Shells on Union Bay 77 



the power is not applied quite continuously so that there is 

 always a small but noticeable unevenness in the movement. 



The birds at the mouth of the inlet appeared accustomed 

 to the passage. The coots pattered a few feet and then settled 

 down again with the clumsy lunge which always sent up a 

 shower of drops. The mallards quacked and flew but without 

 concern and soon dropped into the water and began to feed. 

 The song sparrows did not cease singing. The bittern, per- 

 haps startled by the sound of the engine, stopped posing and 

 moved slowly into the cattails. Swallows attracted by the mo- 

 tion of the shells swooped close to them for a few rods. No- 

 where was there any evidence of alarm. 



The three shells and the launch came to rest about half a 

 mile away. The voice of the coach could be heard but his 

 words were not intelligible. The men had stripped off their 

 shirts and through my binoculars I could see the rhythmical 

 play of their muscles as they practiced starts. The gulls on 

 the log rafts rose in a flock, then circled and returned to their 

 resting places. The practice continued. Each trial start ap- 

 proached closer to the lake until the shells left the bay and 

 disappeared to the north. For the moment I could see no 

 other craft. If there were any fishermen they were in the 

 channels. The area was as quiet as a mountain lake, and 

 apparently free from all city pressure. The fact that the 

 crew had merely made a passage through the marsh and 

 would be away for most of their practice heightened my 

 previous opinion that its impact upon the wildlife was very 

 light. I was correct in assuming that the activity around the 

 shellhouse would have little effect on any but the wariest of 

 visiting species. But were there any other hidden factors that 

 might be of enough importance in an inquiry which con- 

 cerned the relations of man and wildlife? It would be well 

 to look for them. 



While I poked about the various quarters of the bay, I 

 considered its early history and that of rowing at the Uni- 



