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However, some birds sang and fluttered in the foliage, and appeared very timid, as if man had inspired them with an instinctive fear. Among others, Herbert described, in a marshy part of the forest, a bird with a long pointed beak, closely resembling the king-fisher, but its plumage was not fine, though of a metallic brilliancy. "That must be a jacamar," said Herbert, trying to get nearer.

"Well, King-Fisher, as popular opinion is against me, I'll set you down again, and nurse my poor scalp," and down went the white bundle again to the floor, Phronsie going back to her post as nurse. "There's been a terrible scheme worked up since you were out, sir," announced Joel to the old gentleman. "Hey what's that?" demanded Mr. King, staring at Polly.

The far cry of the king-fisher, and idly clacking wheels of carts rolling down from Dalgrothe Mountain, accented the drowsy melody of the afternoon. The wild mustard glowed so like a golden carpet, that the destroying hand of the anxious farmer seemed of the blundering tyranny of labour.

A brilliant king-fisher took the gunwale of the boat as the "base of his operations," and I amused myself all the morning, by watching him catch fish; when one approached the surface he descended with a splash which I imagined would have driven every fish far away, emerging quickly and very seldom without a capture, which he turned head downwards and swallowed alive and whole, then looked round with a laughable air of self-satisfaction.

'Oh, well, said I, 'if you want to act contrary about it, I'll go up to the King-Fisher crossing, only three miles above here. I've almost got time to cross yet this evening. "Then he wilted and inquired, 'Do you think I can cross if it swims them any?

There are few men, I suppose, so fortunate as to have enjoyed a country breeding, who do not recall scenes like this, who do not remember a half-holiday, at least, spent in the bed of a summer stream, and at the feet of scanty cataracts, making fierce attacks on water snakes, watching lizards lying among the stones of an old raceway, creeping up, hat in hand, to a gauze-winged devil's needle that shivered on a sunny point of rock, and looked as if it might be the ghost of a humming-bird, starting to mark the sudden flight and hear the chattering cry of the king-fisher as he darted through the shadows and disappeared, and noting the slim-legged wagtail, racing backward and forward upon the border of the stream.

"Come, Alexia." "Baby ought to have a Christmas Tree," said Phronsie slowly. "Ah King-Fisher, how is that? Do you want a Christmas Tree?" Jasper dropped to all-fours by the side of the white bundle in the center of the library rug, as he propounded the momentous question. The Baby plunged forward and buried both fat hands in the crop of brown hair so suddenly brought to his notice.

Soon afterwards, a native brought us a king-fisher with an enormously long tail, such as no other king-fisher possesses. It was the racket-tailed king-fisher. It had been caught sleeping in the hollow of the rocky banks of a neighbouring stream.

At this time a king-fisher made a noise in some trees near, and Otoo remarked, "That is the Eatua," evidently looking on it as a good omen. The body was now moved away to the foot of one of the small Morais, the two bundles of cloth being placed on the Morai at its head and the tufts of feathers at its feet, the priests surrounding the body and the people gathering in closer.

They are trying to teach the children something, and half the instructors don't know a blue jay from a king-fisher, a beech leaf from an elm, or a wasp from a hornet." "Well, do you?" anxiously inquired Mrs. Comstock. "Indeed, I do!" laughed Elnora, "and several other things beside. When Freckles bequeathed me the swamp, he gave me a bigger inheritance than he knew.