Music of the Wild 



of pale lavender that have the effect of being 

 dabbled on with a brush and seen through an oily 

 veiling. Then the tops of the flags and yovnig 

 grasses are caught and deftly M^oven into a cool 

 green arch above the rich straw-colored bed that 

 holds these rarely beautiful eggs, making a pic- 

 ture that must be seen to be appreciated fully. 



Some experience will be required in detecting 

 a location, so slightly does the roofing of the nest 

 affect the general appearance of the marsh. Care- 

 ful searching will reveal the "run-a-way," usually 

 at the northeast, through which the slender-bodied 

 mother slips to feed and rest. 



If you have the luck to find a nest after a few 

 days of brooding so has burned the mother heart 

 A Queen that she will remain, you will become ac- 

 Mother qi^jainted with a lovely, graceful bird, whose poise, 

 dignity, and extreme courage will compel your ad- 

 miration and make you wish her voice were sweet- 

 est music as would seem befitting her splendid 

 presence. Her long, dark beak is fineh^ cut and 

 curved. Her eyes are so wise, and filled with 

 steady, tender devotion. Her coloring is a rich 

 brown, quite dark on the top of the head, lighter 

 in a streak running from the base of the beak 

 above the eye and on the throat, and lining across 

 the back of the \\'ings in varied marking of brown, 

 black, and white with beautiful V-shaped effects. 



If you touch her or go too close she utters a 

 370 



