Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1875-08-06

TO The Ed: o.; the !.e Press and Times
had tho p!easgr.. la~t week. OF boy inr
the hu>ntautv of Mr.. W 4 Macrde ct
Coicr,-ies. hose large lar.n lies on The
Miuuo>k riter, q. milu above the lielneher2
hrid-r. liz house j. un point al high
liud RAINING down TO 1he rive-, Just wher'-
1t max one of It's graceful bends For
some yfar- past To river, right here. ut
high water has heeI cutting away the OPP
pOsite bank and many acres Of tne meadow
land from the farm OF Mr.. L. Goodrich, of
Burlington, and dtpOslting them on the
opposite shore in the form of low sand
beach. nearly hundred rods in length.
On the morning of July 22d, about sun
rise. We were AL aroused by a great shout
OF the hay makers Just getting out to begin
the day 5 work. The shout was caused by
the sight Of huge white bird flying slow
ly up the river and alighting on the point
of this beach nearest Mr.. Mscrae's house,
and perhaps thirty or forty rods from It.
The men affirmed that the stretch of the
birds wings was eight or ten feet. one en-
thusiastic fellow declaring it must be twelve
feet. and its height,as he stood on the sand,
four feet. The bird walked slowly up the
beach with a stately tread, looking down
right and left. and now and then thrusting
its long Deck down as if to gobble up some
frog or clam or fish for its breakfast. We
watched II carefully with our naked eyes
and through good telescope till it passed
over nearly the whole length Of the beach,
and. by turn Of the bank, out of sight.
Then | took a boat and crossed over and up
the river, hoping to get nearer and better
view of it, but II had taken flight and we
saw it no more. | traced its foot prints in
the sand through the whole course of its
L. 10
tracks about twelve inches apart, and every
where just in the edge of the water, vary
ing from one inch 10 six inches deep. The
toes were long and slim and the claws short.
The foot was not webbed. The hind toe
was on level with the forward toes, and
made a straight line with the middle toe,
all sinking into the sand alike. The hind
toe was apparently three-iourths as long
as the middle one, the outer and inner toes
nearly equal and only little shorter than
the middle toe. The length of the track,
from the point OF the middle to the point
OF the hind toe. was six inches. The width
OF the track, from the point of the outer
70 that OF the inner toe, four and a-half
inches. From cur best observation the
bird was throughout a pure, brillIan, white.
except the bill and the legs, which were very
dark, perhaps black.
VA examining what books | have ON
birds. To determine, II possible, it, name.
l lind 1t Is not 4 crane, as my friend Rand
thought, since the crane has the hind
toe raised above the level of the Others. Il
Is doubtless Heron, but of what species
am not certain. Thompson. in his Birds
OF Vermont, has no description that describes
our bird. Samuels. in his Birds of New Eng
land, describes the " Snowy Heron" as all
white, length twenty-iour inches, wing ten.
also a. having fine, long. plumy feathers on
the neck, breast and rump, the last reach
ing beyond the tail and turned upward.
Our brd mus, have been longer. and VIC
did BOT notice the plumcs
Prot :. +. Bard in the ninth v,,lnue.
Pacific L. L. report, describes the " Snowy
Heron, also iue' - " hite Heron" AS pure
white, feet black. head smooth, length 80
incbes, wing - inches The full ieserip-
ton OF this bird appears 10 me to apply 20
our bird better than any other | can find.
IL Is SAID to inhabit the Southern portions
OF the United States struggling b. Massa-
shusetts Ii Is doubtless very rar bird in
Vermont.