EAST WALL, MAIN CLIFF, GRAND CIRQUE ALTITUDE 11,630 FEET 



she might have come; yet the presumption was strongly in favor of the particular 

 rock-group upon which she had been discovered. 



At ten o'clock the next morning, viz., the 8th, being stationed again upon 

 the Grand Moraine, I was fortunate enough to witness the breakfast return of 

 what proved to be the same female. This time she rose from the west end of 

 the Grand Moraine, threw a great circle in the air, then flew southwest to the 

 lower wall of the west cliff. I had, naturally, no suspicion that this was "our" 

 bird. Presently, however, she flew to the west wall of the East Cliff, thence east 

 around "the Flatiron", the frontal and lowest member of the historic cliff, thence 

 west again, with several zigzags and false motions, over the western face of the 

 cliff. Not to be tedious — although to the novice this operation is tedious to 

 the point of madness — I traced her, after many devious wanderings, to the 

 significant boss by the east wall, and thence into the enveloping blackness. 

 This entire rigmarole of devious return is gone through with by the birds as an es- 

 tablished device for throwing observant enemies off the scent. The movements 

 of birds of this species with reference to nest visits are studiously and laboriously 

 irregular, and do actually discourage any but the most relentless observers. I 

 doubt if the birds, even in this thrice-plundered locality, are at all conscious or 

 resentful of the human presence, except at the very closest range. The ag- 

 gravating cause is rather, I suppose, the Clark Nutcracker (Nucifraga Columbiana) 

 the obscene ogre who sometimes stalks these grim sanctuaries like a death angel. 



Returning in the afternoon with Mrs. Dawson, who meanwhile had 

 joined me at the upper camp, we sought the conveniences of the same watch 

 tower. We had scarcely taken breath, after a stiff climb of a hundred feet, when 

 I caught a bird in midair — apparently one that had emerged from the suspected 

 well. Fastening attention thenceforth to the matter in hand, we had the satis- 

 faction of seeing the female bird return and flash in, without preliminaries, just 

 above the fourth boulder of the tower, or tier, already referred to. There was 

 no emergence, and we knew we had our quarry sealed. 



After discussing and rejecting the plan of approach from above by means 

 of ropes, I addressed myself resolutely to the task of approaching from belpw. 

 With garments reduced to a working minimum, and armed only with a pike, 



