“I don’t know,” replied Mrs. Hoot. “We might find a better place if we looked further.”
“Haven’t we looked all over the woods?” asked Hoot impatiently. “I’m dreadfully tired, and this house hunting tires me more than anything else in the world. The last place I selected you didn’t like because it was too near the river, and now this one is way back.”
“It’s too far away from all my friends, too,” objected Mrs. Hoot. “I don’t like to live off alone. I want to be near other people.”
“Yes, that’s it—always objecting!” exclaimed Hoot irritably. “Well, then, if you can find a better place go and look for it. This suits me.”
“Now please don’t get angry,” replied Mrs. Hoot. “I didn’t say this place didn’t please me. I can’t tell until we look it over. Suppose we go inside and see how it is in there. Of course, there will have to be many improvements made. I never saw a house ready-made for me that was satisfactory in all respects.”
“No, indeed,” replied Hoot. “But I’ll look inside.”
You can imagine Belt’s feelings! There he was shut up in the hole with Hoot the Owl coming down to look around. Oh, what could he do! Why had he deceived Downy! Now he was going to be punished for his lie.
“If I ever get out of here alive,” he breathed, “I’ll never tell another lie. I’ll never deceive any one again.”
But of course this didn’t get him out. Nothing could! The entrance was blocked by Hoot and his mate. Then he heard Hoot scrambling through the opening. In another minute he would discover Belt crouched at the bottom of the hole.
“Oh, dear, the hole is altogether too small for us,” he heard Hoot say. “No, this will never suit you. It will take more repairing than it’s worth. I’ll have to make the entrance twice as large.”