to more southern regions.

Basil had returned alone--for the three, Basil, Norman, and Francois,
had taken different directions at setting out. This they had done, in
order to have as great a number of chances as possible of finding the
game. Norman came in a few minutes after, bearing a whole deer upon his
shoulders--a glad sight that was--and, a short interval having passed,
Francois's "hurrah" sounded upon their ears, and Francois himself was
seen coming up the valley loaded like a little donkey with two bunches
of large snow-white birds.

The camp now exhibited a cheering sight. Such a variety was never seen
even in the larder of a palace kitchen. The ground was strewed with
animals like a dead menagerie. There were no less than a dozen kinds
upon it!

The hare-soup was now quite ready, and was accordingly served up by
Lucien in the best style. Lucien had dried a fresh "grist" of the tea
leaves, and a cheering cup followed; and then the party all sat around
their log-fire, while each of them detailed the history of his
experience since parting with the others.

Francois was the first to relate what had befallen him.

CHAPTER XXXIII.

THE JERFALCON AND THE WHITE GROUSE.

"Mine," began Francois, "was a bird adventure, as you all see--though
what kind of birds I've shot, _I_ can't tell. One of them's a hawk, I'm
sure; but it's a _white_ hawk, and that I never saw before. The rest, I
suppose, are _white_ partridges. Everything appears to be white here.
What are they, Luce?"

"You are right about this first," answered Lucien, taking up one of the
birds which Francois had brought back with him, and which was white all
but a few spots of clove-brown upon its back. "This is a hawk, as you
may tell, by its appearance, or rather I should say a 'falcon,' for you
must know there is a difference."

"What difference?" demanded Francois, with some eagerness of manner.

"Why the principal difference is the formation of their beaks or bills.
The bills of the true falcons are stronger, and have a notch in the
lower mandible answering to a tooth in the upper one. Their nostrils,
too, are differently formed. But another point of distinction is found
in their habits. Both feed on warm-blooded animals, and neither will eat
carrion. In this respect the hawks and falcons are alike. Both take
their prey upon the wing; but herein lies the difference. The hawks
capture it by skimming along horizontally or obliquely, and pi