The mountains of California . good-natured bachelor was content with hishard fare of soda-bread and bacon, but Tom, theonly creature in the world acknowledging depen-dence on him, must needs be provided with freshmeat. Accordingly he bestirred himself to contrivesquirrel-traps, and waded the snowy woods withhis gun, making sad havoc among the few winterbirds, sparing neither robin, sparrow, nor tiny nut-hatch, and the pleasure of seeing Tom eat andgrow fat was his great reward. One cold afternoon, while hunting along theriver-bank, he noticed a plain-feathered little birdskipping ab
The mountains of California . good-natured bachelor was content with hishard fare of soda-bread and bacon, but Tom, theonly creature in the world acknowledging depen-dence on him, must needs be provided with freshmeat. Accordingly he bestirred himself to contrivesquirrel-traps, and waded the snowy woods withhis gun, making sad havoc among the few winterbirds, sparing neither robin, sparrow, nor tiny nut-hatch, and the pleasure of seeing Tom eat andgrow fat was his great reward. One cold afternoon, while hunting along theriver-bank, he noticed a plain-feathered little birdskipping about in the shallows, and immediatelyraised his gun. But just then the confiding song-ster began to sing, and after listening to his sum-mery melody the charmed hunter turned away,saying, Bless your little heart, I cant shoot you,not even for Tom. Even so far north as icy Alaska, I have foundmy glad singer. When I was exploring the gla-ciers between Mount Fairweather and the StikeenRiver, one cold day in November, after trying. TOSEMITE BIKUS, SNOW-LOLNx. AT IHE l^J^JL v^r It^i^xi^Js GAl^ON. 298 THE MOUNTAINS OF CALIFOKNIA ill vain to force a wav tlirono-h the iiiiinmerableicebergs of Sum Duin Bay to the great glaciers atthe head of it, I was weary and baffled and satresting in my canoe convinced at last that I wouldhave to leave this part of my work for anotheryear. Then I began to plan my escape to openwater before the young ice which was beginning toform should shut me in. While I thus lingereddrifting with the bergs, in the midst of thesegloomy forebodings and all the terrible glacial des-olation and grandeur, I suddenly heard the well-known whir of an Ouzels wings, and, looking up,saw my little comforter coming straight across theice from the shore. In a second or two he waswith me, flying three times round my head with ahap|)y salute, as if saying, Cheer up, old friend;you see I m here, and alls well. Then he flewback to the shore, alighted on the topmost jag of astranded
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubjectcaliforniadescriptio
