sense.

The dog followed the bailiff, and we followed the dog.

Arrived at the paling which surrounded the decoy, the dog sat
down to wait until he was wanted. The bailiff and the children
crouched behind the paling, and peeped through the outermost
dog-hole, which commanded a full view of the lake. It was a day
without wind; not a ripple stirred the surface of the water; the
soft gray clouds filled all the sky, and hid the sun from view.

We peeped through the hole in the paling. There were the wild
ducks--collected within easy reach of the decoy--placidly
dressing their feathers on the placid surface of the lake.

The bailiff looked at the dog, and made a sign. The dog looked at
the bailiff; and, stepping forward quietly, passed through the
hole, so as to show himself on the narrow strip of ground
shelving down from the outer side of the paling to the lake.

First one duck, then another, then half a dozen together,
discovered the dog.

A new object showing itself on the solitary scene instantly
became an object of all-devouring curiosity to the ducks. The
outermost of them began to swim slowly toward the strange
four-footed creature, planted motionless on the bank. By twos and
threes, the main body of the waterfowl gradually followed the
advanced guard. Swimming nearer and nearer to the dog, the wary
ducks suddenly came to a halt, and, poised on the water, viewed