not quite sure of his welcome. He had never seen Mrs. Rusty so upset.

"Are you there, my love?" he asked softly, as he alighted on the roof of his house. He did not care to go inside until he was quite sure that his wife was in better spirits.

"The smoker has come home again," a peevish voice called out. And instead of bursting into the merry song which Rusty had been all ready to carol, he flew off across the yard and began hunting for something to eat.

Since he couldn't very well go home, he thought that he might as well enjoy a good meal, at least.

IX

ALL'S WELL AGAIN

After Rusty Wren had revived his drooping spirits by eating heartily of three dozen insects of different kinds and sizes, he felt so cheerful that he couldn't help trilling a few songs. It was almost evening; and he was glad not to let the sun go down without thanking him in that way for shining so brightly all day.

Though it was so late, Farmer Green still toiled in the fields; but Rusty could hear Johnnie and old dog Spot driving the cows down the lane towards the barn.

Now, above the wide door of the carriage house a window was open--a window through which Rusty had flown early in the morning. Unlike old Mr. Crow, Rusty Wren was not in the least afraid to enter any of the farm buildings. Perhaps if Rusty had been in the habit of taking Farmer Green's corn he would have thought twice before he ventured inside the cow barn or the carriage house. But since he never damaged the crops, and always helped them by destroying a great number of insects that ate all sorts of growing things, Rusty had nothing whatever to fear from anybody in the farmhouse--except the cat, of course.

There was really no reason for Rusty's flying through the open window, beyond the fact that he liked to prowl around the great, dusty room under the eaves, to see what he could find. Once he was inside, he noticed something that had not caught his eye on his former visit. Hanging from a rafter, where the slanting rays of the setting sun fell squarely upon it, was a big bunch of brown tobacco leaves.

Rusty Wren gave a chirp of pleasure at the sight. That was where he must have picked up the bit of tobacco that had clung to his tail feathers and upset his wife's good nature.

"I'll go right home and get her and bring her here so she can see this tobacco herself!" he said aloud. "Then she'll know where that shred came from which fell on the floor." He did not say "which I brushed onto the floor," for he never could remember long that he ever did such careless things.

Well, Rusty Wren went out of the window a good deal faster than he had flown in. And, in less time than it takes to tell it, he was perched on top of his house again and calling to his wife.

"I know now where the tobacco came from!" he sang out. "Just come outside and I'll show you. It's upstairs in the carriage house!"

To his delight, Mrs. Rusty answered in the sweetest tone imaginable. But she said she didn't want to come out just then. And she didn't seem a bit interested in tobacco any more.

"You come right into the house!" she cried. "There's something here that I want to show you."

Rusty Wren whisked through the hole in the maple syrup can. Home had never looked quite so good to him before, for he had not been there since the middle of the morning.

"What is it?" he asked eagerly.

His wife was sitting on their nest. And there was nothing new in the house, so far as he could see.

She moved aside then. "Look!" she said.

And, peering into the nest, Rusty saw a speckled egg there. It was really a small egg. But to Rusty Wren's eyes it seemed decidedly big.

He was so surprised that he couldn't speak for as much as two seconds. And then he began to sing--he was so happy.

Though Mrs. Rusty kept very still, she seemed much pleased. And, strange to say, she never mentioned _smoking_ to her husband again.

She had something more important to think about.

X

BAD NEWS

When Johnnie Green fastened the tin can to the tree in the dooryard he couldn't have picked out a better spot for it. Of course, he hoped that a pair of wrens would build their nest inside the syrup can. But what he never dreamed was that the cherry tree was exactly the sort of tree that wrens liked.

It was not that Rusty and his wife cared for cherries. But as soon as Mrs. Wren had said how much she liked her new house, she remarked that the old cherry tree was a fine place to hunt for bugs and insects.

"Yes!" Rusty agreed. "And there's an ant hill near the foot of the tree. It will be very convenient on stormy days, for we shall not have to go far for our breakfast."

Not being fond of cherries, they did not look forward to the time when the bright red fruit should hang gaily upon the branches above their home. But there were others--besides Johnnie Green--who eagerly awaited that time and noticed that the old tree was loaded with blossoms, which meant that later there would be plenty of cherries.

Jolly Robin was one of those who had a taste for cherries, no matter whether they grew wild in the woods or within easy reach in Farmer Green's yard. And as soon as cherry time arrived Jolly was on hand every day to enjoy the treat.

He was so cheerful and good-natured that Rusty Wren and his wife did not object to Jolly's visits--so long as he did not venture too near their house. They always scolded loudly when an outsider came too close to their home, for they had a big family of children, and they couldn't help feeling that the youngsters were safer with no prying busybodies to meddle with them.

Of course, Jolly Robin never once thought of harming any of Rusty's family. And as soon as he saw that Rusty--and especially his wife--wanted him to keep away from their side of the tree, he took care to respect their wishes.

Then all was peaceful. And the three had many pleasant chats together.

At last, however, Jolly Robin made a remark one day that threw both Rusty and his wife into a flutter of alarm. Jolly Robin had not meant to frighten them. But the news was out before he realized that it was far from welcome to his two little listeners.

"Jasper Jay has heard about these cherries," he announced. "And he says he's coming over here as soon as he can find time, for he is specially fond of all kinds of cherries, no matter whether they're red cherries or black cherries or choke cherries."

Rusty Wren glanced quickly at his wife.

He could easily see that Jolly Robin's speech had upset her. And, to tell the truth, he did not himself relish the prospect of a visit from anybody as boisterous and quarrelsome as that famous bully, Jasper Jay.

"Can't you prevent his coming?" Rusty asked Jolly Robin.

But Jolly Robin shook his head.

"When Jasper Jay makes up his mind, I know of no way to make him change it," he said.

XI

THE NOISE ON THE ROOF

As soon as she heard that Jasper Jay intended to visit her cherry tree, to enjoy the ripe fruit, Rusty Wren's wife began to worry. And she made herself so unhappy that Rusty couldn't help wishing that Jolly Robin had kept his news to himself.

"Don't be alarmed!" he said to her, after Jolly had gone. "Jasper Jay can't harm the children, for they'll be safe in the nest. And luckily our doorway is too small for him."

But Mrs. Rusty wouldn't be calmed.

"He's a great, cruel bully," she replied. "And if he spends much time here I'm afraid the children will starve, for neither you nor I will be able to go out and find food for them, because Jasper would be sure to pounce on us; and what chance would we have against him?"

"We'll go together," said Rusty Wren, looking very brave.

But Mrs. Wren said she wouldn't think of leaving her six small children all alone in the house.

"Everything will be all right," Rusty assured her. "You know Jasper isn't coming unless he can _find the time_. Jolly Robin said so. And maybe he won't be able to get here at all."

They had gone inside their house to talk over the matter in private. And Rusty had hardly finished speaking when a loud bang, followed by a clatter, sounded on the tin roof above their heads.

It was no wonder that they both jumped.

"Goodness!" exclaimed Rusty's wife. "What's that?"

But Rusty couldn't tell her. During all the weeks they had lived there he had heard nothing like that.

While they listened the noise was repeated. And Mrs. Rusty declared that the sky must be falling, for she had never heard such a dreadful sound in all her life.

"I'll go right out and see what it is," Rusty Wren said.

But his wife caught hold of his coat-tails and begged him to stay with her.

"No! no!" she cried. "You must not stir out of the house. I'd be terribly worried if you left me alone here with these six small children. And you might get hurt, besides."

Meanwhile the racket on the roof continued, with only a short pause between each outburst. The six Wren children began to cry--for they were hungry as well as frightened. And all the time Mrs. Rusty clung to her husband's coat-tails and besought him not to leave her.

To tell the truth, he had no such intention. Though he was very brave for his size, he was thoroughly alarmed. And for the time being he was quite content to stay inside his snug house and hope that the trouble would soon come to an end.

* * * * *

On the whole, the Wren family spent a very unpleasant quarter of an hour. The _bang, clatter, bang_ on their roof still continued until the din became almost unbearable. And Rusty Wren grew so desperate that he had almost made up his mind to break away from his wife, even if he had to leave his coat-tails behind him, and dash out of doors to see what was the matter.

Then all at once a different sound fell upon their ears. And as soon as they heard it they knew at once that the sky was not falling, anyhow.

"_Jay! jay!_" Jasper Jay's harsh voice was unmistakable. He had been playing one of his sly tricks on the Wren family; and they had never guessed that it was he!

XII

THE UNWELCOME VISITOR

"It's Jasper Jay!" Rusty Wren cried, as soon as he and his wife heard the hoarse cry outside their house. "He's playing one of his tricks on us. And I'm going out and tell him exactly what I think of him."

"Don't forget to tell him what I think of him, too!" Mrs. Rusty said, as she let go of her husband's coat-tails.

Then Rusty hurried through the little doorway. And there was Jasper, sitting on a limb above the house, with a cherry in his bill, which he let fall with a sly smile.

The cherry struck the roof of Rusty's house with a loud _bang_! And then came the same _clatter_, to which the Wren family had been listening.

"Here! Stop that!" Rusty cried.

Jasper Jay shrieked with laughter.

"Go away!" said Rusty.

"Go away yourself!" retorted Jasper.

"This is my home," Rusty Wren told him hotly. "And you've no right to come here and frighten my wife and children like this."

"How shall I frighten them, then?" Jasper Jay asked him. "Perhaps you like this way better!" he shouted. And with that he flew straight at Rusty Wren. He was so big and he looked so cruel that Rusty turned tail and dashed back into his house again. And he was glad that his doorway was not much bigger than a twenty-five-cent piece, because he knew that Jasper Jay could never squeeze through so small an opening.

Jasper alighted on top of the house and jumped up and down on the roof, striking it with his bill and screaming angrily.

"Don't be afraid!" Rusty said to his wife. "He can't do any harm. And after a while he'll grow tired of staying here and he'll go away."

Well, Rusty was half right, at least. For Jasper Jay went away at last; but he didn't wait until he had grown weary of his rowdyish sport.

Now, Johnnie Green happened to hear Jasper's harsh cries. And, looking out of the window, he saw Jasper's strange performance.

"That blue jay is teasing my little wrens!" Johnnie Green cried indignantly. And, catching up a potato from the kitchen table, he hurried to the door and hurled it as hard as he could at the blue-coated trouble-maker.

The potato missed Jasper Jay by less than an inch, bringing up _kerplunk!_ against the trunk of the old cherry tree, and breaking into several pieces.

And then it was Jasper Jay's turn to be alarmed. He jumped off the roof of Rusty Wren's house as if he had been shot and dashed off as fast as his handsome wings could carry him. He knew of no way to tease Johnnie Green; so there was really no sense in his staying in Farmer Green's yard any longer.

Johnnie jeered at Jasper as the frightened bully hurried away.

"You'd better not come skulking around here again!" he shouted.

Although the cherries hung red and juicy upon the old tree for at least a week longer, just begging to be picked--as one might say--Jasper Jay did not come back to enjoy them. He told Jolly Robin that he was entirely too busy to waste his time in an old cherry tree.

XIII

BOY WANTED!

It seemed to take Rusty Wren's wife a long time to recover from the fright that Jasper Jay had given her. He had amused himself by dropping cherries upon the roof of her house. But the trick had not amused the Wren family in the least.

Even after Johnnie Green had driven the blue-coated rascal away from the dooryard Mrs. Rusty Wren was all aflutter. She jumped at the slightest noise. And she was so nervous that Rusty soon saw that it was a great effort for her to go abroad for food for their hungry family.

"You must stay right here at home and rest," he urged her. "I'll find enough for the children to eat--and for you too," he said manfully.

And really there was nothing else that his wife could do; for her nerves were in a frightful state.

So Rusty Wren took up his task cheerfully. He found it no easy one, either. Feeding six growing youngsters had kept both their parents working every minute all day long, because the children were always clamoring for more food. And now they seemed half starved, for they had had nothing to eat all the time that Jasper Jay had kept Rusty and his wife hiding in their house.

Rusty Wren, however, was not one to complain, no matter what happened. And every day from dawn till dark he hurried out of the house to find some toothsome insect, and bring it home to drop it into somebody's yawning mouth.

Indeed, he was so busy feeding his family that he scarcely had a chance to eat anything himself. So he grew quite thin. And though he still sang as merrily as ever, his wife noticed the change that had come over him.

Naturally, that made her worry. And since worrying was bad for her nerves, she began to grow worse instead of better.

"I don't know what's going to become of us," she said at last. "As the children grow bigger they need more to eat. And I can see plainly that you're never going to be able to provide enough for them."

"Oh! they'll soon be old enough to leave home and catch their own insects," Rusty told her hopefully. "And until that time comes I'll manage somehow, even if I have to work after dark."

But that plan did not suit his wife at all.

"I shouldn't care to stay alone in the house at night with six small children," she said. "That will never do."

"I have it!" Rusty cried suddenly. "I'll get somebody to help me!"

Well, his wife didn't think much of that plan, either.

"I don't like the idea of any strange bird coming into my house," she objected. "And you know yourself that you've always felt the same way about strangers."

"I know----" he replied--"but this is different. I'll find a brisk young fellow somewhere. And after a day or two you won't mind his being here. He'll seem just like one of the family."

It took a good deal of urging before Mrs. Rusty consented. But at last she said she was willing to give the plan a trial, though she felt sure it was bound to cause trouble, somehow.

So that is how Rusty Wren came to hang a sign outside his door, which said:

BOY WANTED

XIV

TOO MANY CALLERS

The news of Rusty Wren's sign, "Boy Wanted," spread like wildfire through the whole of Pleasant Valley. Rusty had put the sign out at daybreak. And before sunset as many as fifty of the field and forest people had come shyly to Farmer Green's dooryard.

Some of them came to apply for the position, and some of them merely wanted to see the sign--for it was a most unusual sight in that neighborhood.

There were others, too, such as Fatty Coon and Tommy Fox, who said that while they didn't care to visit Farmer Green's place in the daytime, they expected to call there during the night and take a look at Rusty Wren's home and the odd sign upon it.

Yes! So quiet a person as Rusty Wren, who never wandered far from home, had become famous in a day.

Yet it proved to be a very bad day for Rusty's family, because he had almost no time at all in which to try to bring home any food. No sooner had he talked with one caller than another knocked at his door. And so the steady stream of strangers kept him busy as a little red wagon, as Farmer Green would remark.

It was a discouraging business, to say the least. Though Rusty had advertised for a "boy," persons of all ages appeared and wanted to work for him. Some of them were old enough to be his grandfather. And, what was worse, they were all so big that they couldn't squeeze through Rusty's little round door. (The hole in the syrup can, you will remember, was only slightly larger than a quarter of a dollar.)

Of course, there was no use of his hiring a helper that could do only half the work. What Rusty wanted was somebody that could not only catch an insect, but bring it right inside the house and drop it into the mouth of one of his children.

At last when Rusty had almost given up all hope of finding anyone of the required size, a young English sparrow flew up and said boldly that he was the very person for the position. He claimed that he could get in and out of Rusty's door without any trouble. And he was just about to prove his claim, too, when Rusty Wren stopped him.

"Wait a moment!" he told the sparrow. "My wife is calling me. And I must see what she wants."

So he disappeared inside his house, to return shortly with a doleful look upon his face.

"I'm afraid you won't do," he said to the young English sparrow.

"Ha!" cried the stranger impertinently. "It's easy to see that your wife rules the house. And, since that's the case, I'm very glad I'm not going to work for you." He flew away then, with a jeering laugh which made Rusty Wren feel quite uncomfortable.

Now Mrs. Rusty had overheard the talk outside her door. And she had no intention of letting any rude, noisy English sparrow--even if he was a young one--come inside her house.

That was why she called to her husband. And she made the matter so plain that Rusty knew there was no use of trying to change her mind for her.

Things were growing worse and worse. The children were all _cheeping_ for food, until Rusty Wren could hardly endure the noise.

And he, too, felt painfully hungry.

XV

MR. CHIPPY'S SON

Rusty Wren was hurrying out of his house to find some supper for his family, when he almost bumped into a young chap who was gazing at the sign, "Boy Wanted," which still hung outside Rusty's door.