ON THE UPPER ST. JOHN'S. 137 



that ? " said he, and he headed the boat 

 upstream again. It was a " copper-bellied 

 moccasin," he declared, whatever that may 

 be, and was worse than a rattlesnake. 



On the river, as in the creek, we were 

 continually exploring bays and inlets, each 

 with its promising patch of bonnets. Nearly 

 every such place contained at least one 

 Florida gallinule ; but where were the " pur- 

 ples," about which we kept talking, the 

 "royal purples," concerning whose beauty 

 my boy was so eloquent ? 



"They are not common yet," he would 

 say. " By and by they will be as thick 

 as Floridas are now." 



" But don't they stay here all winter ? " 



" No, sir ; not the purples." 



" Are you certain about that ? " 



"Oh yes, sir. I have hunted this river 

 too much. They couldn't be here in the 

 winter without my knowing it." 



I wondered whether he could be right, or 

 partly right, notwithstanding the book state- 

 ments to the contrary. I notice that Mr. 

 Chapman, writing of his experiences with 

 this bird at Gainesville, says, " None were 

 seen until May 25, when, in a part of the 



