THE OSPKEY. 



55 



A TRIP TO THE DISMAL SWAMP. 

 By Paul Baktsch, Washing-ton, D. C. 



As nesting' site, the Prothonotarv chooses any 

 convenient cavity. This may be in an old stump 

 a few feet from the ground, or some ten to fifteen 

 feet above it. We even found one neatly tucked 

 away in a hollow made by the twisting of a 

 cypress knee, only a foot and-a-half from its 

 base. The greater number however seem to be 

 placed in small decayed trees at a height easily 

 within the reach of oue"s hand. It is possible 

 that nests so placed are more conspicuous, 

 and hence more easily noted than others, which 

 would account for the fact, that by far the greater 

 number found were thus situated. In almost 

 every case the stump was decidedly rotten, and 

 one could easily break away the outer protect- 

 ing wall with one's fingers, if desirable, and 

 thus expose the structure proper, which in all 

 instances consisted of a base, of varying depth, 

 made almost exclusively of the tree trunk in- 

 vesting mosses while the superstructure or 

 nest proper consisted of a neat cup formed en- 

 tirely of fine rootlets. 



The Hooded is of a wholly different tem- 

 perament, apparently frequenting all parts of 

 the swamp, and not like t'.ie Prothonotarv 

 partial to the borders of the large tracts of 

 water. You may find him ne ir the ground or 

 in the tree tops, but usually at an elevation half 

 way between these two extremes. He is of an 

 extremely cheerful disposition and your atten- 

 tion will no doubt be called to him by his notes. 

 for he is ever saying something, as he moves 

 about, searching for his food, repeating it 

 again and again witli varied emphasis. The 

 syllables most frequently heard sou d som thin r 

 like weee weee wo-ee-tsee ren lered in i mi s! 

 pleasing manner, with the sweetest or accents 

 which belong wholly and alone to our little 

 swamp inhabitant the Hooded Warbler. Tiiis 

 bird indeed, more than any another, tends to 

 enliven these scenes, which without avian 

 chorus, would certainly seem steeped in deepest 

 gloom. All the nests which we found of this 

 warbler were placed in crotches of cane, and 

 contained four young. The nest is not a model 

 of architecture; but one well suited for its pur- 

 pose. Dead leaves of cane to which a few of 

 the oak and other trees were added, composed 

 the rough exterior, the inside or lining being 

 of slender grass steins neatly turned to line the 

 mould. 



So much for these two warblers, and now 

 again to our task. We arrived at our hotel 

 toward dusk, and finding no one at home lifted 

 the latch and stepped inside the only cabin which 

 commands a view of Drummond's Lake. 



The hotel is placed upon a bit of elevated 

 ground on the left side of the ditch, about a 

 hundred yards north of its junction with the 

 lake. Formerly there were two buildings in 

 close proximity, but now the one to the south is 

 gradually being- consumed for kindling wood. 

 The main structure, though made of rough 

 boards, is nevertheless built after the most ap- 

 proved sanitary style. First of all it is raised 

 upon sections of logs, some four feet from the 



ground, to keep the house from being' damp; how- 

 ever light and ventilation are its two strong 

 points, for there are chinks between the boards 

 as well as between the shingles, each of which 

 contributes its little mite to produce an airy 

 whole, to say nothing of the additions which 

 come by way of the places in the windows 

 which seemed to have parted, long ago, with 

 the once embraced glass. 



The interior is divided into five compart- 

 ments. A central one, extending- from one side 

 to the other, forming- a more or less square space 

 some twenty ftet in diameter, serves as kitchen, 

 dining room, library, parlor or whatsoever use 

 you choose to put it to. It is furnished with a 

 long-, wide table made of rough board, and a long 



THE HOTEL. 



wooden bench, on either side of this, an iron 

 stoye. which dates back quite a number of years, 

 and a few long shelves on the wall which were 

 destined to hold all the household effects which 

 Joshua called his own. To the north and south 

 of this room are two sleeping apartments, each 

 of which is furnished with a double bunk of 

 spacious size, filled with straw, every stem of 

 which spoke of pressure well applied. 



We claimed as our quarters the west side 

 rooms, to the south and north, and were quite 

 comfortably housed, and at peace with our 

 inner man when the shades of night stole softly 

 upon us. 



By far the most attractive part of this dwell- 

 ing is the large porch on its west side, whose 

 outer railing serves admirably well for a back 

 to the board bench which extends its entire 

 length. Here we seated ourselves to rest awhile 

 from toil, and talk over the experiences of the 

 day, while g'ood Mother Nature silently lowered 

 the dusky curtain, and proclaimed a change of 

 scene. How delightful to be seated thus and 



