File:Wood folk at school (1903) (14783720532).jpg

Identifier: woodfolkatschool00long (find matches)
Title: Wood folk at school
Year: 1903 (1900s)
Authors: Long, William J. (William Joseph), 1867-1952
Subjects: Animal behavior Animals
Publisher: Boston, London, Ginn & Company
Contributing Library: The Library of Congress
Digitizing Sponsor: The Library of Congress

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oy taking his first dive. Heis out of sight for a full moment, while two waves raceover him, and I hold my breath waiting for him tocome up. Then he bursts out, sputtering and shakinghimself, and of course without his fish. As he rises heavily the mother, who has been circlingover him whistling advice and comfort, stops shortwith a single blow of her pinions against the air. Shehas seen the same fish, watched him shoot away underthe plunge of her little one, and now sees him glanc-ing up to the edge of the shoal where the minnowsare playing. She knows that the young pupils aregrowing discouraged, and that the time has come tohearten them. Chip, chip ! — watch, I 11 show you,she whistles — Cheeeep ! with a sharp up-slide at theend, which I soon grow to recognize as the signal tostrike. At the cry she sets her wings and shootsdownward with strong, even plunge, strikes a wavesquarely as it rises, passes under it, and is out on theother side gripping a big chub. The little ones follow
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! &v\t*t£^%\>\v GRIPPING HIS FISH AND PIP-PIPPINGHIS EXULTATION A School for Little Fishermen 53 her, whistling their delight, and telling her that per-haps now they will go back to the nest and take alook at the fish before they go on with their fishing.Which means, of course, that they will eat it and goto sleep perfectly satisfied with the good fun of fishing;and then lessons are over for the day. The mother, however, has other thoughts in her wisehead. She knows that the little ones are not yet tired,only hungry; and that there is much to teach thembefore the chub stop shoaling and fishhawks must beoff to the coast. She knows also that they have thusfar missed the two things she brought them out tolearn: to take a fish always as he comes up; and tohit a wave always on the front side, under the crest.Gripping her fish tightly, she bends in her slow flightand paralyzes it by a single blow in the spine fromher hooked beak. Then she drops it back into thewhitecaps, where, jump

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