12 THES AU Daw BOON BU Dele hele. 
A Trip West 
By ANNA C. AMES , 
Ir WAS ON June 11th that my son and I left Chicago on a rail trip to the 
west. The next morning we were Dee UU o North Dakota, a state 
I had known well in earlier years. 
North Dakota again, but not the Ngee ae of my childhood! The 
same great sky bends over the vast stretches of prairies. The winds that 
cannot be stilled are there. There are marvelous dawns and resplendent 
sunsets. In the late afternoons the long shafts of light lie over the plains 
as a benediction. It is still a region where one may breathe deeply in the 
consciousness of abundant breathing space. But North Dakota is under 
cultivation now. The gorgeous, red tiger lilies bearing four or five blooms 
to a single stalk no longer flourish. My brother, who has lived in North 
Dakota most of his life, says that now there are years between the times 
he sees these lilies. Other flowers also have well-nigh vanished. Meadow- 
larks seemed scarce that June. 
One thinks naturally of Yellow-headed Blackbirds in connection with 
the Dakotas. Perhaps they were in the swamps, nesting. At any rate, but 
a scattered two or three were visible from the train. Red-wings were fairly 
numerous, as were Grackles and Coots. The American Kingbird, as in 
earlier years, perched on the fence posts. 
All the way across North Dakota there seemed to be a pond or a lake 
every mile or two, and every bit of water had three to fifteen ducks. The 
birds were undisturbed by the passing of the train. Pintails, Mallards, 
and Blue-winged Teal were most common, but we saw also a pair of Shovel- 
ers, three male Canvasbacks, and one Baldpate. In the Souris River valley, 
an American Bittern posed for us while Black Terns, Common Terns, 
Purple Martins and Bank Swallows skimmed about. There were Swifts 
and Nighthawks and Upland Plovers. In a far corner of a medium-sized 
lake, a flock of Lesser Snow Geese seemed quite at home. White Pelicans 
delighted us. One Black-crowned Night Heron looked lonely. One each of 
the Arkansas Kingbird, American Magpie, and Canada Jay made us rea- 
lize that we were really out West. A lone coyote loping along by the side 
of the embankment made me feel quite at home. 
At Lake Louise, and from there on, Violet-Green Swallows were in the 
air everywhere. A Mountain Bluebird had a nest in a wall of one of the 
buildings at Lake Louise and posed for us in bewitching beauty. We walked 
to the head waters of the lake and found a flock of six or eight Evening 
Grosbeaks enlivening the somber evergreens with their golden plumage. A 
White-crowned Sparrow paused briefly, and an Audubon Warbler accom- 
panied us on our way back. Then we chanced upon a beady-eyed Pileolated 
Warbler. There were handsome little chipmunks all along the way and 
we saw a porcupine retreating from view. High up, marmots abounded. 
Birds that we see also in the Chicago area were Golden-crowned Kinglets, 
Cliff Swallows, and Olive-sided Flycatchers. Farther west an Osprey flew 
in circles, now high, now low, and showed us every feather. A Ruddy 
Duck in a pool close to the tracks surprised us, as did a great Common 
I.oon. We also saw a Raven. 
