young spoon-bill who had gone to her heart.
"And the young spoon-bill from over the river would come and stand a little way from Delilah under a tree with broad thick leaves. How fine was he to look upon, with his white feathers glistening like silver and his eyes of topaz!
"And Delilah was most adorable with feathers of soft, soft gray—a so soft gray that one, if one were human, would wish to rest one's forehead upon the fluffy down of her breast.
"Then he from over the river—his name was Gerald Spoon-bill—would say: 'Delilah, come with me over the river to the damp meadows, where there is a pool with a thousand pond-lilies, and fair blooms the way. We should be happy there, you and I.'
"But Delilah would say: 'Oh, go back over the river, Gerald Spoon-bill! You and
