Grandma and Grandpa had invited Mark to visit Farmer Brown on his farm.  The farm was just a few miles from Mark's home in Charlotte .  As they approached Farmer Brown's farm, Mark saw something strange in the corn field.
     "What is that?" Mark asked.
     "Oh, that's a scarecrow," replied Grandpa .
     "It's supposed to scare birds away from the corn.  But, as you can see, Mark , it doesn't always work."

As they drove down the lane, Mark could see Farmer Brown's barn and house in the distance.  He could also see someone riding on a tractor and waving to them.
     "Who's that?" asked Mark.
     Grandma answered, "That's Farmer Brown.  He looks eager to greet us."

Farmer Brown climbed down from the tractor and walked toward his visitors in their stopped car.  Mark ran from the car and climbed onto the nearby fence.  As Farmer Brown again waved hello to Grandma and Grandpa, he looked at Mark and said, "Well, who do we have here?"
     "I am Mark Clarke, and I live in Charlotte," Mark replied.

Farmer Brown said to Mark, Grandma and Grandpa, "Maybe you folks can help me solve a mystery."  Mark listened with great interest as he continued:  "You see, before I went into the chicken coop to gather eggs, I took off my favorite straw hat and put it on a barrel next to the door.

When I was finished in the coop, I came out and reached for my hat ... but, it was gone!"
(…and there's much, much more!)