THE O. & O. SEMI-ANNUAL. 7 
A little back from the shore I discovered a very pretty nest of the 
Warbling Vireo, well out on alimb of a small pecan tree, and about 
ten or twelve feet from the ground. Herriford, wishing to distinguish 
himself, insisted on climbing to it ; but as I suspected would be the 
cas:, his proverbial bad luck again came to the front. As he was 
astraddle of the limb, carefully working his 200 lbs. out towards the nest 
it suddenly gave way and he came down on the run, head first into the 
pond, utterly demolishing the nest and eggs of course. Subsequently 
I found another nest and secured four very pretty eggs. 
The Crested Flycatcher was very abundant here, making sume por- 
tions of the woods almost hideous with their harsh notes: secured 
several good sets of their eggs; but the majority of their nesting sites 
were 1n some old snag that was either dangerous or difficult to climb. 
Found seven sets of Cuckoo eggs, all yellow-billed except one. All 
sets of three except one, which was a remarkable set of seven. I 
judged from the appearance of the eggs that they were the product 
of two birds. We also secured two sets of four each of the Rose- 
breasted Grosbeak, two sets five and one set six of the Baltimore 
Oniole, one set three and one set four of the Yellow Warbler. Found 
many nests of the House Wren; but took the eggs from one nest 
only —a set of eight beautiful, zone-marked eggs. 
Night coming on, we returned to camp and prepared and ate a 
hearty supper. We had intended to stay over night and collect an- 
other day ; but after sizing up our days work, decided that we had 
eggs enough. 
A thunder-storm was forming in the west, and every indication 
pointed towards a night of it, and after a council we resolved to make 
a moonlight drive home. 
Hastily packing up, we drove rapidly across the prairie bottom, and 
as we reached the top of the bluff that overlooked the lake, we halted 
to take a farewell look at the beautiful sight that lay behind us. 
The lake reflected the light of the full moon like a piece of bur- 
nished silver. The winding Illinois just beyond ; the belts and frin- 
ges of trees. ‘The “quawk”’ of the Great Blue Heron, as he lazily 
flew across the low prairie ; the notes of the “Thunder Pumper” in 
the swamps ; the ghoulish, unearthly, laughing tones of a pair of Barred 
Owls, and the distant thunder and vivid lightning of the gathering 
storm in the west, all combined to produce an effect not easily effaced 
from the mind of one “loving nature in all her moods.” 
