58 BIRDS AND POETS 



One of the strong and original strokes of Nature 

 was wlien she made the loon. It is always refresh- 

 ing to contemplate a creature so positive and charac- 

 teristic. He is the great diver and Hyer under 

 water. The loon is the genius loci of the wild 

 northern lakes, as solitary as they are. Some birds 

 represent the majesty of nature, like the eagles; 

 others its ferocity, like the hawks; others its cun- 

 ning, like the crow; others its sweetness and mel- 

 ody, like the song-birds. The loon represents its 

 wildness and solitariness. It is cousin to the beaver. 

 It has the feathers of a bird and the fur of an ani- 

 mal, and the heart of both. It is as quick and cun- 

 ning as it is bold and resolute. It dives with such 

 marvelous quickness that the shot of the gunner get 

 there just in time " to cut across a circle of descend- 

 ing tail feathers and a couple of little jets of water 

 flung upward by the web feet of the loon. " When' 

 disabled so that it can neither dive nor fly, it is 

 said to face its foe, look him in the face with its 

 clear, piercing eye, and fight resolutely till death. 

 The gunners say there is something in its waUing, 

 piteous cry, when dying, almost human in its agony. 

 The loon is, in the strictest sense, an aquatic fowl. 

 It can barely walk upon the land, and one species 

 at least cannot take flight from the shore. But in 

 the water its feet are more than feet, and its wings 

 more than wings. It plunges into this denser air 

 and flies with incredible speed. Its head and beak 



