300 
the sun was obscured by cloud, a cold wind blew keenly, and snow 
began to fall. This was unfortunate ; for, as the wind blew almost 
directly across the fen, the hen headed away up wind as soon as 
she was released. I tried to drive her gently towards her intended 
mate, but could not get her into the coleseed ; she would keep on 
the bare fen. by this time I was getting pretty close to the wild 
bird, who, after moving away suspiciously for some yards, suddenly 
rose and Hew away. Just as he was leaving, the hen rose, and, 
although the feathers in one wing had been slightly cut, she 
managed to fly about ten or a dozen yards and then pitched again. 
We fancied that the male bird as he passed over caught sight of 
her, for in less than half an hour he returned, an l alighted in the 
coleseed again. Many were the comments made upon his flight, 
and although it was said that on rising with a heavy flap of wing 
he reminded one of a heron, or an eagle, yet when fairly launched 
this resemblance ceased. The quicker stroke of wing and out- 
stretched neck reminded us then of a wild goose. The wings 
showed a good deal of white, the legs we could not see. Whether 
they were doubled up in front like an eagle, or carried straight out 
behind after the manner of a heron, did not appear. If the latter, 
as we suspect, they seemed not to project beyond the tail. 
“ During the interval which elapsed in the absence of the cock 
bird, I caught and carried the hen right into the coleseed, and had 
hardly set her down, and got back to the drove when he returned 
to his old haunt, pitching down, however, at a considerable distance 
from her. Here we thought it prudent to leave them ; for, as they 
were now in the same field together, we had really accomplished 
the object of our excursion. Nothing could have been more satis- 
factory. Even the weather became accommodating, for the snow 
ceased and the wind blew less coldly. We watched the happy pair 
for some time through our glasses from the top of a stack, and then 
withdrew to the farmhouse, where we drank to the health of the 
bride and bridegroom, and the good housewife told us * she hoped 
they would unite and live comfortable together ! ’ ” 
These bright hopes, however, were not to be realized. On the 
11th the weather became more severe, “with 12 degrees of frost 
and a thick mist which froze on the trees.” The cock and hen 
were both seen during the day, but as the latter had one wing 
partially dipt to prevent her straying away, though still able to fly 
db 2 
