many of the flocks that had grown up on the 
lake that summer had disappeared. At night 
there was more and more commotion in the 
air overhead and the whistle of passing wings was 
heard almost constantly. At length there came 
an evening when Baldpate, without quite know- 
ing what he was doing, took flight with a great 
company of other ducks and, climbing gradually 
higher in the air, headed away toward the 
south. On and on the flock sped, leaving Cow 
Lake on the left and the forested Stein Moun- 
tains on the right. Surely this was no ordinary 
journey, for, impelled by some desire that none 
of them understood, they: continued their flight 
for hours. Morning found them resting on a 
small pond in a strange region. <A ranch house 
stood near by and about sunrise a man opened 
the door and shot at them. Three of their 
number did not rise at the sound, but the sur- 
vivors hurried away as only a company of ducks 
can hurry under such frightful circumstances. 
We cannot follow all the experiences of Bald- 
pate and his friends as they journeyed southward 
from the coming cold, for if we should stop to do 
31 
