92 JS^tnunt^ of tfte JCrrcs 



prize, all but the offal and head, which 

 he left in the grass. 



This was all very good as far as it went, 

 but the coon was still gaunt from his 

 long winter's fast, and a meal of one 

 course would not satisfy him. A little 

 further on he poked out a fresh-water 

 clam, and breaking it open with his 

 teeth, scooped out its slimy contents. 

 Fish and clams were a good beginning, 

 but he must have warm blood before 

 he slept. 



In a clump of alder bushes near the 

 brook he got a strong bird scent. It 

 must be on the ground and very near, for 

 it fairly ravished his nostrils. His habit 

 of blundering along was laid aside, and 

 he crept stealthily, almost foxlike, toward 

 his prey. It w^as from under an old log 

 that the scent came. He was just con- 

 sidering whether to try and creep nearer. 



WOODCOCK WHISTLED UP THROUGH THE 

 ALDER BUSHES" 



