growing everywhere. Through the stems of 
these big round rushes they clambered on until 
with great joy they all tumbled off a bank into 
open water. This was the stream from a spring, 
winding here and there through the tules like a 
snake until at length it reached the great 
shallow lake of Malheur. In the creek were 
many other mother ducks of various kinds and 
they all had their broods with them. They 
fed along the shore, swam back and forth across 
the stream, dabbled their heads under water, 
and snapped at flies or swimming insects to their 
hearts’ content. There was not much to fear. 
Of course a hawk flew over now and then, and 
the young had to keep out of the way of the 
big grebes with their sharp bills and not get too 
close to any big ducks other than their mother. 
Twice a day the reservation warden came 
along the creek in the Audubon Society patrol 
boat, but he always smiled when he passed and 
they soon began to pay little more attention 
to him than they did to the big wild geese that 
sometimes swam into the creek. Taking it all 
in all, it was a good place to be, and Baldpate 
1% 
