THE WOODCOCK 
because there were now two woodcock to 
windward of him. 
It was a far cry from a Scarabeg peat pool to a 
cabbage bed in the Man's garden, but Creaman 
had no doubts. Moreover, the spring was half 
a moon older than when she had repulsed him 
from the rush tussock. Where she had been 
in the intervals Creaman did not ask, and 
therefore nor need we. Enough said that the 
earth near the cottage door was punctured 
by galaxies of neat borings, and a double 
track of feet ran up and down the cabbage 
rows next morning. 
IV 
Droleen the Wren always patrolled his section 
of the wood precisely once up and back again 
before he settled down to the serious business 
of the day. It was the first morning of 
March. When the blackbirds scraped away 
the leaves they discovered tentative primrose 
plants, and Droleen sang lustily under the rare 
stimulus of the sunshine. Five mornings out 
of seven he knew that the woodcock lay 
among the beech saplings, and he spun through 
the brambles like a pigmy partridge, and spoke 
his mind until the sleeping bird opened a 
lustrous eye. But this morning Droleen saw 
95 
