ioo WILD NATURE'S WAYS. 



For over two hours the female skua did nothing 

 but fly overhead, and alight on different knowes 

 from sixty to a hundred yards away, and critically 

 survey my handiwork, whilst the male danced 

 servile, and what appeared from the indifference 

 of his spouse to be unappreciated, attendance 

 upon her. Convinced that the vibratory move- 

 ments of my little tent before the strong wind 

 were responsible for this, I furled canvas, and 

 took the whole thing away a gunshot, and a half, 

 and, stretching myself at full length in the heather, 

 awaited the coming of the gamekeeper, who was to 

 return to me at a certain hour. In less than five 

 minutes the bird was covering her eggs with a 

 look of restored peace of mind on her countenance. 



When the keeper, who had been delayed by 

 some unforeseen business, arrived with a bottle 

 of tea his wife had good-naturedly made for me, 

 it was getting well on into the afternoon. I 

 related my discouraging experiences to him, and 

 propounded a scheme for the erection of a turf 

 hovel in which to hide with the camera. His 

 native shrewdness and the experiences of his 

 vocation were on the side of my idea, and he 

 immediately went off in search of a spade. With 

 this we dug a hole almost hip deep in the ground 

 for the accommodation of my feet and legs, and 

 then placing the tent irons in position over it, 

 covered them with great strips of turf, and left, 



