56 DUCKING DAYS 



light at a deserted farmhouse, I was delighted with my 

 experiences during the day. I had enjoyed myself and 

 had ten ducks — eight mallards and two bluebills. There 

 was a stiff breeze blowing up the river, and night over- 

 took me three miles from Marseilles, hence the hay stack. 

 It was the shortest run I made any day on the trip, only 

 twelve miles. That night about 9 o'clock a flock of geese 

 flew over me within forty yards. I could see their mark- 

 ings very plainly. 



During the night I had two callers, first a horse and 

 later a dog. The horse was feeding along the grassy 

 river banlv. Nearing my resting place and on my hear- 

 ing him and rising up out of the hay, he ran away 

 snorting, a badly frightened horse. I know he thought 

 he had seen a ghost at that deserted farmhouse. 



From Marseilles to Ottawa I used the canal for eight 

 miles, as there is a big dam there. At Ottawa I trans- 

 ferred my boat to the Fox River, thence into the Illinois, 

 reaching Peru that night. It w^as a fine day for travel- 

 ing, but I only saw one duck during the day, quite a con- 

 trast to the day previous. I sent some ducks back to 

 Chicago from Marseilles so some of my friends could 

 have roast duck for Sunday dinner. 



Above Lacon a couple of miles I had an interesting 

 half -hour's chat with a Catholic priest (an Englishman), 

 who was shooting over the most lifelike decovs I saw 



