THE RAMBLE. II 

answer one another as they are gaily flying back and forth, 
and alighting upon the branches amid the golden leaves. 
Well might we know ’twas in the mz/d September —yet 
no mocking-bird sings his song in the Aroostook wilds. Ah! 
we are wrong, for we do have one even here, the hardy 
Canada Jay, called also the moose bird, from the fact that in 
winter he is so often seen in company with and following the 
wanderings of our large game, the Moose and Caribou. He 
is much like his southern brother, the Mocking-bird, in size 
and plumage, and his whistling notes and varied tones remind 
one much of him as he sails gracefully from one tree to 
another among the jolly song-birds. This is his choice 
dwelling-place, here is his home with the monarch of the 
forest, the noble Moose, and in the mild September they are 
sometimes seen coming out of the woods together. The 
monarch is occasionally seen for a few moments standing 
upon the hill in the settlers sunny clearing, his massive pro- 
portions showing to his very feet, between the earth and 
heavens with the clear sky for a background, his noble head 
thrown high in air, and his enormous wide spreading antlers 
laying far back over his shoulders, while his keen eye takes 
in the astonishing picture before him. 
And here too, is the home of that famous trotter the Cari- 
bou. These hardy fellows are here to-day in great numbers, 
and they roam the forests singly and alone, in pairs, and in 
droves at times. <A beautiful sight it is to see a dozen or 
more of them in winter trotting by on the ice, which, if 
smooth and glassy, ’tis all the same to them, for their hard, 
sharp, wide spreading hoofs cut the ice like skates, and send 
the snowy spray far out behind them. 
