52 THE RUFFED GROUSE. 



hatched, and succeeded in catching some half-dozen; but 

 how could I withstand the distress of the mother-bird as 

 she tossed and tumbled over and over, moaning and cluck- 

 ing, sometimes near enough to be touched by the hand ! 

 Like Audubon, when he emptied the young Mallards from 

 his game-bag, I was completely overcome by the demon- 

 stration of maternal anguish. 



But the most affecting of all was to hear the tender cluck- 

 ing call of the mother, and the soft peeping reply of the 

 flock of little ones, as soon as I was out of sight. To this 

 moment I am hoping that she succeeded in getting all her 

 young family safely together, after so rude a dispersion. 



Berries of all kinds, as well as seeds, are the food of this 

 species; and when these are scarce, even leaves and buds 

 will do, and especially the catkins of the alder. 



The Partridge, in its several varieties, pretty nearly covers 

 North America, our variety occupying Canada and the 

 Eastern United States into the mountains of the Carolinas. 

 About the size of a common fowl, with a graceful crest and 

 fan-shaped tail, the general color is a beautiful brown, vari- 

 ously mottled and clouded with light and dark; and it is 

 readily distinguished by its bunch of glossy black plumes on 

 each shoulder, and its broad band of black across the end of 

 the tail. 



