[Music] in Chapter seven of To Kill a Mockingbird school starts again and Scout is now in second grade lately she's been worried about Jemez bad mood since the Radley house incident Jem admits he hasn't told her what happened when he went back to get his torn pants when he ran back to get them he found them nicely stitched and folded as if someone was expecting him later Scout and Jem walked past the old tree at the edge of the Radley property and they noticed a ball of twine tucked into the knot hole again they discussed who might be hiding things there Jem is convinced someone is leaving things specifically for them from then on they start taking whatever they find in the knothole they decide to write a thank-you note the next day they're disappointed when they find the knothole mysteriously cemented shut keeping them from leaving their note Jem waits to catch nathan Radley on his way home and asks about the knothole Nathan Radley tells him the tree is sick and the cement is a way to try and cure it when gem asks Atticus if it's true Atticus tells him the tree looks healthy to him but mr. Radley would know his own trees better in Chapter 7 Jem grows in both insight and maturity he realizes although he doesn't share the information with Scout that Boo Radley is probably the person who mended his pants and comes to believe it is boo who's leaving the gifts in the oak tree it upsets him that Nathan Radley cemented the knothole because he knows this is boos only way of communicating with the outside world more upsetting is that he didn't get a chance to say thank you a silent friendship that was recently cemented figuratively has now ended by someone else's decision to cement the tree you