128 PURPLE GALLINULE. 



slightly arched, much compressed, tapering to a very acute point. Plumage 

 blended; form and wings of moderate length, broad, convex, with the second 

 and third quills longest; tail very short, much rounded, of twelve weak 

 feathers; lower coverts almost as long. 



PURPLE GALLINULE. 



"VGallintjla maktinica, Linn. 



PLATE CCCIIL— Male. 



Reader, although you may think it strange, I candidly assure you that I 

 have experienced a thousand times more pleasure while looking at the Purple 

 Gallinule flirting its tail while gaily moving over the broad leaves of the 

 water-lily, than I have ever done while silently sitting in the corner of a 

 crowded apartment, gazing on the flutterings of gaudy fans and the wavings 

 of flowing plumes. Would that I were once more extended on some green 

 grassy couch, in my native Louisiana, or that I lay concealed under some 

 beautiful tree, overhanging the dark bayou, on whose waters the bird of 

 beauty is wont to display its graceful movements, and the rich hues of its 

 glossy plumage! Methinks I now see the charming creature gliding sylph- 

 like over the leaves that cover the lake, with the aid of her lengthened toes, 

 so admirably adapted for the purpose, and seeking the mate, who, devotedly 

 attached as he is, has absented himself, perhaps in search of some secluded 

 spot in which to place their nest. Now he comes, gracefully dividing the 

 waters of the tranquil pool, his frontal crest glowing with the brightest 

 azure. Look at his wings, how elegantly they are spread and obliquely 

 raised; see how his expanded tail strikes the water; and mark the move- 

 ments of his head, which is alternately thrown backward and forward, as if 

 he were congratulating his mate on their happy meeting. Now both birds 

 walk along clinging to the stems and blades, their voices clearly disclosing 

 their mutual feelings of delight, and they retire to some concealed place on 

 the nearest shore, where we lose sight of them for a time. 



Now, side by side, they look for the most secure spot among the tall 

 rushes that border the lake, and there thev will soon form a nest, removed 



