AMERICAN EIDER. 
327 
renew their laying as often as three times.” According to the 
relation of Sir George Mackenzie, on the 8th of June, at Vidoe, 
the Eider Ducks, at all other times of the year perfectly wild, 
had now assembled in great numbers to nestle. The boat by 
which the party approached the shore passed through multi- 
tudes of these beautiful fowls, which scarcely gave themselves 
the trouble to go out of the way. “ Between the landing-place 
and the governor’s house the ground was strewed with them, 
and it required some caution to avoid treading on the nests. 
The drakes were walking about uttering a sound very like the 
cooing of Doves, and were even more familiar than the common 
Domestic Ducks. All round the house, on the garden wall, on 
the roofs, and even in the inside of the houses and in the 
chapel were numbers of Ducks sitting on their nests. Such as 
had not been long on the nest generally left it on being 
approached ; but those that had more than one or two eggs 
sat perfectly quiet, suffering us to touch them, and sometimes 
making a gentle use of their bills to remove our hands. When 
a drake happens to be near his mate, he is extremely agitated 
when any one approaches her. He passes and repasses be- 
tween her and the object of his suspicion, raising his head and 
cooing.” 
One female, during the whole time of laying, generally gives 
half a pound of neat down, and double that quantity before 
cleansing. According to Troil, in the year 1750 the Iceland 
Company sold as much of this article as amounted to ;£85o 
sterling, besides deducting what was sent directly to Gluckstad. 
At the time of pairing, according to Brunnich and Skiolde- 
brand, the male is heard continually calling out with a raucous 
and moaning voice 'lux ho, ‘‘ha ho ; but the cry of the female 
resembles that of the Common Duck. At this exciting period 
the males, more numerous than their mates, have sharp con- 
tests with each other, and the vanquished and superannuated 
are afterwards seen wandering about at sea in much milder 
climates than the rest of their fraternity. Both birds labor m 
concert while forming the nest, and though the male gives no 
assistance in hatching, during the period of laying he keeps 
