16 



TWENTIETH CENTURY CLASSICS 



sharp-pointed, but must swallow it whole. Imagine what 

 a time he must have if his capture is over-large ! 



This may remind y6u of another fisherman frequenting 

 our ponds and marshes — the Heron — that has a longer 



bill (see cut No. 8, bill ) than 

 the Kingfisher, and long stilt- 

 like legs . This spear-man — for 

 such he really is — can fly as 

 well as the Kingfisher, but he 

 does not need to fly down after the fish, frogs and other 

 water animals he considers palatable. He wades out into 

 the water among the grasses and rushes and 

 waits with much patience for his food to 

 come near him. ( See cut No. 1.) If you 

 were to steal near enough to one you would 

 surely think him asleep. But wait! — here 

 comes a lunch dangerously near. All has 

 changed ; with great rapidity he darts his 

 bill into the water, and if it is a fish, swal- 

 lows it head foremost, so that the spines will 

 not interfere. If not caught so that it can 

 be swallowed that way, it is tossed into the air and again 

 caught. 



This type is called the ivalking or wading foot. It has 

 not the grasping power of the Hawk's foot, and has a 

 small web between the outer and middle toes. 



It is not difficult to read the story of a foot where the 

 toes are connected by a web. It looks so much like a 

 paddle that it would at once be associated with the water. 

 They are not at all like the feet we have already examined. 

 The hand function of grasping has been lost, and they are 

 not so well fitted for walking, as one can see by the 

 clumsy, awkward steps of the Ducks and Geese. There 

 are several kinds of the sioimming foot. The Pelican has 



