. Fowls of the air . rap was there, in thevery spot where, the night before, the oldbeech partridge had stood when he jumpedfor the lowest limb. Corn was scatteredliberally about; and a blue jay, that had fol-lowed Johnnie, was already fast in the trap, caught at the base of his bill. He had sprungSf/>e OfBeecfi ^^ *^^P ^^ pecking at some corn that was\y^afrid^e fastened cunningly to the pan by fine wire.^|k When I took the jay carefully from the trap he played possum till my grip relaxed,when he flew to a branch over my head, squall-ing and upbraiding me for having anythingto do with such
. Fowls of the air . rap was there, in thevery spot where, the night before, the oldbeech partridge had stood when he jumpedfor the lowest limb. Corn was scatteredliberally about; and a blue jay, that had fol-lowed Johnnie, was already fast in the trap, caught at the base of his bill. He had sprungSf/>e OfBeecfi ^^ *^^P ^^ pecking at some corn that was\y^afrid^e fastened cunningly to the pan by fine wire.^|k When I took the jay carefully from the trap he played possum till my grip relaxed,when he flew to a branch over my head, squall-ing and upbraiding me for having anythingto do with such abominable inventions. I hung the trap to a low limb of the cedar,with a note in its jaws telling Johnnie tocome and see me next day. He came at dusk,shamefaced, and I read himon fair play and thedifference betweena thieving mink andan honest he chuckledover the blue jay,and I doubted thewithholding powerof a lecture; so, toeven matters, I hint-■A^^,A ed of an otter ju^/pfc, slide I hadMr, discovered,. and of a Saturday-afternoon tramp together. Twenty times, he told me, he had tried to snare the old beech partridge. When he saw the otter slide he forswore traps and snares 3^eO/Beech for birds; and I left soon after, with hopes for ■Tofrid^G the grouse, knowing that I had spiked the guns of his most dangerous enemy. Years later I crossed the old pasture againand went straight to the bullbrier were tracks of a grouse in the snow, — blunt, triangular tracks that rested lightlyon the soft whiteness; showing that natureremembered his necessity and had caused hisnew snowshoes to grow famously. I hurriedto the brook, a hundred memories throngingover me of happy days when the wood folkrevealed their secrets. In the midst of them — Kwit! kwit! and with a thunder of wingsa grouse darted away, wild and gray as therare bird that lived there years before. Andwhen I questioned a hunter, he said: Thatol beech patridge ? Oh, yes,hes there. He 11stay there, t
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, booksubjectbirds, bookyear1901
