1 8 Travels in a Tree-top 



and saw nothing of the streaming threads and 

 bobbing bladder; but it did a moment later, 

 and then what a quickening of wings and 

 hasty mounting upward ! The hawk was 

 frightened, and gave a violent jerk with one 

 foot, as if to disengage the mouse, but it was 

 ineffe6lual. The sharp claws had too strong 

 a hold, and the efFe£l was only to more vio- 

 lently bob the bladder. Then the hawk 

 screamed and dashed into the trees near by, 

 and was out of sight. 



A curious and disappointing occurrence, 

 while sitting aloft, was the frequent dis- 

 covery of my presence by birds and their 

 sudden right-about movement and departure. 

 Occasionally I could see them coming as if di- 

 re6lly towards me, but their keen eyes noticed 

 ^he unusual objedl, and they would dart off 

 with a promptness that showed how com- 

 pletely at home they were while on the wing. 

 Even the bluebirds, usually so tame, had 

 their misgivings, and came to rest in other 

 trees. But if the birds were not always about 

 and above me, there were many below, and the 

 sweet song of the wood-robin from the tangled 

 underbrush seemed clearer and purer than 

 when sifted through a wilderness of leaves. 



