46 THE MOOSE 



gazed wonderingly from the hour of his birth took 

 definite outhne — a fallen hemlock upheld by a 

 giant pine. One by one the blighted limbs were 

 perishing. Only the pine held green, waving its 

 plumed branches in the wind proudly. 



The cow swam close beside, deeply submerged, her 

 outstretched narrow head breaking up the smooth 

 surface of the lagoon into far-reaching circles. 



The calf tried to look round at the home he was 

 leaving, only to find that any out-of-the-way feat 

 was as yet beyond his skill. He lost his balance, 

 and, plunging heavily, was submerged long enough 

 to fill his nose and ears with water. 



A beautiful magpie- plumaged golden-eye, one of 

 the most exquisite birds that swim, rose from the 

 water just ahead, his wings rustling musically. 

 From a hole in an over-hanging tree his mate 

 looked out apprehensively, the white patch under 

 her eye showing up against the dark background. 

 Then, frightened by the snorts and puffings of the 

 amateur swimmer below, the bird left her nest 

 with a lightning turn, flickering, restless as a petrel, 

 diving, swimming. Busiest of birds, golden-eyes, 

 who have long solved the mystery of perpetual 

 motion. 



