Then Mrs. Quack took her turn at keeping watch , while Mr. Quack stood on his head and hunted for rice . It was wonderfully quiet and peaceful . There was not even a ripple on the Big River . It was so quiet that they could hear the barking of a dog at a farmhouse a mile away . They were far enough out from the bank to have nothing to fear from Reddy Fox or Old Man Coyote . So they had nothing to fear from any one save Hooty the Owl . It was for Hooty that they took turns in watching . It was just the hour when Hooty likes best to hunt . By and by they heard Booty 's hunting call . It was far away in the Green Forest , Then Mr. and Mrs. Quack felt easier , and they talked in low , contented voices . They felt that for a while at least there was nothing to fear . Suddenly a little splash out in the Big River caught Mr. Quack 's quick ear . As Mrs. Quack brought her head up out of the water , Mr. Quack warned her to keep quiet . Noiselessly they swam among the brown stalks until they could see out across the Big River . There was another little splash out there in the middle . It was n't the splash made by a fish ; it was a splash made by something much bigger than any fish . Presently they made out a silver line moving towards them from the Black Shadows . They knew exactly what it meant . It meant that some one was out there in the Big River moving towards them . Could it be a boat containing a hunter ?
With their necks stretched high , Mr. and Mrs. XXXXX watched .
Booty Coyote Forest Fox Hooty Quack River boat fish stalks