He spoke of the cattle that came to no herder’s call,
Roaming the fenceless prairie from springtime to fall.
A shot from his rifle laid low the king of the herd—
When, hark! the sharp cry of a circling and hovering bird!
What did it mean? The hunter drew in his rein,
And leaped to the ground, where dead lay the lord of the plain!
Stilled was the beating heart, and glazed were the eyes;
The fluttering bird circled higher, and sharper her cries;
While, finer and fainter, yet many, and all as keen,
Came cries from below, as in answer. What could it mean?