64 THE BIRDS 
ditions affecting it somewhat. Like the other rails, the 
migration is made during the night. A handsome speci- 
men was once brought to me early one morning, dead, 
having been picked up in the city street under the tele- 
graph wires. The bird had been flying at such a rapid 
rate that when it hit the wire, the shock had ruptured the 
heart and death had been almost instantaneous, facts 
brought out when skinning it. The nest is placed a few 
inches above the water or wet ground, sometimes floating 
on the water, composed of dry flag blades and marsh grass, 
well concealed by overhanging vegetation. Eggs number 
seven to ten, the ground color a rich glossy cream, the 
entire surface blotched, and spotted with a reddish-brown, 
and milder markings of lavender. Size, 1.65x1.15. Only 
one brood a season. The young when hatched are jet black 
except their tiny, orange-colored legs, and as soon as their 
coat becomes dry, they leave the nest and follow the 
parent. Vegetable matter, worms, beetles, snails and seed, 
form the principal part of their food. 
