THE COOT. 329 



prise, out crept a Water-Hen, which dropped into the 

 pond and made off towards the shore. 



But it is not only in their instinctive attachments and 

 habits that they merit notice ; the following anecdote 

 proves that they are gifted with a sense of observation 

 approaching to something very like reasoning faculties. 

 At a gentleman's house, in Staffordshire, the Pheasants 

 are fed out of one of those boxes described in page 308, 

 the lid of which rises with the pressure of the Pheasant 

 standing on the rail in front of the box. A Water-Hen 

 observing this, went and stood upon the rail as soon as 

 the Pheasant had quitted it ; but the weight of the bird 

 being insufficient to raise the lid of the box, so as to 

 enable it to get at the corn, the Water-Hen kept jump- 

 ing on the rail, to give additional impetus to its weight ; 

 this partially succeeded, but not to the satisfaction of 

 the sagacious bird. Accordingly it went off, and soon 

 returning with another bird of its own species, the united 

 weight of the two had the desired effect, and the success- 

 ful pair enjoyed the benefit of their ingenuity. We can 

 vouch for the truth of this singular instance of penetra- 

 tion, on the authority of the owner of the place where 

 it occurred, and who witnessed the fact. 



Nearly allied to the Water-Hen, is the well-known 

 family of Coots ; they too build a simple rushy nest, but 

 with this difference, that instead of seeking to raise it 

 above the water, they seem to prefer its floating upon 

 the very surface ; where, of course, it is exposed to the 

 double danger of being carried hither and thither, accord- 

 ing as the wind blows ; or if interwoven with reeds or 

 bushes close to the water, of being covered, should the 

 waters be raised by floods. But the Coot is apparently 

 well aware of these possibilities, and accordingly guards 

 against them : preventing the nests being carried away, 

 by ingeniously fastening the materials of which they are 

 made to the rushes or osiers near them ; but at the 

 same time, these fastenings are of such a nature as to 

 allow of the nests rising with the water, so that no ordi- 



