Field Sports in Minnesota. 



719 



THE BRIDGE STAND. 



all drakes but one, two red-heads, and a widgeon — not very bad 

 luck, certainly, and the flight is not half over. 



The canvas-backs are handled with a degree of satisfaction that 



i the green-head and more gaudy mallard fail to inspire. To 



use the words of the lamented " Frank Forrester": "This is the 



royalty of ducks. No other water- fowl to him is equal, or second, 



or in any way comparable." While it is not unusual for a novice 



to mistake the red-head for the canvas-back, which it is true they 



mble, the difference is yet quite marked. The attention once 



fully drawn to the head of the latter, no red-head can ever again 



be mistaken for it Aside from the color of the bill, which in the 



case of the latter is light blue and in the other black, the length 



and shape of both head and bill differ greatly. 



Suddenly we hear the steady honking of an approaching flock 

 of wild geese, which have left Kandiyohi Lake and are flying 

 up the narrows toward us on their way to the fields. A bird's- 

 eye view of our party at this moment would have been most 

 amusing rery one of us seemed struck with a sudden and 



ardent desire to lay hands on something, and that in a most incredibly 



