346 SAD MISADVENTURE. [CHAP.VIII. 



verified the old remark, that, though the Stork will 

 eat frogs at such a rate as to be held by them in fearful 

 contrast to good King Log, he will not swallow a single 

 toad, even when pressed by a sharp appetite. Frogs 

 do no great harm, that we should wish them to be so 

 eaten up ; and the real services which the Stork does 

 perform are a sufficient reason for the almost super- 

 stitious consideration with which he is regarded. It 

 is a pity the feeling does not extend to England : the 

 Germans care nothing for Redbreasts, and so, in re- 

 venge, the English show no forbearance to Storks. 

 After a few days' hard weather, my birds, tired of 

 parading the snow-covered ground, though they were 

 sufficiently supplied with food, ventured down to the 

 brook which separates my glebe from the neighbour- 

 ing property, to amuse themselves by fishing for some- 

 thing and paddling in the running water. This habit 

 of resort had been observed ; and a loose fellow shot 

 at them, and was stopped in the act of making off with 

 the male bird, which he had wounded. His excuse 

 was that " he took them for Hansers ; " * the hypocri- 

 tical vagabond ! He' had handled a gun too often on 

 the sly, for us to believe a syllable of that. But a 

 humble apology, prompted by fear, was made ; and as 

 the bird promised to recover, and indeed did recover 

 from his wound, the matter dropped, with a caution for 

 the future. But the hen, who was apparently unin- 

 jured, received some stray shot, and afterwards pined 

 away, and died. The survivor stood mourning over 



* Hanser is a local and also an old name for the Heron. The 

 proverb, " He does not know a Hawk from a Handsaw," is nonsense, 

 till we correct the reading by substituting Hanser or Heron; i.e., 

 " He does not know the Falcon from his quarry, the pursuer from the 

 pursued ;" the height of folly in feudal and real sporting times. 



