196 WEATHER PROPHETS 



mistakes. The dark brown houses rising from the 

 water or displaying their irregular domes among the 

 withered Rushes show all kinds of estimates for the 

 coming winter. Some of the builders have chosen a 

 deep spot, or, more probably, the top of a steep 

 mound rising close to the surface and giving the 

 impression of a house in deep water. Some have 

 chosen the shallow marshes, and others have built 

 on the shore, with the certainty of tunnelling through 

 frozen ground. Out of so many different predictions 

 some will certainly be verified, and they will be recalled 

 to sustain the reputation of the Muskrat as a weather 

 prophet. 



Chickadees predict severe weather by their 

 abundance. All who admire their nimble, acrobatic 

 manoeuvres as they search the twigs for food, or 

 who enjoy their sociable notes as they keep in touch 

 with their companions, do not necessarily share the 

 common faith in their ability to foretell the weather. 

 A more noteworthy visitor from the remote north is 

 the Purple or Pine Grosbeak. He seldom ventures 

 so far south except in the coldest winters, and some- 

 times he will let several years pass without paying 

 us a visit. This year a number of Grosbeaks have 

 already been seen in and about Toronto. They may 

 be hunting for the tjrpical Canadian winter and unable 

 to locate it. They are almost as large as Robins, but 

 shorter and apparently stouter, the forked tail and 



