One day, as I was traversing the woods to view my bird-traps, looking into the underwood among the great trees on my right hand, I saw a wood-hen (a bird I used to call so, from its resemblance in make to our English poultry) come out of a little thicket. I know not whether my rustling or what had disturbed it; but I let her pass, and she ran away before me. When she was fairly out of sight, I stepped up, and found she had a nest and sixteen eggs there. I exactly marked the place, and taking away one of the eggs, I broke it, at some distance from the nest, to see how forward they were; and I had no sooner broke the shell but out came a young chicken. I then looked into the nest again, and taking up more of the eggs, I found them all just splintered in the shell, and ready for hatching. I had immediately a desire to save them, and bring them up tame; but I was afraid if I took them away before they were hatched, and a little strengthened under the hen, they would all die; so I let them remain till next day. In the meanwhile I prepared some small netting of such a proper size as I conceived would do, and with this I contrived, by fastening it to stakes which I fixed in the ground, to surround the nest, and me on the outside of it. All the while I was doing this, the hen did not stir, so that I thought she had either been absent when I came, or had hatched and gone off with the young ones. As to her being gone I was under no concern; for I had no design to catch her, but only to confine the chickens within my net if they were hatched. But, however, I went nearer, and peeping in, found she sat still, squeezing herself as flat to the ground as she could. I was in twenty minds whether to take her first, and then catch the chickens, or to let her go off, and then clap upon them; but as I proposed to let her go, I thought if she would sit still till I had got the chickens, that would be the best way; so I softly kneeled down before her, and sliding my hand under her, I gently drew out two, and put them in a bag I had in my left hand. I then dipped again and again, taking two every turn; but going a fourth time, as I was bringing out my prize, the hen jumped up, flew out, and made such a noise that, though I the minute before saw six or seven more chicks in a lump where she had sat, and kept my eye upon them, yet before I could put the last two I had got into my bag, these were all gone, and in three hours' search I could not find one of them, though I was sure they could not pass my net, and must be within the compass of a small room, my toils enclosing no more. After tiring myself with looking for them, I marched home with those eight I had got.