December, 1919 
681 
FOREST AND STREA?*! 
with the flaps fastened down over the ears 
felt none too warm. 
In less than an hour we reached the 
head of the bay. The car was left at the 
side of the road and we tramped over to 
the bay shore where lay our sneak-boxes 
with their loads of decoys. Taking only 
the red-head decoys we each pushed out 
in a boat. The night was intensely black 
and we lay our course solely by knowl- 
edge of the locality — when one instinct- 
ively travels right by night as well as by 
day. 
The splash of our oars and creaking of 
oar locks were lost in the moaning of the 
cold damp wind that drove the wav'es 
slajiping and spraying against the sterns 
of our boats. Y,’e almost ran into a flock 
of ducks that were resting upon the open 
water. The startled fowl would leave the 
water with splashing of many wings and 
feet. They would beat into the wind 
toward us until directly over our boats, 
then swing to the right and left, the 
whistle of their wings suddenly hushed 
as they speeded off. At times there were 
many ducks about our boats, all effectu 
ally hidden by the bl.ackness of the night. 
An hour or more of steady pulling at 
the oars and we had crossed the bay to the 
western shore and were abicast of the 
river's mouth, a mile or so to the south 
cf our starting point. At first we missed 
the little island, tiie jdace from which wo 
intended to shoot, but soon we ran into 
the tall reeds that lined the marshy shore. 
The island was only a few square yard.s 
in area but it was important to know on 
which side or end to maim our blind and 
put out the detoys. A consultation was 
held. The wind v.’as considered. It was 
blowing strongly and steadily from the 
north-cast and it vas hardly likely to 
change during the coming day. A de- 
cision was reach'd, based on pa.'^t oxiieri- 
ince in that locality under similar 
weather conditions. 
We poled down to the south-east point 
of the iuiau.l r.ml threw out the decoys 
just a little off to the south of the end 
rushes. Then, while my companion 
worked the sneak-bo.xcs well in among 
the tall reeds and settled them side by 
: Me, sterns towaid the wat: r, T got out 
tile jack knife and groping my way about 
iii the darkness cut armfuls of brown 
rushi'3. These were carefully spread over 
tl’.e dcciis of the boats and draped over the 
sriuare sterns. 
■\Ve got out our pipes and had a smoke, 
.nnd for all our bundling up the raw, cold 
winds made us shiver as we stood there 
watching the east for signs of the coming 
day. 
A change, almost imperceptrole at first, 
was gradually taking place. Where a 
half hour before night had cnvelon>-d us, 
bleck and injpenetrabl'', a dim gray was 
now mystcrioiuly Eurcading through the 
,ict. Slowly hut steadily the gray iu- 
creusad. unt.l the wavin.g brown rushes 
nearby were outlined and the little island 
.seemed to rise phamom-like to view. The 
nearest decoys .showed faintly, bobbing 
among the waves, and a gray sky was 
dimly disclosed over head. Far to the 
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