WILD LIFE ON THE WING 
sitting by the tarn, and that he took his gun 
and shot at him through the window. The 
gun did not make any noise, but from where the 
man had been sitting a heron got up and soared 
away, and when he looked again the place was 
empty. 
Andy woke so gently that at first his awakening 
seemed like a continuation of his dream. He 
felt strangely content, and wondered whether 
it was only that his cold wet hands had dried 
during his sleep. Then he remembered that the 
man whom he hated was dead, and with great 
joy thereat hot in him, he went to the door. 
The goats with full udders bleated to be milked, 
and the fowls ran up to be fed, but for the first 
time in his life Andy forgot them. The herons 
had left the field. Three were gone, but two 
stood fishing beside the tarn. He knew that 
these were the Corr iasc and his mate, and that 
though the herons' tree was cut down, yet 
they might still make a nest in Ballongarry. 
With the black bottle beside him, his scheme 
grew slowly from the mustard seed of his 
dream. Logically it was unimpeachable. He 
marvelled that he had never thought of it 
before : " While there was a Corr iasc's nest 
within the bawl of an ass of the place, there 
should a Geoghegan at Ballongarry" the de- 
duction was simple. If there were no Corr iascs 
238 
