UNUSUAL EXPERIENCES AFIELD 79 



propriate spot outdoors, carried liim out as he 

 perclied ou oue of my fingers, cupping tlie other 

 hand over him, and setting him on the spot, made 

 almost a hfe-sized portrait of him. As he evinced 

 no incHnation to fly, I turned him in several posi- 

 tions; and finally, when I was ready to release him, 

 he still showed not the slightest inclination to go. 



At this time my daughter was closely associated 

 with me in field work and it always had been her 

 privilege to return to fi'eedom all of the sick and 

 the wounded that we had found or that had been 

 brought to VIS for treatment; so when I finished 

 every picture I could think of to make with the 

 lark, I put him into Molly Cotton's hands that 

 she might start him on his way to freedom. He 

 sat there in perfect contentment until, at my sug- 

 gestion, she shook him up a bit. Then he stood on 

 his feet, but failed to fly. The Cabin, south, was 

 located in a small village, immediately surrounded 

 by fields, over which larks were constantly flying. 

 Just at that point, one of his kind passed over our 

 heads at no great height, singing the "Spring o' 

 year" song of the lark. Instantly our bird found 

 his voice, his wings, and his wild spirit. He uttered 

 a sharp cry and flew at such speed that his going 

 was merely an indistinct flash. 



My worst experience with an oil-coated bird was 

 that with a shitepoke, brought me by some boys 

 who had found him while playing. I can not im- 

 agine what occurred to a bird with his length of 



