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their mouths, — enormous mouths for such 



little fellows ; then, seeing that I was an 



intruder, they tried to bristle their few pin- Tiqokooskoos 



feathers and snap their beaks. 



They were fat as two aldermen; and no 

 wonder. Placed around the edge of the big 

 nest were a red squirrel, a rat, a chicken, a 

 few frogs' legs, and a rabbit. Fine fare that, 

 at eighty feet from the ground. Kookooskoos 

 had had good hunting. All the game was 

 partly eaten, showing that I had disturbed 

 their dinner ; and only the hinder parts were 

 left, showing that owls like the head and 

 brains best. I left them undisturbed and 

 came away ; for I wanted to watch the young 

 grow — which they did marvelously, and were 

 presently learning to hoot. But I have been 

 less merciful to the great owls ever since, 

 thinking of the enormous destruction of game 

 represented in raising two or three such 

 young savages, year after year, in the same 

 swamp. 



Once, at twilight, I shot a big owl that 

 was sitting on a limb facing me, with what 

 appeared to be a long tail hanging below the 



