Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1875-08-04
4 Rare Bird.

| had the pleasure, last week, of enjoy
ing the hospitality of Mr.. w. b. Macrae.
Of Colchester. whose large farm lies on
the Winooski river. Il mile above the
Heineberg bridge. His house is on n point
of high land running down to the river.
Just where it makes one of its graceful
bends. For some years pas the river.
right here, at high water, has been cutting
away the opposite hank. and many acres
of fine meadow land from the farm of Mr..
f. Goodrich of Burlington, and deposting
them on the opposite shore i'll the form of
Il low stand beach, nearly a hundred rods
in length
On the morning of july 22d about run
rise, we were all aroused by great shout
of the hay makers Just getting ont to begin
the sight of a huge white bird flying slow
" up the river and alighting on the point
of this beach nearest Mr.. Macrae'S house,
and perhaps thirty OF forty rods from it.
The men affirmed that the stretch Of the
tlusiastic fellow declaring it must be
twelve feet. and its height, rs it stood on
the sand, four feet. The bird walked slow
/ " up the beach with Il stately tread, look
! inc down right and left. and now and then
/ e-oc7
bic up some frog or clam or fish for its
breakfast We watched it carefully with
our naked eve and through Il good teles-
cope till it passed over nearly the whole
/ length of The beach, and, 10y II turn of the
bank, out of sight Then took ii boat
and crossed over and up the river, hoping
| to oct Il nearer and better view of it but 1t
| had taken flight and we saw it no more.
I I n ht
the whole of its walk. Its stride was very
! regular, the tracks about twelve inches,
and everywhere Just in the edge of the wa
I ter, VARYING from one inch to SIX inches
deep The toes were long and slim and
the claws short The foot was not webbed
The hind toe was on Il level with the for
ward ltocs, and made straight line
with the middle toe, all sinking into the
sand alike. The hind toe was apparently
i three -fourths as long us the middle one
the outer and inner toes nearly equal ant
only a little shorter than the middle toe
The length of the track, from the point o
the middle to the point of the hind toe, was
six inches. The width of the track, from
the point of the outer to that of the innel
four and a-half inches. From the bes
!. observation the bird was throughout a pure
brilliant white except the bill and the legs
which were very dark, perhaps black.
On examining what books | have or
!, birds to determine, if possible, its name
| find it is not a crane, us my friend RanC
thought since the crane has the hind to-
raised above the level of the others. 1t il
doubtless a Heron, but of what species
am not certain. Thompson, in his Birds
of Vermont, has no description that DIES
cribcs our bird. Samuels, in his Birds o
New England. describes the . Snowy Her
on as all white. length twenty-fou
inches, wing ten, also as having fine, long
plumv, feathers on the neck, breast an'
,, rump, the last reaching beyond the tai
and turned upward. Our bird must hav
been longer, and we did not notice tn
plumes.
Prof. S. f. Baird, in the ninth volumn
Pacific r. r. report, describes the Snow.
IIeron," also the "White Heron as pure
white, feet black, head smooth, length )
inches, wing 15,5 inches. The full descrlr
tion of this bird appears to me to apply t
, our bird better than any other can find
, 1t is said to inhabit the Southern portion
of the United States Struggling to Mass'
chusetts. 1t is doubtless Il very rare blr
! in Vermont.-C.lE. f. in Free Press an
= Times.