Presently he began walking away from me, keeping in 
the middle of the path and following the water’s edge closely. 
He carried his tail raised 
and frequently 
twitched his expanded ruffs in an abrupt nervous manner 
suggesting irritation. After growling for half a minute or 
more, he called quet , q uet a number of times and then began 
making the chittering or snickering sound Which so closely 
resembles that of the Red Squirrel. At length he left the 
path and began making his way up the steep hillside. I now 
increased my pace and he at once did the same until he 
finally made a short quick gliding run and then took flight. 
While in the path his gait was a rather slow and highly 
dignified walk. Altogether I had him in view for fully three 
minutes. The Ball's Hill Partridges are so accustomed to 
our presence and so fully assured that we mean them no harm 
that we often see them on the ground but it is seldom that 
I have as prolonged a view of one as I enjoyed on this 
occasion. 
