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 THE CONDOR VoL. IX mosquitoes harassed us constantly, while the perspiration kept dripping from our bodies, till, after three or four hours in the blind, our tongues were parched from thirst, and with loss of strength and patience, we were compelled to quit for the day. But for all we suffered there was a fascination in watching these wild birds going and coming fearlessly almost within arm's reach. For three different days we worked in the blind trying to picture the gulls in their characteristic attitudes of flight. These gulls are masters in the air. I have watched by the hour birds similar to these following along in the wake of a steamer, but had never before had such chances with a camera. Often they Pise, resting apparently motionless on out- stretched wings. It is a difficult feat. A small bird can't do it. A sparrow hawk can only poise by the rapid beating of his wings. The gull seems to hang per- fectly still; yet there is never an iustant when the wings and tail are not con- stantly adjusted to meet the different air currents. Just as in shooting the rapids in a canoe, the paddle must be adjusted every moment to meet the different eddies, currents and whirlpools, and it is never the same in two different instants. A gull by the perfect adjustment of its body, without a single flap of the wings, makes headway straight in the teeth of the wind. I saw one retain a perfect equilibrium in a stiff breeze, and at the same time reach forxvard and scratch his ear. Even tho we bad good chauces to picture the flying gulls, yet wing-shooting with a camera is such a difficult feat, that several dozen plates yielded but few good negatives. The short interval of time during which it takes a flying bird to sweep across the angle of visiou of the lens generally gives the photographer only part of a second's time to aim, focus and shoot. A flight picture well focused and clear and satisfactory in its nmke-up is the record of a rare shot and a great ninny misses; perhaps it is more often a good guess, but it is rarely if ever nmde without a great deal of practice. 2rortlald, Oreffon. EXPERIENCES WITH THE DOTTED CANYON WREN BY WRIGHT M. PIERCE T was the latter part of June, several years ago, that I happened to be on a camping trip over iu Coldwater Cauyon, which is sithated at the headwaters of the San Gabriel and which leads into Cattle Canyon, a branch of the right fork of the San Gabriel. Near the head of this beautifnl Coldwater Canyon we found a cabin, which was badly worn by the weather and rough treatment that it had received at the hands of campers. Here in this cabin, the sides of which were made of logs with wide cracks between them, we made camp. The few rough shakes which served as a roof would afford poor shelter from either rain or sun. This cabin is typical of the old miners' cabins which one comes across when trav- eling thru the mountain wilds of southern California; but vithin I found a little home that would not, I believe, be called typical of miners' cabins. This home was in an old dry-goods box which was suspended from the ceiling by baling wire. The box had evidently been used previously by campers as a