THE BELTED KINGFISHER 



ground, with those heavy waders. So I called to her to come to 

 me just as quick as she could, that "I saw something" I wanted 

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

 I knew that would bring her with all haste and still 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 made it with mighty 

 little margin and only saw the cow when she left the water. 

 She said I was wise, for she couldn't have helped trying to run 

 if she had seen it, and as the water was within three inches of the 

 boot tops, she surely would have fallen. 



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

 treacherous journey, for the way was covered with stumps and 

 logs beside the floating stuff. We unreined the horse and it was 

 well we did, for half the way across the carriage was floating, 

 we were up on the seat holding the camera, and Patience swam 

 several rods. We struck high ground safely and drove over the 

 ridge, confident 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, get a pic- 

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

 we might do to the young corn. Here was another dead stop. 

 It seemed to me I couldn't 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 down to the water, where he showed his good sense 

 by balking for the first time in his life. 



He simply wouldn't enter that water. I suppose the stiff 

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

 and face the flood and the cow again. It was rather sickening 

 business, and I was glad when it was safely over. After the 



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