In chapter six, the children embark on a nighttime raid of the Radley house in an attempt to get a good look at Boo Radley through the widows. After Jem, Dill, and Scout sneak into the Radleys's backyard, they carefully approach a side window and lift Dill up to get a look inside. However, Dill cannot get a clear view inside the house, so Jem proceeds to climb onto the back porch to look in another window. Unfortunately, Jem makes a noise while walking on the creaky back porch, which catches Nathan Radley's attention. Nathan Radley immediately swings open the backdoor wielding a shotgun as the children dash out of the backyard.
After escaping from the yard, the children walk down the block to join their group of neighbors, who are discussing the commotion. Miss Stephanie mentions that Nathan Radley believed there was a "Negro" in his collard patch and thinks that he "scared him pale." Essentially, Nathan Radley has no idea who trespassed onto his yard and simply assumes that a black person was in his collard patch.
One night, Jem, Scout, and Dill sneak up to the Radley residence, trying to catch a glimpse of Boo. Maycomb's resident boogie-man is a source of endless fascination to the children. After peeking through the window, the intruders are suddenly surprised by Boo's brother, Nathan. He comes out into the backyard and begins shooting his gun. He doesn't know who's there, but he knows there's definitely someone lurking around. He needs to scare off the intruders, and fast, whoever they are.
Later on, Nathan tells Miss Maudie that he shot at "a negro in his collared patch." This shows two things: first of all, that Nathan Radley shares the same instinctive racial prejudice of most people in Maycomb, and secondly, that he really doesn't have the faintest idea who was creeping around his property.
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