/6 A/fy 
/o) 
Knowing that they were very near me, however, I 
v^aited. patiently and presently light ripples (very unlike 
the deep furrows made by a swimming Muskrat) roiling out 
from under the bushes, warned me that they were coming past 
me. It was highly exciting and I had no little difficulty 
in controlling my nerves when, through an opening in the 
branches, I saw first the female and then the superb old 
drake appear directly beneath me and begin dabbling with 
their bills among the floating leaves. At this moment they 
were not more than ten or twelve feet from me, and in the 
full sunlight which brought out the gorgeous coloring of 
the drake to great advantage. When he turned his head, I 
could see the exquisite sheen of his crest as distinctly 
as if I had held him in my hand. 
Of course it was out of the question to shoot at 
such short range, so I waited motionless, hoping that the 
birds would swim further off, but when at length they did 
so they kept close along under the bank and v/ere again lost 
to sight. After a little while I follovired them and again 
the ripples betrayed their position, but this time they 
saw me whenl raised my head and at once flew. I brought 
down the duck easily enough but the dense branches saved 
the life of the drahe, for the time, although I fired the 
second barrel at him. He went directly down to the Holt 
v/here I found him twenty minutes later, under an over¬ 
hanging maple, floating in the middle of a raft of newly- 
fallen leaves. So still did he sit that I looked at him 
for some time through the glass before I felt sure that 
