FOREST CHARMS. 35 



river. To these the fish were conveyed by the parent- 

 birds, who, by their hoarse cackling and croaking, at- 

 tracted the attention of their young ones, and incited 

 them to eat. Some of the birds had ceased to fish, 

 and, balanced on the bare tops of dead pines, they 

 seemed to view the labours of their associates with 

 subdued interest bending their necks to observe the 

 result of a swoop, or occasionally glancing upwards as 

 they heard the rushing sound made by a bird in its 

 descent. They did not pay much attention to the boat, 

 as ospreys are rarely molested by man, and hence 

 have not that dread of him which characterizes other 

 species. 



Since leaving the camp, the voyageurs had seen no 

 game, with the exception of the ducks and a few swans, 

 which tantalized them by taking to wing before the 

 canoe got near enough for a shot. Pierre, indeed, had 

 cut some feathers from a trumpeter, a large bird of 

 this species, at the distance of nearly four hundred 

 yards ; but there his success ended. 



Since entering the Clearwater they had had no sport, 

 with the solitary exception of a deer which old Jake 

 had secured. They therefore kept a very sharp look- 

 out both in advance and on either side the river as 

 they sailed along. The day was beautifully fine, and 

 the warm sunshine lighted up the woods, falling upon 

 mossy banks and on thickets of young birches within 

 the shelter of the forest, and enhancing their emerald 

 greenness. 



(786) 3 



