BALD PEAKS AND GREEN VALES 49 



iridescent in the sunlight. In contemplating this vast, 

 overawing scene, I almost forgot my natural historv, 

 and wanted to feast my eves for hours on its ever-chanp-- 

 ing beauty ; but presently I was brought back to a con- 

 sciousness of my special vocation by a sharp chirp. 

 Was it a bird, or only one of those playful little chip- 

 munks that abound in the Rockies.? Directly there 

 sounded out on the serene air another ringing chirp, 

 this time overhead, and, to my delight and surprise, a 

 little bird swung over the summit, then out over the 

 edge of the cliff, and plunged down into the fearsome 

 abyss of the "Bottomless Pit." Other birds of the 

 same species soon followed his example, making it 

 evident that this was not a birdless region. Unable to 

 identify the winged aeronauts, I clambered about over 

 the rocks of the summit for a while, then slowly made 

 my way down the southern declivity of the mountain 

 for a short distance. Again my ear was greeted with that 

 loud, ringing chirp, and now the bird uttering it oblig- 

 ingly alighted on a stone not too far away to be seen 

 distinctly through my binocular. "WTio was the little 

 waif that had chosen this sky-invading summit for its 

 summer habitat? At first I mistook it for a horned 

 lark, and felt so sure my decision was correct that 

 I did not look at the bird as searchinglv as I should 

 have done, thereby learning a valuable lesson in 

 thoroughness. The error was corrected by my friend, 



4 



