14: A WORD AT THE START. 



Hy eyes would be on 'em all day, but I kept my bands 

 off." 



" But you carried a gun after a wbile," I remarked. 



" Yes, but not for some time. Fatlier made me work 

 some, and wben I did go gunnin' it was at proper times, 

 and I didn't sboot birds in spring just to count their tail- 

 feathers." This was a quiet dig at me, for Uz had but 

 little patience with ornithology as I had attempted to 

 study it. The minutiae of color and anatomical structure 

 he gave the go-by, but knew the habits of birds as I never 

 expect to. 



In later years Uz left to his sister the care both of his 

 house and little farm, and was ever on the alert, with gun 

 in hand, to secure what game might be at hand. The 

 number of rabbits he killed every autumn I dare not 

 mention ; and, in the proper season, woodcock, quails, 

 and ducks daily rewarded his rambles about their haunts. 

 As a duck-shooter he had no equal in the neighborhood, 

 and it was in this sport that he most delighted. For 

 twenty years, during which I knew him well and saw 

 him often, his sole occupation was that of a hunter and 

 trapper, and, happily, he combined with these all the es- 

 sential requirements of a practical naturalist. 



To him I feel that I am indebted in great part for my 

 liking for the great world of out-of-doors, and for a total 

 indifference to the artificial, pent-up life of the city. He 

 it was who taught me how to stroll leisurely about when 

 I felt so disposed, and to see a wealth of wonder every- 

 where I went. It is proper, therefore, that I should here 

 give him the credit that is his due ; and, in so doing, 

 point out to others the desirability of seeking out in their 

 respective neighborhoods other Uz Gaunts, and profiting 

 by their acquaintance. There are few villages that do 

 not contain some one who is better informed than his 



