247 



turn them over, then cautiously step on or between them and 

 settle down to her task. When sitting, her wings were 

 drooped so as to rest on the ground and her head was drawn 

 well back on her shoulders. She seemed to be interested 

 in all that transpired about her, watching the small birds 

 as they flitted through the pines and twisting her head in 

 all manner of positions to w^atch others as they flew over- 

 head. 



Three times, while I watched, danger threatened her 

 home^ but she met it bravely and in the best manner to fit the 

 occasion. Once she saw a man coming through the trees 

 before I had heard his approach; her feathers drew closer 

 to her sides and she became as motionless as the stone be- 

 side her. When he was within about twenty yards she slip- 

 ped quietly off the nest, sneaked through the scanty grass 

 to a distance of about thirty feet and hid behind a larger 

 stone. The man passed without even noticing my tent and 

 the sandpiper came leisurely back, stopping several times 

 to pick up insects. 



The next time we were disturbed, we did not escape so 

 easily. A man approached from the rear so quickly that 

 there was no time for her to hide; he came lumbering 

 through the pines, going right over any bushes that were in 

 his path. I was forced to step out of the tent and stop him 

 for fear he would go right over it. He started back as 

 though he had seen a ghost, with a "Waall I swan! I 

 never seen yer I" I explained that I was making photo- 

 graphs^ but did not say what of, and he went his way with- 

 out seeing the nest nor the bird that was running off with 

 trailing wings. 



The third danger might have been serious had I not been 

 there, but believe she would have pulled through all right. 

 She was sitting quietly on her eggs, tending strictly to busi- 

 ness, when I suddenly saw a startled look come into her 

 eyes. Looking in the same direction, I saw a large, hand- 



