. . . Send down 



Thy trumpet note it seems 



The voice of hope and dauntless will, 



And breaks the spell of dreams. 



HAMLIN GARLAND * 



VI * Northern search 



In 1945, with a major war still in progress, a start was made 

 in the vital task of locating the Northern breeding grounds of 

 the whooping crane. Fred Bard, in Regina, agreed to take on 

 this job, but he could only do so on a part-time basis. This was 

 in April, when the cranes were already migrating northward. There 

 had been a lot of discussion back and forth as to the most likely 

 search areas and the best methods of search. Ground search, with 

 cars and canoes, would be slow and difficult in that vast country, 

 while airplane charters would be expensive. Yet search by aircraft 

 seemed the only method that offered any hope of success. 



Bard went to Edmonton in June, following arrangements that 

 had been made for assistance from the U.S. Air Force. However, 

 the commanding general was unable to authorize flights over 

 northern Saskatchewan, where Bard was particularly interested in 

 searching. Finally, in an Army transport plane he was flown to 

 Watson Lake, Yukon Territory, where he boarded a PBY and 

 * The Herald Crane. 

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