Beside the pleasure of watching them, the 



first black ducks that I had ever seen uncon- 



J^ TOi'IdDuck scious, there was the satisfaction of thinking 



,\|^' /• how completely they had been outwitted at 

 ^^m -^-M their own game of sharp watching. How 



"» I they would have jumped, had they known 



what was lying there in the grass so near 

 their hiding place 1 At first, every time I 

 saw an eye wink, or a head come from under 

 a wing, I felt myself shrinking close together 

 in the thought that I was discovered; but 

 that wore off after a time, when I found that 

 the eye winked rather sleepily, and the necks 

 were taken out just to stretch them, much as 

 one would take a comfortable yawn. 



Once I was caught squarely, but the grass, 

 and my being so near saved me. I had 

 raised my head and lay with chin in my 

 hands, deeply interested in watching a young 

 duck making a most elaborate toilet, when 

 from the other side an old bird shot into the 

 open water and saw me as I dropped out of 

 sight. There was a low quack which brought 

 every duck out of his hiding, wide awake 

 on the instant. At first they all bunched 



