THE BELTED KINGFISHER 



come to me as quickly as she could, that "I saw something" I 

 wanted up the road. Whenever I "see something" all of my 

 family prepare to capture it. I knew that would bring her with 

 haste, but not frighten her. On came the cow. 



"Hurry all you can, Molly-Cotton, I am afraid it will get away ! 

 Do come faster!" I urged. She barely reached the gate in time, 

 and only saw the cow when she left the water. She said I had 

 been wise, for she could not have helped trying to run if she had 

 seen it. As the water was within three inches of the boot tops, 

 she surely would have fallen. 



Next we decided to drive through, so we started. It was a 

 treacherous journey, for the way was covered with stumps and 

 logs besides the floating stuff. We unreined the horse, which was 

 wise, for half the way across, the carriage was floating, we were 

 on the seat holding the camera, while Patience swam several rods. 

 We reached high ground safely, driving over the ridge, confident 

 that we were on the way to the nest. When we were almost 

 there we came to a ditch ten feet wide and six feet deep, that we 

 had forgotten. I had hoped to reach the nest, secure a picture 

 and cross the corn-field to the road, paying for any damage we 

 might do to the young corn. Here was another full stop. It 

 seemed to me that I could not make that trip back again. I 

 proposed to drive to the south of the ditch, try to swim the horse 

 across, and thus reach the bed of the road from which we had 

 turned back at the bridge. This time Molly-Cotton was dubious. 

 I drove the horse to the water, where he showed his good sense 

 by balking for the first time in his life. 



He simply would not enter that water. I suppose the stiff 

 current and the floating logs dismayed him. We had to back 

 out, facing the flood and the cow again. It was rather sickening 

 business. I was glad when it was safely over. After the flood 

 subsided I went to see the place I had tried to drive into. It was 



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