The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1880-05-01

ping toward where the boat was drawn,
up on the rocky beach, Jan following,
with the basket and big bag on his arm.
Lifting little Use into the boat, Jan
rowed across the narrow strip of water
separating the island from the main
land.
The sun was yet high, although it
was nearly eight o'clock in the evening,
and as they approached the island they
fioated amid whole flocks of the elder
brakes, shining white in the sunlight,
plunging and tapping, and sending the
spray sparkling high in the air.
"Now, Ilse," said Jan, after tying
his boat to a stone, selling to my back
and I'll be your pony" and climbing
the path that wound over and about the
ridge of low lava cliffs which ran
through the length of the island, he
went galloping across the fiat on the
farther side.
All! here was sight fit to set any
Yankee boys heart fluttering! The
very ground was covered with ducks,
each on its own nest; and it would have
been difficult to walk about without
treading upon their great brown backs;
for the birds were very tame and would
not stir at JAMS approach, and would
even allow him to take the eggs and
down from the nests without seeming
in the least disturbed.
Hitherto, they had given the boy
much trouble in laying about in any
spot they chose and in places where the
eggs frequently were broken, and where
the down was matted and spoiled with
the yelks of the broken eggs.
To remedy the evil, he had set him
self to work before the laying season
began, and with good-sized stones had
built little Enclosures, about a foot and
half square and one foot high, on the
southern or most sheltered part of the
island. He then had gathered moss
from bog little back from the shore,
on the main land, and boating it across
to the island, had filled these squares
half-full with the moss and formed it
into shapely nests.
The ducks had taken to them Won
derfully, though some of the younger
and more timid ones would still crawl
far into the crevices between the rocks,
where it was impossible to get the
down and eggs without the assistance
of " hook" which Jan always carried
with him-a pole three OF four feet long
with curved iron at tie end.
The method of obtaining the eggs
and down, though profitable, would
seem to you very cruel. 1t is this:
After lining her nest with the soft down
from her body, the eider-duck lays
from five to seven greenish-brown eggs.
No sooner are they laid than she is
taken from her nest and it's contents
coniscated. Again the duck plucks
her down to line the nest anew, aGd
continues laying-this time not more
than two or three eggs. But her peace
is soon disturbed, and she is once more
left with an empty nest.
By this time the down on her own
body has become nearly or quite ex-
hausted, and she calls upon her mate to
assist, which he does, plucking his
breast amidst loud quackings at the
cruelty and injustice of the whole thing.
Now, indeed, the elder must be left
to lay the remaining eggs. and pursue
her maternal instincts in quiet, for if
the nest should again be disturbed, it
would be abandoned by the discouraged
pair for spot on some other island.
Jan went from nest to nest removing
the ducks, and filling his basket and
bag, carefully notching the stake of
dwarf birch (BetuIG md1aG) which was
driven down beside each nest to indicate
the number of times it had been rifled;
for the older ducks begin to lay earlier
in the season than the younger ones,
and SO the owner OF the egg-var has to
know the history of each nest.
As his load grew heavier and more
difficult to carry, he sat little Use upon
a large, flat, lava rock, bidding her not
to get down while he went his rounds to
the farther end of the island, where the
shyer ducks, disdaining all his attempts
to tame them, and lure them to COM
Portable homes, had crept into some
large crevices, depositing their eggs and
down far beyond the reach of JAMS
arm.
Scarcely had he dragged the eggs out
with his hook and laid them in the
basket, and stuffed the down into the
bag-which, though almost as light as
air, assumed enormous proportions, and
was as elastic as rubber ball-when
suddenly he heard great cutlery from
the ducks, and saw them all rise from
their nests and 60 tapping, Kissing, and
quacking toward the water, beneath
which they all plunged in great tumult,
crying and splashing.
The next moment huge sea-eagle,
circling low over the island, swooped
down toward the red hooded baby on
the rock.
Dropping basket and bag, Jan ran to-
ward them, swinging his hook and
shouting wildly.
Clutchin9 the little girls clothes with
his talons, the eagle succeeded in drag
ging her off the rock, and was now flap
ping laboriously as if to carry her to-
ward the beach. Her piteous cries of
"Jan! Oh, Jann' were muf1ied by the
broad wings of the eagle.
AS Jan came close up to them, he
dashed his hook at the fierce-lookino
bird, which loosed its hold, and lightly
lifting itself a few feet, scared so close
ly above his head, that Jan could hear
its great beak snap close beside his ear.
Selling little Uses arm, the boy made
off with her over the difficult ground.
stopping every few steps to beat off the
eagle, now wrathfully diving and flap
ping upon his head, and almost stun
1. Il