Show A WOODDUCKS TAMILY How the Mother Hell Hi Little line In I he Water A few mile from my home there Is I n lake that Nee for years been the abldInnplace of a colony ot wood I duck aoya n writer In Philadelphia Times I have spent hours alone the shores watching these prettiest of water wa-ter fowls The wood duck has one peculiarity pe-culiarity not posoeoel l by other members mem-bers of tho duck family It builds Us homo high up In the cavity of name decnjol limb usually ono that juts out over Iho water The egg from croon to thirteen In number aro creamy white In color HotiMLeepIng Is I begun In May and Ibo young are ready to leave the nest early In Juno I was curlon la know how the little ducks roach Ibo water from their lofty homes I had often seen them when hardly clear of their shells swimming about with their mother and fell convinced con-vinced that they never could have left home unaided Ono bright Juno morning morn-ing fortune favored me I had rowed along Iho lako shore to pay a visit to a 1 houseful of noisy redwing blackbirds black-birds My boat was lying motlonlesi among Ibo tall eat tslla that fringed the shore of the lake HmlJenly I heard A loud splash bohlnd mo and turning to look I saw on the water a 1 short distant dis-tant away just choking the spray front her wings a female wooQ duck and near her two tiny yellow balls ao small that they resembled water Illlles floating on the surface Tho old bird took wing hovered and circled above her babies for n few minutes and then flew to a cavity In a tall tree a 1 short distance away In a 1 short time the male bin arrayed In the handsomest of plumage Joined his mate Then for a few minutes I could hoar a soft cooIng I coo-Ing noise which reminded mo ot n husband hus-band I and wife discussing some Important Im-portant point relative to Iho welfare of their children Tho cooing soon slopped and the mother appeared In the doorway of her home Then she dropped towards Iho water at n slight ancle As her breast struck tho water she Immediately dived and where her body had been I was surprised to sea two little ducklings swimming about as unconcerned as If they had been traveling trav-eling In the water for years Tho routine rou-tine ot lying to Iho neat was repented four times In rapid succession and each time It rraulted In an addition ot two la tho family In the water which kept growing until It numbered twelve Then tho mother duck swam out In the lake followed 1 by her brool while tho male I bird brought up the rear of tho procvulon acting no doubt us n guard and protector |