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 you when he is likely to be out. Then let the barn-cat watch at the entrance of the hole, and you're safe from him provided you don't come to harm in the hole."

Mrs. Polly put her head on one side with a meditative air, and the others were silent, for they knew she was considering deeply about the matter. After a few minutes' silence she spoke.

"I'll tell you what seems to me to be a good plan," she said to the sparrow. "You see the barn-cat and whisper to her to take her kittens out for an airing in front of the barn. Graywhisker will be sure to see them, and conclude that it's safe for him to leave home, for he never goes out while she is in the barn. You watch from a distance, and when he is gone you give the barn-cat a sign and let her leave her kittens with the little gray kitten while you slip into the hole and she sits at the entrance. Do you understand?"