The Hollowed Tree

By

R. K. Johnstone

Copyright 2014 R. K. Johnstone

Smashwords Edition

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

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Contents

Title and Copyright Page

1. A Highly Irritable Group

2. The Meeting at the Stump

3. The Trek to Visit Owl

4. Hardwood Haven, the Estate of Honorashious Owl

5. Honorashious Owl

6. The Court is Engaged

7. Names

8. Closing Deliberations on Names

9. A Recounting of the Circumstances Surrounding the Lost Boy

10. An Impartial Investigation

11. The Hollowed Tree

12. The Shaman's Failure

13. The Inconclusive Validation of Egbert's Hypothesis

14. The Search Begins in Earnest

15. Affairs of the Heart

16. A Military Code

17. Hawg City

18. A Bourgeois Warthog

19. Young Warthogs Disporting in the Savannah

20. An Assault

21. The Criminals are Apprehended and the Case is Remanded

22. The Prisoners are Brought to Hawg City

23. The Magistrate

24. Madame DeKooncey

25.The Arrival of the Seventh Juridical and Percy Theodilious

26. The Magistrate's Intrigue is Launched – the Incarceration

27. Bartruff Receives a Visitor

28. Corporal Punishment

29. The Magistrate is Indisposed

30. The Bower of Bliss

31. Warthog Court

32. The Case of the Warthogs

33. The Case of the Bear and the Others

34. The Sentencing

35. Closing Arguments

36. The Punishment is Carried Out

37. An Untoward Event

38. A Reconciliation and Final Parting

39. The Search Resumes

40. Down from the Mountain

41. Assistance from Unexpected Quarters

42. The Three Sisters

43. Reunion

44. The Descent

45. Epilogue

1. A Highly Irritable Group

We’ve lost the boy, the bear said, throwing up his great paws in frustration. Scowling fiercely, he turned to the squirrel. This is your fault, you know, and I’m holding you personally responsible!

Thus directly addressed, the disconcerted squirrel muttered to himself for a moment before responding in the shrillest of tones: But–I give you my word, Bear–he faltered emotionally, –I never did anything–intentionally–to cause all of this mess. It is extremely distressful, I'll grant you, yet–yet you simply can not lay all of the blame on me–it's unfair. He plucked up a bit, swelling his chest. It's unjust!

What? snorted an incredulous lion who was sitting nearby. You mean to deny it? Why, it was every bit of it your fault! No, no, you won't be able to squirm out of this one, Squirrel!

I do deny it, and that most strongly, the squirrel said. His voice was laden now with self righteous vituperation. Raising an admonitory finger in the air, he continued, And as a matter of fact, I think that it is really your fault that we have lost the boy–

Propaganda, the lion said dismissively and swished his tail in a dignified manner.

If you hadn't fallen into the trap, we would never have lost him.

Bah! Merely an occupational hazard, the lion said with contempt. The king can’t sit home all the day long. I must get out and conduct the business of the jungle.

Oh shut up, the bear said in exasperation. Both of you are no better than a couple of old nag she wolves. We'll have to do better than this, if we want to hook back up with the boy.

The lion grumbled, but then fell silent, conceding the truth of the bear’s words. In all reality the three animals were equally, deeply concerned about the situation. Now, they pondered the problem, each of them giving it their fullest and most serious consideration.

After a short while mulling over the matter, it was the squirrel who spoke out first: I have an idea– he said –I think.

The bear and the lion turned to the squirrel. He was peering into the thick tangle of dripping vines and trees that surrounded them, as if he discerned there some solution to their predicament. They waited expectantly, yet the squirrel only sat there on his haunches, seemingly oblivious, making no effort to continue.

After a moment, the lion growled impatiently, Well? What is it? If you have an idea about how to find the lost boy, out with it, man! Don't keep us in suspense, for heaven's sake.

The bear, too, had little patience with what seemed to him to be highly affected behavior. Really, Squirrel, I have to agree. You can't keep us in suspense a moment longer. If you have an idea about where the boy is, or how we can find him, get it out now and don’t waste a minute more of our time!

The squirrel hung his head and shook it slowly from side to side, as if amazed at such obtuse density; then, he turned to them with a patronizing little smile. He seemed now to have lost all his former trepidation. After extending the silence for a moment longer, he held forth professorially:

Well, gentlemen, let us begin at the beginning–so to speak–of this mystery. Let us examine all of the facts. He looked significantly into the eyes of one, then the other of his companions. How do we know that he’s lost?

What? snorted the lion. What’s this nonsense? Why–of course he’s lost!

Is he? the squirrel said with raised eyebrows.

What are you getting at, Squirrel? the bear said.

The bear had known the squirrel for a long time, and he was well aware of his many talents. He knew also, however, that sometimes the squirrel had to be reigned in, and that nothing would do but that someone–and it was usually the bear–had to give him a good dressing down, which, if necessary, he was more than ready to do.

Only that we must strive to discern the truth through a critical examination of all of the facts, and that no other method offers the remotest possibility of success.

Well, the bear grumbled with dissatisfaction, that’s not saying much. The lion snorted his agreement.

Undaunted, the squirrel continued: Is the boy lost? Or is it, rather, more accurate to say that we do not know where he is?

It’s highly unlikely that he would have left us in a lurch, without at least some explanation, the lion said in somewhat more reasonable tones. If he wasn’t lost, then why don’t we know where he is?

Hmm, the bear said, his forehead creased with concentration. I wouldn’t think he would desert us. Not if he wasn’t lost, that is. But, anyway, we don’t have a lot to go on. He was here–now he’s not. That’s all we know. We know he was with us before.

Hah! cried the squirrel. You see my point, then. We have no proof of anything.

Oh, get on with it, Squirrel, and stop bullying us with all of these rhetorical questions, the bear said peevishly. Of course we don’t have any proof. What else is new? If you’re implying that we should have some knowledge of his whereabouts, that this is somehow somebody or other’s fault, then maybe you’re right. In that case you should go ahead and look at what you did that you shouldn’t have–or didn’t that you should. Don’t look at us!

Bear's right, Squirrel, the lion said. We’re not guilty. Get to the point.

And be quick about it, the bear continued sternly. We don't have time to be fooling around with anymore of your nonsense.

The squirrel glowered at his two companions. Very well, he said shortly. Since both of you seem to lack any interest in exercising your faculties of reason–of applying logic to the problem–I shall come to the point directly. He looked portentously at the bear, then at the lion. I think, he said solemnly, that the boy may have found the Hollowed Tree.

Oh, for goodness sake! the bear burst out in exasperation. The Hollowed Tree? What's next? Really, Squirrel, you're wasting our time. These aren’t facts, this is a fairy tale!

I should say so, the lion said, looking away in disgust.

The squirrel hastened to continue, his forehead creasing with anxious concern: If you will only think about it for a moment. It makes sense. Why else is it that we haven't heard from him? My theory is, that having heard about the Hollowed Tree, he went looking for it.

Oh come on, the bear said.

I ask you, what other explanation do you have for his loss? I think that the lost boy may have been searching for that very Hollowed Tree that most of us, even if we endeavor to find it, overlook. The facts, he most likely gleaned from us–and especially from you, Lion–

Now wait just a minute there, Squirrel, the lion objected. He stood up and shook his great maned head in contentious disagreement. That's slander. It wasn't me that decided to give up all of the secrets of the jungle. It seems I remember quite a few others who weighed in heavily on that decision–

–having heard from us, the squirrel interrupted loudly over these objections, in detail the facts about the Hollowed Tree, he may have accomplished what so many have found so hard. He may have positively identified it.

The bear frowned. Well, he said grudgingly, I have to agree that it might explain his loss. He’d need to be at tree top level, though, to get down to the bottom of it–as far as I know, anyway.

I say, the lion interjected, narrowing his eyes suspiciously at the bear. That brings up a point. You sound as if you know all about it, Bear. What makes you such an authority on the Hollowed Tree anyway? Why, to listen to you, I would think that surely you must have seen it yourself!

How utterly absurd! the bear said with scorn. I refuse to lend credibility to that remark by denying it. No offense to the boy, but everyone knows that only a fool wastes his time in looking for the Hollowed Tree. I only know what anyone could figure out who has ever heard about it. And everybody in this jungle knows about the Hollowed Tree–that's for sure. We may not have any evidence to go on, but we know about it.

The bear was sick and tired of Lion's accusations; indeed, the behavior of these animals may have grown so tiresome by now, as to introduce the very real danger that even the most patient reader might consider departing their company and so relieve themselves of a nuisance. In view of this disagreeable eventuality, a few words elaborating on the character of this relationship of the bear with the lion, and on the bear’s character in general–a subject in its many facets of no mean complexity– would appear to be in order.

It was a well known fact throughout the jungle that if it weren't for the bear, the lion's rule would be an unmitigated disaster. Many of the animals openly recognized the bear as the more level-headed, wiser, and fairer of the two. Naturally, the lion resented this as a usurpation of his natural birthright and took advantage of every opportunity to make accusations, such as these, designed to defame the bear's reputation.

On the bear’s part, the lion's unjust accusation had served only to aggravate an already anxious disposition. Before coming to any conclusion, this bear would review a problem exhaustively, analyzing it from every imaginable aspect and agonizing endlessly over the consequences of a wrong decision. A natural born worrier, he sweated furiously over the smallest of details; then, he would argue his point forcefully with the lion, who never gave any problem more than a cursory look. The lion routinely side-stepped, backed up, cajoled, recanted, changed–even confessed to improprieties of conduct. His quick and often ill-considered decisions were rarely successful before one of the bear's concerted attacks; yet, as unswerving as the bear may have been in his dedication, he considered it burdensome, after all was said and done, to have to arbitrate questions of the jungle, which by all rights the lion should have settled on his own. As a matter of fact, if he had not been driven by a higher moral sense, the bear would have never disturbed his compliant and agreeable nature with such questions at all.

In this last respect it was his great misfortune to possess a conscience of formidable proportions. Indeed, such was the overbearing and uncompromising character of this conscience that it refused to allow even the slightest impropriety or questionable ethical practice to go unchallenged. It compelled him to take a leading part in the contentious debates and brawls and assume a role that was directly contrary to his naturally peaceful personality. For in spite of his inward compulsion, he was convinced that he was fundamentally ill-suited to lead and, thus, fretted ceaselessly over innumerable weaknesses in his character, revealed in the frequent, and merciless, self-examinations to which he subjected his psyche. No wonder, as a consequence of all this, that he suffered from the ill effects of a severe and unremitting anxiety.

The others, who held just the opposite opinion of his capabilities, looked up to him to solve their every crisis or dispute. He was frequently peevish and irritable when they brought him their problems. Impatient with everyone, he could be rude, even to the lion, whom he often treated no better than any common animal in the jungle; and he had little patience with the squirrel's tortuous arguments, either, preferring to come directly to the point of a question. In fact, we may safely say that the bear actually viewed his unlooked for, elevated status with the public as unfavorably as the lion. In his opinion nothing could be more damaging to the jungle than an unchallenged violation of the natural order. In all good conscience, however, he felt that he could not deny the exceeding benefits of his exceptional talents to the greater good. He served, therefore, reluctantly, as foil and conscience to the lion's generally ill–advised and even harmful initiatives. He accepted his role with resignation, applying himself steadfastly to the achievement of a better society, and he conceded to the lion little if anything in the course of the disagreements which arose naturally from day to day among all of the inhabitants of the jungle.

Now, the squirrel–who, incidentally, sided as a rule with neither the bear nor the lion in their endless quarrels–ran over to a nearby tree and ascended smartly to its top. From his vantage point in the very topmost branches of the tree he could see out over the solid green canopy, which extended to the horizon. He peered in every direction, the branches on which he perched bent almost to the point of breaking beneath his weight.

Now what does he think he's going to find up there like that, the lion said disgustedly. You'd have more luck looking for a shrew in the South Savannah than he'll ever have looking for the boy up there. If it were that easy to find the Hollowed Tree, he should know where it is already.

Well, the bear said gruffly, still vexed at Lion's earlier remarks, have you got any better ideas? You do a pretty good job of sitting here and pontificating and doing nothing. As a matter of fact, I don't think anyone can do that better than you. But tell me this: do you have an alternative plan?

Oh come on, Bear, the lion said plaintively. The Hollowed Tree is much too much of a long shot. He could be on the moon as easily as down the Hollowed Tree.

The bear was looking up at the squirrel in the top of the tree. All that was visible was his small head, protruding from the foliage at the very top, swiveling jerkily from side to side. His sharp little black eyes glistened like two hard beads of glass, and he squinted with the strain of looking so far across the tree tops into the distance. I'm not so sure, the bear said fretfully. Then he gave a weary sigh, laden with anxiety. Anyway, I think what we need is a search plan.

And with that, the bear shouted at the squirrel to come down from the tree top right away.

2. The Meeting at the Stump

Once the squirrel had come back down he joined the bear and the lion at the stump of what at one time had been an enormous oak tree. The stump was oblong in shape. The bear sat solemnly on a log along one side while the lion, the titular head of the meeting, rested on his haunches at what appeared to be the place of honor at one end. The squirrel scurried up and sat on top of the stump itself.

Off the stump, Squirrel, the lion said reprovingly.

The squirrel glared at the lion. And where do you suggest I sit if not on top of the stump, I'd like to know? I certainly can't see anyone from the ground!

The lion yawned as if bored and scratched his nose with a great paw.

This open display of unconcern made the squirrel grow all the more agitated.

Such inconsideration, he said, bristling, tends to be repaid in kind. Perhaps, you would prefer that I leave you to recover the lost boy yourself!

All right, all right, the bear scolded anxiously. Hold it, you two. This isn't going to get us anywhere. We need everybody's help if we're going to find the lost boy.

The squirrel sat on the stump, smoldering with anger, making no effort to move. The lion smacked his large lips together, saying with unconcern: Oh well, ho hum. Insubordination is always intolerable; but, in this case, I will concede the point–to you, Bear–for the welfare of all concerned.

The squirrel cast upon him a look of cold indignation.

The bear sighed heavily and wiped a great paw over his anxious forehead, across one eye, and down a cheek. Well, he said after a moment, how do we proceed? Lion? Squirrel?

If one agrees with Squirrel's preposterous hypothesis, that the lost boy has found the Hollowed Tree, the lion said, I confess, frankly, to not knowing what we should do, Bear. I, for one, would be most reluctant to place a wager supporting the likelihood of that proposition, based on the evidence at hand, at any rate. He cast a pointed look in the direction of the squirrel. No, I'm in no great hurry to go running all over creation looking for the Hollowed Tree. Why, I've spent a good part of my life up until now trying to avoid the darned thing! No, without some proof, I'm not going looking for nothing.

It's our only choice, the bear said, looking up solemnly at the other two animals. He assumed a tone of authority: You don't have anything better to offer, Lion–as usual. Now what we have to do is figure out how do we find the Hollowed Tree. Squirrel, I don't think that you will have much luck looking over the canopy without a good search plan. The Hollowed Tree is likely to top out just below the green tops of all the rest of the jungle, and you'll miss it. And anyway, I don't think your eyesight is all that good. What we need is an efficient search plan. Then you can narrow your search area down and focus it. Lion and I will follow along on the ground, looking for indications just above the root line. Don't forget, either, he said, swelling a bit with pride, I can climb a tree if need be.

Hah! the lion said, suppressing a burst of laughter. That I'd like to see.

The bear frowned with displeasure. Maybe you will, he said. But in the meantime we had better get started or we'll never reach the end of it.

These observations are all perceptive insights, the squirrel said with thinly veiled irony. Truly, I am awestruck by such profundity. However, I think that we need somewhat more in the way of planning than this.

The bear sighed wearily and shook his great head from side to side. The squirrel certainly could be tiresome. Okay, okay, knock it off Squirrel, he said. He was not about to let the squirrel adopt such a patronizing tone without a challenge. What are you thinking? You obviously have something in mind. Let it out. And you can dispense with all of your disrespectful comments.

First, the squirrel said, getting up a little on his hind legs and raising a paw pedantically into the air, We must research the problem. Before we run off willy nilly into the jungle, we must have some idea of the most likely locations. Otherwise, we have as good a chance of finding the Hollowed Tree as we do of winning the lottery in the South Savannah.

Hah! the lion grumbled. According to him, then, it’s all a game of chance.

Now, the squirrel said rising to his feet and starting to pace in front of the others from one end of the stump to the other, the best way to research this problem is to consult the experts. Yes, we must consult the experts.

Pshaw, the bear protested mildly. We know as much as anybody about the Hollowed Tree, Squirrel. There aren't any experts.

I would disagree. There is an expert–at least one who, from an official standpoint, would be considered an expert. The squirrel paused, arching his eyebrows and looking at the bear with an air of expectation.

Well, okay, the bear said with impatience. Who?

Owl.

Oh no, no, no, no, Lion protested in disbelief. Oh no. Owl? Oh goodness gracious, Squirrel. We're going to go and find Owl and ask him to tell us where the Hollowed Tree is? The blind will really be leading the blind if we do that!

Not so fast, the bear said. It never hurts to find out what others know. You can save a lot of time and effort that way. Owl may know something we don't. He lives in partially hollowed trees himself. It stands to reason that someone who lives in one himself is likely to know something useful about the whereabouts of the mother of them all. Turning to the squirrel, the bear assumed a more skeptical tone. Even so, though, I really do doubt that he'll know much more than we do about the Hollowed Tree. And tell me this: Is Owl even on duty these days, or has he retired like he said he was going to the last time I talked to him six months ago?

He is in semi-retirement, the squirrel said. It seems that his plans for retirement haven't gone quite as he'd expected. The usual story, didn't know what to do with himself. To take up some of the slack, Owl is back on partial duty. He patrols the precincts as far as the border with the South Savannah and, to the North, the Muted Mountains. Occasionally, he even adjudicates minor cases.

He does? Lion's ears pricked up. And who authorized him to hear cases after retirement?

He doesn't need authorization. He retains the authority even in retirement. It's in the charter, the squirrel sniffed.

Sounds like a kangaroo court to me! the lion said suspiciously. He was always sensitive to anything that appeared to be making inroads on his authority, and the idea of the owl conducting court whenever he pleased did not sound like the lion had much control. Maybe we need to re-visit that issue.

What issue? the bear said with exasperation. It's always been that way! If you ever took the time to read your own charter, you'd know it, Lion. Don't get sidetracked. We'll never get anywhere if you keep getting off of the subject.

The lion sat back on his haunches, sulking. From this time on he exhibited no further interest in the goings on at the meeting of the stump. He was content to allow the bear and the squirrel to take care of the rest, even though he secretly conceded the importance of these deliberations and was as concerned as anyone with finding the lost boy.

All right, Squirrel, the bear said. Let's go and find Owl. Lion, you can come or not.

And with that, the squirrel hopped from the stump to a nearby tree and scurried up in the branches. I know very well where Owl's home is. Undoubtedly he is fast asleep at this hour. We should get there just as he arises. Follow me, he called down to the bear.

The bear, who had stood up from the stump to stretch and sniff the air, dropped down now on all fours and lumbered off in the direction the squirrel had taken. The lion remained sitting, as if disinterested in these proceedings, alone at the stump.

3. The Trek to Visit Owl

Bear knew the way to Owl's tree as well as anyone, and, frankly, it rankled a bit to have to listen to Squirrel speak as if he were the only one who could find it. For the sake of getting on with it, however, he had let the squirrel's presumption pass without comment. He lumbered along beneath the great trees of the forest, following his own instincts and memories of the way to the bird's nest, disregarding entirely the importunate cries and admonitions which the squirrel shouted down upon his head from the tree tops.

Although it had been some time since Bear had come this way, several months at least, the scents and signs of the forest guided him on his way as surely as the signs along a highway. The great willow tree hanging over the bank of a small pond that they came to aroused in his mind the remembrances of many events from his past, indeed some of them reaching all the way back to the days when he was a young bear cub. He paused and, half rising on his hind legs for a moment, raised his nose into the air to sniff the scents. Nothing new there, he thought, and proceeded on his way.

Squirrel, meanwhile, every few minutes came racing back through the tree tops, scowling and chattering angrily to himself when he found that the bear was following his own way through the forest, disregarding his lead. Jumping from tree to tree, sometimes barely catching himself on the end of a flimsy branch, he would