512 DAN BEARD'S ANIMAL BOOK 



The kinglet selected the poor dead alder as a 

 foundation upon which to build its rustic home and 

 with such discernment had the roots, mosses and 

 coarse grasses been selected and so deftly woven 

 into a nest that it required experienced eyes to 

 detect its presence upon the alder; but, if you had 

 been there, you might have paddled your canoe 

 under the dead limbs and from your seat looked 

 into the nest and seen the hidden treasure of the 

 royal pair. 



Four little cream-colored globular objects, dec- 

 orated with small specks and spots of light brown, 

 lay on the soft, fine grass and intermingled with a 

 few horsehairs which lined the cup in the incon- 

 spicuous bunch of fine pieces of bark, roots and 

 moss. 



BIG FISH HAUNT THE BLACK WATERS 



of the deep hole at the outer edge of the lily pads, 

 and each day as my boat drifted by the cove I 

 made a cast with gaudy colored artificial flies, to 

 tempt the fish to strike. 



Every cast that I made brought one or both of 

 the royal couple from their perch, swooping down 

 in pursuit of the imitation insects on my line. 



It was only by constant watchfulness and quick 

 back casts that I was able to save myself the morti- 

 fication of seeing the saucy little creatures cruelly 

 caught on the wicked hooks. 



On several occasions I noticed that peculiar 

 swirl in the dark waters, a swirl which never fails 



