120 



THE OSPREY. 



We did not succeed in finding Leslie Manor, 

 and as heavy clouds and occasional lightning in 

 the south promised a shower, we decided to turn 

 over to Dallas City, and seek quarters in some 

 hotel in preference to sleeping under a skiff in 

 a rain storm. After maneuvering around a 

 number of dams, we arrived at the city where 

 we found quarters and food. 



Sometime during the night our room was 

 suddenly flooded with light, a steamer was 

 about to come to anchor, and was seeking her 

 pier. How this incident brought back the days 

 of '95 when oft at night, when all was silent 

 and the very leaves of the quaking aspen o'er 

 head seemed at rest, and even the mighty roar 

 of the waters rushing through the dam seemed 

 hushed, permitting the fainter tinkling sounds 

 to be heard, then of a sudden would our tent 

 become illuminated almost as bright as day. and 



WaterThmshes, Oven Birds, Trails, Flycatchers 

 and Catbirds. 



We finally reached our isle again. Our party 

 which bad agreed to meet us were present also. 

 We prepared a second breakfast, and after cast- 

 ing for bass for an hour without even so much 

 as a strike to reward our patient labor, we re- 

 turned to the birds. 



A Grebe had arrived over night, and was 

 giving performances in diving, above the dam. 

 As we followed the footpath north, along the 

 river edge we got a glympse at one of those 

 flaming bits ,.f animation ordinarily known as 

 Prothotiotary Warbler. From a dead branch 

 a Wood Pewee sounded his pe-a-we, while a Least 

 Flycatcher responded from the shady retreat of 

 the low arching I" irder. 



We returned and continued our walk in the 

 opposite direction, where we noticed perhaps the 



LOOKING UP THIS MISSISSIPPI FROM DOLLAR ISLAND. 



we knew that a passing" steamer was paying his 

 salute by playing its search-light upon our white 

 abode. 



The morning of the 30th promised a fair day. 

 We aroused our landlord, and his sleepy spouse 

 prepared a breakfast, perhaps the earliest ever 

 served in the history of that hotel. 



Long before Old Sol sent his rays askance 

 over the eastern hills we had passed our para- 

 phernalia into our boat and had crossed the 

 river for Iowa. Here and there a bird voice 

 broke the stillness of the morning, and a very 

 chorus sounded their praise when he raised his 

 head and beamed on all creation. 



The lively wit-che-we-wha-wit occasionally 

 varied with the long drawn che-weee-a, of the 

 White-eyed Vireos, birds I once considered very 

 rare, greeted us all along the willow covered 

 rip-raps. Here we also met several Grinnells. 



first Golden Crowned Kinglet of the season. A 

 family of Cardinals and the first specimen of 

 the Wilson Thrush which we have on record for 

 Burlington and vicinity, in company with its 

 near relative the Wood Thrush. I had often 

 looked for this bird, had several times heard of 

 its occurrence; and even found it in the form of 

 a Wood Thrush in the collection of one of the 

 reporters. I could never quite understand how 

 any one could confuse these two birds, so differ- 

 ent in appearance and habit. We frightened a 

 Kentucky Warbler and an Oven Bird which 

 were scratching for insects under an immense 

 fallen, half decayed tree, both sought the dense 

 cover of the weeds, but were easily recalled by 

 the ever ready and anxious squeak. 



In the willows which form a dense coveret on 

 the baron the southwest side of the island, we 

 discovered quite an assemblage of Warblers. 



