VICTOR, THE SON OF AUDUBON 71 



" I must see a partridge drum/' said Victor. " You 

 have?" 



" Not in the way that I wish to see the movement/' said 

 Audubon. 



" On what do partridges drum? " 



" The farmers say that they drum on a stump. They 

 have quick ears — they hear steps at a long distance. They 

 stand on stumps and listen. They usually drum when the 

 air is perfectly still, and when no one is near." 



"I will discover the method of the bird; I will see a 

 partridge drum, if I have to lie in the bushes all day." 



" If you ever find a partridge drumming in clear view, 

 you will be a clever boy — smarter than any farmer lad 

 or young hunter that I have ever seen. That is a sight 

 that we will not be likely to see together — but we may." 



Victor began to study the habits of the wonderful bird. 

 They would sometimes " scare up " a partridge from her 

 nest. The bird builds her nest in hidden and protected 

 places, among dead leaves and grasses of her own color, and 

 if disturbed when setting, will silently and quickly remove 

 her eggs to another place. 



She will defend her young with great courage, and by 

 strategy. 



She is a kind of mesmerist, or hypnotist. 



When she is surprised with her brood, she will utter a 

 pitiful cry, and seem to be struggling helplessly on the 

 ground as with a broken wing. Or she will wheel about 



