. Wild animals I have known : and 200 drawings . grow daily less till it was 336 Redfuff down to minutes, and one day at last she nevercame at all. Nor the next, nor the next, andRedruff, wild, careered on lightning wing anddrummed on the old log, then away up-streamon another log, and skimmed the hill to anotherravine to drum and drum. But on the fourthday, when he came and loudly called her, as ofold, at their earliest tryst, he heard a sound inthe bushes, as at first, and there was his miss-ing Brownie bride with ten little peeping par-tridges following after. Redruff skimmed to her side, t
. Wild animals I have known : and 200 drawings . grow daily less till it was 336 Redfuff down to minutes, and one day at last she nevercame at all. Nor the next, nor the next, andRedruff, wild, careered on lightning wing anddrummed on the old log, then away up-streamon another log, and skimmed the hill to anotherravine to drum and drum. But on the fourthday, when he came and loudly called her, as ofold, at their earliest tryst, he heard a sound inthe bushes, as at first, and there was his miss-ing Brownie bride with ten little peeping par-tridges following after. Redruff skimmed to her side, terribly frighten-ing the bright-eyed downlings, and was just alittle dashed to find the brood with claims farstronger than his own. But he soon acceptedthe change, and thenceforth joined himself tothe brood, caring for them as his father neverhad for him. VI Good fathers are rare in the grouse mother-grouse builds her nest and hatchesout her young without help. She even hidesthe place of the nest from the father and meets 337 Redruff. him only at the drum-log and the feeding-ground, or perhaps the dusting-place, which isthe club-house of the grouse kind. When Brownies little ones came out theyhad filled her every thought, even to the for-getting of their splendid father. But on thethird day, when they were strong enough, shehad taken them with her at the fathers call. Some fathers take no interest in their littleones, but Redruff joined at once to helpBrownie in the task of rearing the brood. Theyhad learned to eat and drink just as their fatherhad learned long ago, and could toddle along,with their mother leading the way, while thefather ranged near by or followed far behind. The very next day, as they went from thehill-side down toward the creek in a somewhatdrawn-out string, like beads with a big oneat each end, a red squirrel, peeping around apine-trunk, watched the procession of down-lings with the Runtie straggling far in therear. Redruff, yards behind, preening
Size: 1217px × 2054px
Photo credit: © Reading Room 2020 / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, bookpublishe, booksubjectanimals
