78 EVERYDAY BIRDS 



first syllable. It seemed contrary to reason, but 

 such was unquestionably the truth, and later 

 experiments confirmed it. 



This was in the spring of 1888. In May of 

 the next year, if all went well, we would see the 

 show again. So we said to each other ; but a 

 veteran ornithologist remarked that we should 

 probably be a good many years older before we 

 had another such piece of good fortune. 



It is a fact familiar to all naturalists, however, 

 that when you have once found a new plant, or 

 a new bird, or a new nest, the experience is 

 likely to be soon repeated. You may have spent 

 a dozen years in a vain search, but now, for 

 some reason, the difficult has all at once become 

 easy, and almost before you can believe your 

 eyes the rarity has grown to be a drug in the 

 market. Something like this proved to be true 

 of the bittern's boom. 



On the afternoon of the 2d of May, 1889, I 

 went to one of my favorite resorts, a large cat- 

 tail swamp surrounded by woods. My particu- 

 lar errand was to see whether the least bittern 

 had arrived, a much smaller, and in this part 

 of the country, at least, a much less common 

 bird than his relative of whose vocal accomplish- 

 ments I am here treating. 



I threw myself down upon the cliff overhang- 



