40 Bird - Lore 



she at several times started to leave it ; but when the bird moved I 

 kept still, and when she kept still I worked ; in this way I finally 

 completed my preparations. The peep I got of the eggs as she partly 

 raised off from them, just as I finished, made me squeeze the bulb 

 before I intended to ; but the result I obtained fully satisfied me, for 

 in no other way could I describe the results of this trip, and what I 

 saw and learned of the habits and home-life of the Least Bittern. 



Loons at Home 



BY WILLIAM DUTCHER 



SHOULD like to say a few words to the readers of 

 Bird -Lore on the subject of making good photo- 

 graphs of birds. Don't conclude at once, when you 

 ^e-^ see pictures of nests, or birds in their wild state, that 

 -i=r-"'^;- it is an easy matter to get them. A year ago, when 

 ^^^•"~ I saw the fine exhibition of slides presented by Mr. 

 ^^-_=: Brewster and Mr. Chapman at the American Orni- 

 "~"^' thologists' meeting, I at once concluded that it would 

 be an easy thing for me to get similar results. So I forthwith 

 invested much good money in purchasing a camera, and all the 

 accompanying outfit : but not until I had worried all my photo- 

 graphic friends for advice of all kinds. With all the confidence 

 of an expert I started on this unknown sea, and I must confess 

 to you, patient reader, that my efforts were a brilliant string of fail- 

 ures, for from the more than one hundred and twenty-five plates that 

 I exposed, I succeeded in getting only two good negatives. But I 

 had lots of fun and plenty of experience, and am just as proud of 

 my two good negatives as the celebrated old hen that had but 

 one chick. If you want to learn to be patient and persevering, 

 try photographing in the fields and woods. If you wish to learn 

 more of the habits of birds than you can in any other possible 

 way, try for hours to get them familiar enough with you and your 

 camera to go on with their nest-building, or feeding their nestlings. 

 Besides all this, in later days, whenever you see the photograph, it 

 will recall to you every pleasant moment that you spent in getting 

 the negative. 



That you may share with me some of the pleasures that I experi- 

 enced in getting a negative of a nest of eggs, from which the accompa- 

 nying picture was made, let me tell you the following story about 

 the Great Northern Diver, more commonly known as the Loon, and 

 among the scientists as Gavia imber. 



