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'lOG FLAMINGO. 



flxirs were forgotten in the magnificent spectacle liefore us. The immense flock of huge 

 crimson birds' being aLarmed began to raise their wings, flap them, and honk hoarsely. 

 Here we paused for a moment's consultation, then leaving Mrs. Maynard ( who had 

 bravely kept up with us ) to hold back Spottie,the dog, I pushed rapidly forward, follow- 

 ed l).y my negro guide. There was not a single bush to shelter us, so we were in open 

 siglit of the l)irds, aud when we got within about two hundred yards of them, they began 

 to"pom' out of the rookery, running out from among the nests in two wide columns, one to 

 the right and one to the left of us, for we came up directly in the center of the nesting. 

 When^each bird, as it came out, had acquired sufficient impetus by running a short dis- 

 tance with wings half raised, it spread its long pinions fully, moved them rapidly a few 

 times, and thus launched upward into the air. The movement of so many black-tipped 

 wings in contrast with the scarlet bodies, long necks, and peculiarly formed heads, resem- 

 bled rapidly whirling wheels. Each Flamingo was now trumpeting with the utmost 

 power of its lungs, and the sound, added to the rush of so many wings produced an al- 

 most deafening uproar. This, together with the sight of so many large bird,«, excited my 

 ne"-ro almost to frenzy. Before leaving his house, he had armed himself with an old- 

 fashioned musket, which he had charged with nearly a quarter of a pound of powder, on 

 which he had rammed down a quantity of oakum, then poured in a handful of BBB 

 shot. With this gun and annnunition he had expected to do great execution, hence his 

 excitement. 



"We had now arrived at the margin of a body of water about a hundred yards wide, 

 a kind of estuary making in to the westward of the rookery. It was not deep, but would 

 have prevented us from moving fast, so I turned as I came upon the beach which bor- 

 dered this water, and ran down it toward the end, in order to come up with the birds 

 that were rising on the northern portion of the rookery. 



My man by this time M'as so crazed by a nearer sight of the hundreds of scarlet and 

 black birds, that he quite lost his head, aud began yelling at the top of his voice, as he 

 dashed after me, " Don't fire, massa ! don't fire ! don't ! don't ! " At this moment I 

 heard a report like that of a cannon, and fairly felt the ground shake. Turning, I saw 

 that the negro had discharged his gun with the muzzel pointed into the water. He had 

 stopped running, whether voluntarily or from the recoil of his weapon, I cannot say, in- 

 stantly dropping the butt of his gun to the ground to reload, but never for an instant 

 ceased his cry of " Don't fire ! don't fire ! " By this time I was within a hundred yards 

 of the nearest birds, almost all of which were on the wing. Here I came to a sudden 

 pause, and although I must acknowledge that I was somewhat excited, I did manage to 

 brino- down six Flamingos with two discharges of my hammerless Scott. At this moment^ 

 I once more heard the roar of the huge musket, and turning, saw that the negro had fired 

 into the air. At this instant, preceiving that one of the birds thati had wounded was run- 

 ning away, the excited guide dashed after it, but the long legs of the slightly injured bird 

 led him such a race that we did not see either bird nor man for over an hour, when they 

 both came back together, the bird dead, hanging over the shoulder of the man. 



