274 FRANK forester's FIELD SPORTS. 



Mr. James Bartram, brother to the botanist, a venerable and 

 still active man, of eighty-three, and w^ell acquainted with this 

 bird, says, that he has often seen and caught young Rail in his 

 own meadows, in the month of June ; he has also seen the nest, 

 which, he says, is usually in a tussock of grass, is formed of a 

 little dry grass, and had four or five eggs of dirty whitish color, 

 with brown, or blackish spots. The young run off as soon as 

 they break the shell, are then quite black, and run about among 

 the grass, like mice. The old ones he has very rarely observed 

 at that time, but the young often. Almost every old settler along 

 these meadows, with whom I have conversed, has occasionally 

 seen young Rail in mowing time, and all agree in describing 

 them as covered with blackish down. There can, therefore, be 

 no reasonable doubt as to the residence of many of those birds, 

 both here and to the northward, during the summer. 



" That there can be as little doubt as to their winter retreat, 

 will appear more particularly towards the sequel of the present 

 account. 



" During their residence here in summer, their manners exactly 

 correspond with those of the Water-crake of Britain, already 

 quoted, so that though actually a different species, their parti- 

 cular habits, common places of resort, and eagerness for con- 

 cealment, are as nearly the same as the nature of the climates 

 will admit. 



" Early in August, when the reeds along the shores of the De- 

 laware have attained their full growth, the Rail resort to them 

 in great numbers, to feed on the seeds of this plant, of which 

 they, as well as the Rice-birds, and several others, are immo- 

 derately fond. These reeds, which appear to be the Zizania 

 panicula effusa of Linnaeus, and the Zizania clavulosa of Willin- 

 den, grow up from the soft muddy shores of the tide-water, 

 which are, alternately, dry, and covered with four or five feet of 

 water. They rise with an erect tapering stem, to the height of 

 eight or ten feet, being nearly as thick below as a man's wrist, 

 and cover tracts along the river for many acres. The cattle 

 feed on their long, green leaves, with avidity, and wade in after 



