4 DENIZENS OF THE DESERT 



hour or two. This born gamester has been 

 found time and again sportively pursuing the 

 ends of surveyor's chains as they were dragged 

 along by the linemen, or seen on golf grounds 

 running down stray-driven balls with the 

 eagerness of a playful dog. 



Byron said of that sagacious and celebrated 

 wit, Richard Sheridan: 



Nature formed but one such man 



And broke the die in moulding Sheridan. 



If we like to phrase it so, we may surely say 

 with equal aptness concerning the road-runner: 



Nature formed but one such bird 

 And broke the die in moulding him. 



Yes, he is the one bird you never mistake for 

 any other. The bristle-tipped topknot which he 

 raises and lowers at will, the reptilian-like face 

 with its deep-slit mouth, and the long tail which 

 so unmistakably registers his emotions, make 

 him a bird of most singular appearance. 



The road-runner's speckled coat of feathers 

 is a patchwork of varied colors. The feathers of 

 the head and neck are dark steel-blue, of the 

 upper parts of the body, bronzy or coppery 



