PREFACE 



IT was the beautiful bird-pictures of Audubon 

 that fascinated me as a child and made me love the 

 birds and begin to watch them, such as could be 

 found in the home garden in the suburbs of Boston. 

 By the time that I was old enough to be trusted 

 afield, the limits of the city became too narrow, and 

 I began to roam abroad, seeking out the haunts of 

 the birds. In due time I had formed a considerable 

 acquaintance with all the familiar songsters, and 

 many others. Soon I came to feel a special interest 

 in the shyer and more mysterious species that the 

 average youngster knew nothing of. The Hawks 

 and Owls were my especial delight, and to discover 

 their nests no amount of effort was too great a price 

 to pay. 



This enthusiasm soon took me to the sea-coast, 

 where there were new worlds to conquer in the 

 hordes of migratory Waders and strong-winged fowl 

 of the deep, about which the books were all too 

 silent. Audubon knew them best, but my other 

 favourite writers seemed to have sadly neglected 

 them. Samuels' " Birds of New England " I almost 

 knew by heart, but many of my bird-favourites its 

 author was evidently little acquainted with. Minot 

 was intensely interesting, but he stopped short of 

 the Water-Fowl. 



In pursuit of these inhabitants of shore and 

 ocean, various were the craft that I owned and navi- 



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