WHAT I HAVE DONE WITH BIRDS 
PROVING THAT MOTHER CUCKOO WOULD BROOD WHILE I WORKED BEHIND HER 
that she would return to her nest in the evening sooner than in the 
morning, when she would have left once to bathe and drink; so 
I went back to the carriage, got my clippers and approached the 
nest again, just as cautiously as before. She left at about ten 
feet. With all possible speed, cutting not a twig that was not 
necessary, I cleared the foreground and hurried away. 
That night the nervous strain was so great I could not sleep 
and the next morning I was at the cabin as early as there was light 
and tried to approach the nest with tripod and camera. At fifteen 
feet Mother Cuckoo simply vanished. There I stood sick with 
disappointment. The previous evening had made me too sure. 
There was nothing left to do but vanish myself. Thinking it 
156 
