46 ADVENTURES AMONG BIRDS 



began to relax his efforts and to go round later and later 

 each evening, and as his efforts slackened the gander's 

 zeal increased, until he was left to do the whole work 

 himself and all the keeper had to do was to go round 

 and shut the doors. This state of things had now 

 continued for some years, and the old wild goose was 

 the acknowledged leader and master of all the birds 

 on the farm. 



The story of this wise gander, its readiness in adapt- 

 ing itself to a wholly new way of life and in taking in 

 the situation — the danger by night and need of some- 

 one in authority over that heterogeneous crowd of birds 

 who had lost the power of flight, and, from being 

 looked after, had grown careless of their own safety — 

 and, finally, the taking of it all on himself, putting 

 himself in office as it were, may strike us as very strange, 

 but it agrees well enough with the character of the 

 bird as we know it in its domestic condition. It is 

 common to hear of the masterful old gander at farm- 

 houses, the ruler and sometimes tyrant of the farm- 

 yard. I have myself observed and have heard of many 

 instances of long-lasting and exceedingly bitter feuds 

 between an imperious gander and some other member 

 of the feathered community, a turkey cock or Muscovy 

 duck or peacock who refused to be governed by a 

 goose. But I was specially pleased to have had this 

 story of the bird in Norway from a sportsman and 

 enthusiastic wild-fowler, one of the class who do not 

 like to think too much about the psychology of the 

 creatures it is their pleasure to follow and destroy. 



