Eric Flint - Grantville Gazette.Volume XIII

"Never mind Pete, he's more bark than bite. But I seen him give a weasel the spur once, cut the varmint's throat wide open! He earns his keep. Now, let's find Matilda." They walked over to the water's edge where a motley collection of drakes and hens milled about, made up of assorted domestic ducks, semi wild mallard ducks and those that were clearly a mix containing varying degrees of both. They walked right into the middle of the congregation, the ducks only acknowledging their presence by stepping casually out of their path.

"Matilda! Tilda, Tilda!" Willie Ray called, followed by a sharp whistle. From the shore a very large and obviously well fed hen waddled toward them. She was a mutt all right; she had the markings of a mallard hen but instead of brown and white they were in shades of dark and light gray. Her beak and feet were a very un-mallard shade of blue. Pam had never seen a goofier looking bird and had to smile outright.

"This here is Matilda, mother to the world. She's a good old gal; poor thing's eggs haven't hatched for a few years. She has adopted everything from goose goslings to a Labrador retriever puppy-good thing they're swimmers! Damn dog still thinks he's a duck. She ought to be right pleased to have some ducklings again. Here Pam, let me have that bag."

Pam handed him her peeping cargo a little reluctantly, but the old leathery hands were as gentle as a cloud. He bent over with a small grunt to hold the rucksack open on the ground, lying on its side. Matilda hurried over to look inside, waddling so fast she almost took a nose dive. Pam laughed aloud.

"Watch this, Pam." Willie Ray grinned up at her.

Matilda stuck her head right into the bag. A gentle grunting quack could be heard. Suddenly the ducklings poured out of the bag to form a huddle around Matilda's big blue feet. Matilda put her head down in amongst them so they could all get a good dose of each other's scent. Then she looked up at Willie Ray and gave a quack that was surely filled with pleasure and pride. "Thanks for bringing them to me; I'll take it from here!" Spreading her wings gently she herded them over to the water. The ducklings followed along eagerly and were shortly feasting on duckweed, a happy and hungry line paddling behind their new surrogate mother. Pam could sense the waves of relief coming from their tiny bodies. Some people didn't think animals felt emotions the way humans do, but she had always strongly disagreed with that notion. She felt her eyes moistening with joy. Oh hell, now I'm going to cry.

Willie Ray watched the scene with serene pleasure. He took a look inside the rucksack to make sure all the ducks had been released. Satisfied, he handed it back to Pam.

"Well, that's better. Those little guys were sure scared shitless."

Pam nodded. "Yeah, they probably were." She sniffled happily.

"Darn right! Just look in your bag!"

Pam still had a few more hours to wait for Gerbald to finish his day time job. Willie Ray invited her to have another cup of coffee so they returned to the front porch. Sitting there watching the grass grow and the farm dogs playing Pam could almost forget about the Ring of Fire. This was still "home" after all, a chunk of the West Virginia she had grown up in. She had traveled a little up-time, been to New York and down to Florida, made it to Montreal, Canada, but unlike so many young people in the hills itching to escape their rural beginnings, Pam had been happy going to college nearby, then taking a job only twenty miles from home. It was a good place, and it was still good, even beneath the skies of history book Europe.

"Pam, I've heard about what you are doing with the school. That nature program is a fine idea. Kids should feel connected to the land and get to know the wild things around them. I think you're doing a real good thing."

"Thanks, Willie Ray. I'm glad to hear you say so. Sometimes I wonder if I've gotten a little nuts about it."

"Well, it's a good kind of nuts if it is. Say, bring those kids out here some time, you can visit your baby ducks and show the kids all them birds that are eating up my corn patch. There are these little blue ones that are real hungry buggers, never saw them before."

"Those are bluethroats! Blaukehlchen. They're one of the native German birds that have taken a liking to Grantville and my sunflower seeds in particular. And bringing the kids out here would be great! I really appreciate you helping me out today."

"Pleasure's mine. Another thing, I read your proposals on protected species and a national bird. I want you to know I support both of them. I'm going to do what I can to get them passed, especially the protected species part. I figure any critters which came through that thing with us deserve to live as much as we do, and I'm not the only one who thinks so."

Pam slumped back in her chair. It had been a year since she had sent that proposal in and she hadn't tried to follow up on it. Apparently it still existed in governmental limbo. "That is really good to hear. I thought for sure everyone would just think I'm a dingbat, worrying about birds when we're still trying to figure out how we're going to just survive in this time."

"Well Pam, you know we are starting an industrial revolution here. I'm hoping we do it with a lot more compassion for both people and nature than happened in the old history. Might as well start now teaching folks to value nature and protect it. Seems like we have a second chance at that."

"Willie Ray, I would never have guessed you were an environmentalist."

"Now, don't start calling names! You'll tarnish my reputation as a red neck hillbilly! I'm a farmer and so I understand that we need to live in balance with nature. I've been joking about those birds getting into my corn; well, they eat some, but I still have plenty left. The thing is, those birds are also eating insects, and insects do a lot more damage to a crop than birds do. It's a good balance. I want to keep those birds around. There's nothing like seeing a flock of red birds in the trees, that's somethin' well worth protecting. My mother was quite fond of them; she used to feed them sometimes, called them 'red birds' instead of 'cardinals' too, a lot of folks did. Anyway, I'm not sure if they're going to make it as a national bird, although they were a fine choice as West Virginia's state bird, and I'd hate to see them all made into hats before they had a chance to build their numbers here."

"A lot of new Americans are already mostly sold on protecting red birds thanks to my friends spreading the word. Right now I'm mostly worried about the up-time game birds, like the ducks. I'm hoping that at least the original Grantvillers will stop hunting them, but I know it's hard to tell folks not to shoot something they like the taste of."

"Well, I think I can help with that. I know more than a few members of the UMWA, including the Prime Minister." He grinned widely "Whoever thought a hick like me would keep such fine company? Anyway, I'll see if I can get them boys squared away on the issue. Law or not, if the UMWA is behind it it's as good as law in these parts." He paused for a moment. "You know, I'm not sure some of them would know a wood duck from a snow goose-if it's a bird with webbed feet they'll shoot it. Do you think you could show them some pictures or something? That wild bunch of gun nuts could use a dose of nature program themselves."

Pam stopped her coffee cup in mid sip. Pictures… "Willie Ray, you are a genius!" She jumped up, startling Willie Ray which caused him to stand up as well. "That's the best idea ever, I'm going to get right to work on it! I'll see you soon, thanks Willie Ray!" Pam bestowed an enthusiastic hug which almost knocked the old farmer over and then went down the porch stairs two at a time. Willie Ray leaned on the rail watching her run up the drive. "You're the best, Willie Ray. A real genius!" she called back as she reached the road.