Music of the Wild 



The low, open meadow covered closely with 



cropped velvet grass, "green pastnres." where full- 



TheCrsek fed cattle lie in deep shade. Nowhere in its course 



Meets the ^^^ ^j^^ river does the Limherlost "preen" and sing 



River . . . ^ ° 



exidtingly as when crossing this meadow. All the 

 water babies travel M'ith it, the kingfisher and the 

 plover follow; the children play along the banks, 

 and if it has any intuition at all, surely the creek 

 can see gratitude in the eyes of the inhabitants of 

 tlie meadow as they thrust their muzzles in the 

 depths or stand cooling under trees. If the Lim- 

 berlost loves admiration, here it receives a full 

 sliare. The banks are covered with enough trees 

 and bushes to make almost continuous shade for 

 the waters, and a thing of beauty it goes laughing 

 on the way to the Wabasli. In fact it is so close 

 the river here that big fish come adventuring and 

 to sjiawn, and their splash is part of the music 

 tliat the family living on the banks hears daily. 

 jNIr. Schaflfer says that he can stand on his back 

 liorch, bait a fish, tm-n, and drop it into the fry- 

 ing-pan. This really could be done, but much as 

 I have trespassed tliere I never have seen the fish 

 on tlieir Avay anywliere except to the river. 



Aside from the song of the creek and the birds 

 that follow, there comes an occasional wild duck, 

 sometimes a loon lost in migration or slightly 

 wounded by a hunter, and every spring and fall 

 migrating wild geese pay a visit and add strange 



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