At the north of Bearcamp Water; . on the farther shore. The surface of the waterwas disturbed by thousands of insects cuttingqueer figures upon it. Where they moved,white ripples followed. As I walked along themoist sand of the beach, pickerel shot out fromthe shore, bats squeaked, and frogs jumped intodeeper water with nervous croaks of a whippoorwill sang, and as his weirdnotes echoed from the woods, Venus sailed clearfrom the mist bank and reflected her dazzlingbeauty in the lake. As I drew near the mouthof the brook, a solitary tattler ran along thesand in front of me, whistling
At the north of Bearcamp Water; . on the farther shore. The surface of the waterwas disturbed by thousands of insects cuttingqueer figures upon it. Where they moved,white ripples followed. As I walked along themoist sand of the beach, pickerel shot out fromthe shore, bats squeaked, and frogs jumped intodeeper water with nervous croaks of a whippoorwill sang, and as his weirdnotes echoed from the woods, Venus sailed clearfrom the mist bank and reflected her dazzlingbeauty in the lake. As I drew near the mouthof the brook, a solitary tattler ran along thesand in front of me, whistling softly. When Iturned into the bushes, he stopped and resumedhis search for breakfast. The dead tree rose above me, jet blackagainst the dark sky. Stepping softly throughthe bushes, I disturbed the wary catbirds, andtheir fretful cries awoke the meadow. Attwenty minutes past four, three whippoorwillswere singing, and two catbirds, with severalhermit thrushes, were complaining. A few mo-ments later, the call of a veery was heard, a. THE DEAD TREE THE DEAD TREES DAY. 99 song sparrow gave a sharp squeak, and then,so still was the air, I heard the heavy stampingof my horse in his stable, a quarter of a mileaway, as he gained his feet after a long nightsrest. The stars were growing paler momentby moment, and outlines becoming sharper inthe bushes and trees near me. A Swainsonsthrush uttered its clear quick, expressive ofmuch more vigilance than the cries of the veeryand the hermit, yet less fault-finding than themew of the catbird. I settled myself comfortably amid the busheseastward of the dead trees, near enough to themto see even a humming-bird if one alighted onthe bare branches. At I had heard eightkinds of birds, yet the crows, notorious forearly rising, had not spoken. A minute laterone cawed sleepily among the eastern pineswhere the mist lay thickest, and soon a dozenvoices responded. Dense as was the fog, thelight of day made swift inroads upon the shad-ows, and when, a
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