"Now help me spread her out." He showed them how to proceed, and the net, about a dozen yards in length, was spread along the narrow spit of land, which was only about a foot wider than the net, at whose two ends was fixed a pole as spreader, to which lines were attached.
The net spread, the side nearest to the water was fastened down with pegs, so adjusted as to act as hinges upon which the apparatus would turn, while as soon as this was done Dave called for the mysterious-looking basket.
This being produced from the punt and opened was found to contain about a dozen stuffed peewits, which, though rough in their feathers, were very fair imitations of the real things.
These were stuck along the edge of the net outside and at either end.
"Now for the 'coys," cried Dave, and Tom brought the cage of unfortunate peewits, who had a painful duty to perform, that of helping to lead their free brethren into the trap that was being laid for them.
Each of these decoy-birds was quickly and cleverly tethered to a peg along the edge of the net upon the narrow strip of clear land, a string being attached to one leg so long as to give them enough freedom to flutter a little among the stuffed birds, which seemed to be feeding.
"There!" cried Dave, when all was ready; and at a short distance nothing was visible but the group of birds fluttering or quiescent, for the net was wonderfully like the ground in colour.

"There, she's ready now, my lads, so come along." He bade Dick thrust the punt along to the bed of reeds; and as the lad deftly handled the pole, Dave let out the line, which was so attached to the ends of the poles that a vigorous pull would drag the net right over.
It was quite a couple of hundred yards to the reeds, through which the punt was pushed till it and its occupants were hidden, when, having thrust down the pole as an anchor to steady the little vessel, the line was drawn tight so as to try whether it would act, and then kept just so tense as to be invisible beneath the water, and secured to the edge of the punt.
"That ought to bring them, lads," said Dave, with his eyes twinkling beneath his fox-skin cap, after beating a few reeds aside so that they could have a good view of where the unfortunate peewits fluttered at the pegs.
"But suppose they don't come ?" said Tom.

"I know if I was a piewipe I wouldn't be cheated by a few dummies and some pegged-down birds." "But then you are not a piewipe, only a goose," said Dick.
"Hist!" whispered Dave, and placing his fingers to his mouth he sent out over the grey water so exact an imitation of the green plover's cry that Dick looked at him in wonder, for this was something entirely new.
_Pee-eugh, pee-eugh, pee-eugh_! And the querulous cry was answered from a distance by a solitary lapwing, which came flapping along in a great hurry, sailed round and round, and finally dropped upon the little narrow island and began to run about.
"You won't pull for him, will you, Dave ?" whispered Dick.
Dave shook his head, and the boys watched as from time to time the man uttered the low mournful cry.
"Wonder what that chap thinks of the stuffed ones ?" whispered Dick.
"Why don't the live ones tell him it isn't safe ?" said Tom.
"Don't know; perhaps they're like old Tom Tallington," said Dick: "whenever they get into a mess they like to get some one else in it too." "You say that again and I'll hit you," whispered Tom, holding up his fist menacingly.
"Hist!" came from Dave, who uttered the imitation of the peewit's whistle again, and a couple more of the flap-winged birds came slowly over the grey-looking water, which to anyone else, with its patches of drab dry weeds and bared patches of black bog, would have seemed to be a terrible scene of desolation, whereas it was a place of enchantment to the boys.
"They come precious slowly," said Dick at last.

"I thought that there would have been quite a crowd of birds, like you see them sometimes.
Look at the old bald-heads, Tom." He pointed to a party of about half a dozen coots which came slowly out of the reeds and then sailed on again as if suspicious of all being not quite right.
Then there was another little flock of ducks streaming over the fen in the distance, and their cries came faintly as they dashed into the water, as if returning home after a long absence.
"There goes a her'n," whispered Tom, who was not very good at seeing birds and worse at telling what they were.
"'Tisn't," cried Dick; "it's only a grey crow." "If you two go on chattering like that we shall get no birds," said Dave sharply.

"What a pair o' ruck-a-toongues you are; just like two owd women!" "Well, but the birds are so long coming," said Dick; "I'm getting the cramp.