128 AT THE NORTH OF BEARCAMP WATER . 
over the lakes, and then, as though partings 
were said, landmarks remembered, and bearings 
taken, he flies with strong and steady strokes 
towards the outlet of the Ossipee basin. This 
year, in August, ten night herons visited us at 
one time, remaining in the neighborhood two or 
three days. When disturbed by day, they rose, 
and, forming an orderly flock, flew away with 
military precision. The ducks and geese are, 
however, the best examples of well-drilled com¬ 
panies. Geese are not often seen here, although 
several were killed this spring in a small lake 
halfway between Chocorua and the Bearcamp. 
Wood duck and black duck begin to fly past us 
late in August, but their numbers are compara¬ 
tively insignificant, a flock of ten being un¬ 
usually large. In October and early November 
the wind-swept lakes are seldom without little 
companies of black ducks, sheldrakes, and their 
less common relatives. 
One of the most interesting of migrants is 
the loon, or great northern diver. Loons are 
said to breed in this vicinity on Whitton Pond, 
and they are seen now and then during all the 
summer months. It is on the edge of a north¬ 
east storm in September, when mackerel clouds 
deck the sky and the hazy sunlight spreads gold 
upon the ripples, that the migrating loon comes 
with the force of a cannon-ball, and plunges 
