RAILS AND GALLINULES 
257 
The chipmunks stop in the midst of play; 
The gophers hide in their holes away; 
And “ Hush, oh, hush! ” the field-mice say, , 
When the sandhill crane goes walking. 
Mrs. Mary Austin, in St. Nicholas. 1 
THE FAMILY OF RAILS. 
Rallidae. 
From the stately crane to the timid, self- 
effacing Virginia Rail 2 is going at one step 
from the sublime to the ridiculous. To the 
latter, which is a bird about half the size of a 
bob-white, a crane must seem like a giant 
whose head is in the clouds. The crane can 
either fight, run or fly away; but the rail is 
safe only when threading the mazes of a reedy 
marsh, where no enemy can follow it far. When 
boating on a marsh filled with cat-tails, or reeds, 
or tall grass, you may hear a score of rails 
clucking and calling in the heart of the green 
tangle about you without seeing one. There 
are times when it seems as if this bird is a de- 
liberate and intentional ventriloquist, for its 
voice seems to come from all directions save 
that which points toward its owner. A marsh 
is as necessary to rails as water is to fishes. 
When a rail flies up out of a marsh or a 
meadow, you can recognize it by its feeble, 
fluttering flight, and its hanging legs. Often 
in alighting it seems to fall helplessly into the 
tall cover. 
In the mosquito-ridden marshes along the 
New Jersey shore, dwells a species known as the 
Sora Rail 3 in numbers sufficiently numerous 
to attract gunners. The moment the “law is 
off,” the fiat-bottomed boats are brought out, 
and the fusillade begins. With no larger game 
available, even a small Rail can form an excuse 
for a day’s outing on the marshes, bringing the 
grip of the gun-stock, the dull “boom” that is 
music to the desk-weary man, and the welcome 
smell of gunpowder. Therefore, rail not at all 
those who shoot rails; for there be some who 
do not shoot “for revenue only.” 
As may be inferred, rails are good to eat, 
though not very good ; for they are several sizes 
too small for real comfort. There are only 
1 By courtesy of The Century Co., and of the 
Author. 
2 Ral'lus virginianus. Average length, 9 inches. 
3 Por-za'na Carolina. Length, about 9 inches. 
about twelve species in North America, of which 
the King Rail, 15 inches long (of eastern North 
America), is the largest, and the Virginia Rail 
is the most widely distributed. The latter has 
a long bill (11 inches), and is found from Long 
Island to British Columbia,, breeding every- 
where that marshy lands occur. It is an olive- 
brown bird, streaked and barred with black, 
and in places with white, also. 
While the most typical rails have long bills, 
some species are short-billed. 
A Gallinule is a bird which lives, acts and 
looks like a rail, and is easily mistaken for either 
a rail or a coot; but it stands midway between 
VIRGINIA RAIL. 
the two. It is distinguished from the rails by 
the bare, horny shield upon the forehead, and 
from the coots by the long, slender, unwebbed 
toes. The Florida Gallinule 4 is also called the 
Blue “Rail,” and Red-Billed” Mud-Hen,” and its 
general color-effect is bluish-gray. It is found 
in localities adapted to its habits throughout 
temperate North America, north to Canada, and 
as far south as Brazil. 
The Purple Gallinule 5 of the southern half 
of the eastern United States, is a bird of beauti- 
ful plumage. Its colors are a rich, dark purple 
on the head, neck and shoulders, lightening to 
4 Gal-li-nu'la gal-e-a'ta. Length, about 13 inches. 
5 I-o-nor'nis mar-tin' i-ca. Length, 12 inches. 
