weeks later I learned that, just previous to , 

 the incident, several fishermen's dories, with 

 full fares, had been upset on the east side of Snotmr l^sifora 

 the island when trying to land through a 

 heavy surf. The dead fish had been carried 

 around by the tides, and the owl had been 

 deceived into showing his method of fish- 

 ing. In his northern home, when the ice 

 breaks up and the salmon are running, he 

 goes fishing from an ice cake as a regular 

 occupation. 



The owl lit upon a knoll, not two hundred 

 yards from where I sat motionless, and gave 

 me a good opportunity of watching him at 

 his meal. He treated the fish exactly as he 

 would have treated a rat or duck : stood on 

 it with one foot, gripped the long claws of 

 the other through it, and tore it to pieces 

 savagely, as one would a bit of paper. The 

 beak was not used, except to receive the 

 pieces, which were conveyed up to it by his 

 foot, as a parrot eats. He devoured every- 

 thing, even to the bones, in great hungry 

 mouthfuls. Then he hopped to the top of 

 the knoll, sat up straight, puffed out his 



