He was prepared to wade, to
swim if necessary. He hoped that it would not be necessary, for in
April water is generally inclined to be chilly. Of keepers he had up
till now seen no sign. Once he had heard the distant bark of a dog. It
seemed to come from far across the stream and he had not troubled about
it.
In the midst of the bushes on the bank stood a tree. It was not tall
compared to the other trees of the Dingle, but standing alone as it did
amongst the undergrowth it attracted the eye at once. Barrett, looking
at it, saw something which made him forget water-wagtails for the
moment. In a fork in one of the upper branches was a nest, an enormous
nest, roughly constructed of sticks. It was a very jerry-built
residence, evidently run up for the season by some prudent bird who
knew by experience that no nest could last through the winter, and so
had declined to waste his time in useless decorative work. But what
bird was it? No doubt there are experts to whom a wood-pigeon's nest is
something apart and distinct from the nest of the magpie, but to your
unsophisticated amateur a nest that is large may be anything--rook's,
magpie's, pigeon's, or great auk's.
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