1 8 ANIMALS AT WORK AND PL A Y 



also are fond of the road, and dust there in the 

 early morning. But they too have their fancy, 

 and choose the dry, gritty part, where the horses' 

 hoofs tread. Wild ducks, though feeding by the 

 salt water, prefer to wash in fresh-water pools, and 

 will fly long distances inland to running brooks 

 and ponds, where they preen and wash themselves 

 in the early morning. But though passing so much 

 time on the water, ducks seem to prefer a shower- 

 bath to any other ; and in heavy rain they may be 

 seen opening their feathers and allowing the rain to 

 soak in, after which they dress the whole surface with 

 oil from the reservoir which we mentioned above. 

 Swallows and martins are as nice in their choice of 

 bath-water as any ' professional beauty ; ' nothing but 

 newly-fallen rain-water thoroughly pleases them, and if 

 tempted to bathe, it is generally by some shallow pool 

 in the road which an hour's sun will evaporate. 



The writer has never seen hawks or falcons bath- 

 ing when wild. Trained birds in good health, bathe 

 almost daily, and the bath of a peregrine falcon is 

 a very careful performance. But no nymph could 

 be more jealous of a witness than these shy birds, 

 and it is not until after many careful glances in 

 every direction that the falcon descends from her 

 .block and wades into the shallow bath. Then, after 

 more suspicious glances, she thrusts her broad head 



