distance and bringing each one his share, , 



which he ate without interference. Then _ 



when they understood the thing they scat- sriic f* 



tered nimbly to hunt for themselves, and the 



real fun began. 



Now a cub, poking his nose industri- 

 ously into every cranny and under every 

 thick bush, would find a great roll of clown 

 plucked from the mother bird's breast, and 

 scraping the top off carefully with his paw, 

 would find five or six large pale-green eggs, 

 which he gobbled down, shells, ducklings 

 and all, before another cub should smell the 

 good find and caper up to share it. Again 

 he would be startled out of his wits as a large 

 brown bird whirred and fluttered away 

 from under his very nose. Sitting on 

 his tail he would watch her with comi- 

 cal regret and longing till she tum- 

 bled into the tide and drifted swiftly \ 

 away out of danger ; then, remember- 

 ing what he came for, he would turn 

 and follow her trail back to the nest 

 out of which she had stolen 

 at his approach, and find 



