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Herons, Ratts, Ere. 232 
heard at the distance of two miles. They have also various modu- 
lations of this singular note, from the peculiarity of which they de- 
rive their name. When wounded, they attack the gunner or his dog 
with great resolution, and have been known to drive their sharp and 
formidable bill at one stroke through a man’s hand.” 
The march of civilization has not made such sad 
inroads upon the rails and gallinules as upon the 
herons and birds after their kind. The low growths 
of the marshes are too rank to be successfully 
searched by the omnipresent gunners, and a vast 
number of birds that are with us in season escape 
the dangers to which they have been subjected and 
live to come again. It is to be noted, too, that some 
attention is paid to the bird’s welfare, and during the 
nesting season they are protected. But laws or no 
laws, a showy crane or plumed heron has a trivial 
money value, and is sure to be shot down sooner or 
later, even if sitting at the time on its nest. Cer- 
tainly birds, because not fit to eat, should not be 
overlooked by the law-makers. They have as much 
right to live as quails or grouse, and besides being 
useful, have a value in being ornamental, which is 
something to be considered, but seldom is. There is 
no unavoidable reason why some birds once common 
are now rare. It is not man’s mere presence that 
does the mischief, but his fiendish greed and brutal 
indifference to the welfare of life generally. 
In the Clapper-rail of our sea-coast, the King- 
rail of the fresh-water marshes, and the Virginia Rail 
of both localities, we have three well-marked species 
that are very alike in all respects, the Virginia rail 
being a small edition of either of the others. Of 
20* 
