

THE BROCKWAY BOYS. 97 



ing the dog he flushed one that came our way and I killed 

 it. The boys thought this wonderful and the bird the 

 strangest they had ever seen. 



"What's his eyes doin' in the back of his head?" asked 

 Oliver. 



"That's so's to see who's a-comin' after him when he's 

 feedin'," explained Clark; "and he can see good, too, and 

 don't scare up till he thinks you're going to step on him. 

 Say, I'll tell what let's do. Let's all three and the dog 

 walk abreast an' kick 'em up. What d'ye say?" 



This seemed to be a good proposition, for the dog was 

 of no use, and we tried it with better result than I ex- 

 pected, for we succeeded in putting up eleven birds that 

 morning, of which I killed five, Oliver retrieving them 

 almost as soon as they were down, with the help of Dick, 

 for the dog soon learned what we were after and was a 

 fair retriever. The boys told of that morning's work with 

 great pride, never failing to add: "An' he killed 'em all 

 a-flyin'." 



On the way home one of the boys shot a big blue 

 heron which was standing in meditation by a marshy 

 brook, and wing-tipped it. Oliver proposed to capture it 

 alive and we surrounded the bird, which had no idea of 

 allowing us to catch it. Standing with head drawn for 

 a stroke and with defiance in its eye, now ablaze with 

 fight, and facing the one who came nearest, it was a most 

 heroic figure, worthy of study by an artist. The spaniel 

 essayed a hand in the fight, and then tried four spry legs 

 on the homestretch after the heron stuck his spear-like 

 bill in the dog's back. 



"You make a dive for him," said Oliver to us, "and 

 while he is facing you, I'll get him by the legs and neck." 

 He tried it, and the bird wheeled like a flash and struck 

 the boy a blow on the back of the hand that rendered it 



