SINO-MONGOLIAN FRONTIER 



prying into every crack and cranny of the bark, 



or exploring the hollows under the gnarled and 



twisted roots, in its everlasting hunt for ants, 



spiders and grubs. Swish ! Down from the blue 



vault of heaven swoops a fierce hawk. There is 



a flutter, a tiny cry of distress, and away goes 



the cruel marauder, bearing in his talons the 



mangled and lifeless form of one of the lively little 



tits. The others, momentarily awed by the 



tragedy, vanish from sight. Presently, as the 



exuberant and irrepressible energy of each tiny 



songster once more predominates, first one, and 



then another, makes a quick dart through the 



bushes, till the whole troop is once more flitting 



from tree to tree and bush to bush, chirping and 



singing as though nothing had happened. Next, 



the angry scolding of a pair of magpies announces 



to all the world that they can see a fox sneaking 



through the scrub upon a covey of unsuspecting 



partridges. Poor Reynard ! his crafty designs 



thus revealed to his quarry, who hasten to place 



themselves out of danger, and fearing that he may 



bring the hunters down upon himself, he creeps 



away to his lair, there to nurse his hate against 



those spoil-sports, who, if the truth were known, 



are guilty of crimes every whit as bad as his own. 



Absorbing though all this might be, it was 



somewhat disheartening not to sight a pig. It 



became evident that the valleys we were working 



afforded too much cover for them, so we 



71 



