hhawk
language to come across and get it; while the young birds, on their
part, stretched wings and necks hungrily and tried to whistle the fish
over to them, as one would call a dog across the street.

In the short interval that I was absent mother wiles and mother patience
had done their good work. The young were already flying well. Now they
were out for their first lesson in fishing, evidently; and I stopped
fishing myself, letting my bait sink into the mud--where an eel
presently tangled my hooks into an old root--to see how it was done. For
fishing is not an instinct with Ismaques, but a simple matter of
training. As with young otters, they know only from daily experience
that fish, and not grouse and rabbits, are their legitimate food. Left
to themselves, especially if one should bring them up on flesh and then
turn them loose, they would go straight back to the old hawk habit of
hunting the woods, which is much easier. To catch fish, therefore, they
must be taught from the first day they leave the nest. And it is a
fascinating experience for any man to watch the way they go about it.

The young ospreys flew heavily in short irregular circles, scanning the
water with their inexperienced eyes for their first strike. Over them
wheeled the mother bird on broad, even wings, whistling directions to
the young neophytes, who would presently be initiated into the old sweet
mysteries of going a-fishing. Fish were plenty enough; but that means
nothing to a fishhawk, who must see his game reasonably near the surface
before making his swoop. There was a good jump on the lake, and the sun
shone brightly into it. Between the glare and the motion on the surface
the young fishermen were having a hard time of it. Their eyes were not
yet quick enough to tell them when to swoop. At every gleam of silver in
the depths below they would stop short and cry out: _Pip!_ "there he
is!" _Pip, pip!_ "here goes!" like a boy with his first nibble. But a
short, clear whistle from the mother stopped them ere they had begun to
fall; and they would flap up to her, protesting eagerly that they could
catch that fellow, sure, if she would only let them try.

As they wheeled in over me on their way down the lake, one of the
youngsters caught the gleam of my pile of chub among the rocks. _Pip,
ch'weee!_ he whistled, and down they came, both of them, like rockets.
They were hungry; here at hand were fish galore; and they had not
noticed me at all, si