. Bird-land echoes; . r bird-music is ever heard than theoccasional outbursts of ecstasy from a hundred ormore of these sparrows gathered closely together inthe thicket. It is during pleasant February daysusually, but sometimes in March, if the season islate, and even in April, that these birds may beheard; but in the first-named month I havemet them in greatest numbers. The first frogsof the season having peeped their shrill call andsounded their rattling cry, we naturally look aboutus for all sorts of signs of spring, and fancy warmer The Inspiring Sparrows. 39 weather is near at hand, thoug
. Bird-land echoes; . r bird-music is ever heard than theoccasional outbursts of ecstasy from a hundred ormore of these sparrows gathered closely together inthe thicket. It is during pleasant February daysusually, but sometimes in March, if the season islate, and even in April, that these birds may beheard; but in the first-named month I havemet them in greatest numbers. The first frogsof the season having peeped their shrill call andsounded their rattling cry, we naturally look aboutus for all sorts of signs of spring, and fancy warmer The Inspiring Sparrows. 39 weather is near at hand, though we may have towait six weeks for it Such days are not sure tocome, but they generally do, and we are alwaysled astray by them ; and the foxie sparrows in thegreenbriers largely help us to our silly day-dreamsof the coming season. It is delightful fiction, never-theless, and we thank the jolly crew of the green-briers for their sham prophecy that spring is near athand. Nearly half a century ago I remember looking out. Snow-bird. of the window and seeing the yard covered withsnow. The sun was shining at the time, and overthe glittering surface of yard, fences, and the lowbox-bushes of the garden walk there were scores ofsnow-birds that at times scattered the dry flakes inhigh glee and to my infinite delight. I was allowedto toss handfuls of crumbs out of the window, andthen waited to see the birds come close to the houseand eat what I had thrown to them. It was my 40 Bird-Land Echoes. first lesson in ornithology. I have long since learnedthat this little sparrow, in spite of its name, is not aSJiow-hird in a literal sense. It comes to us early inOctober and is here, off and on, until the grassbegins to get green again, and sometimes later. Isay *off and on, for this trite expression bestdescribes the birds movements about my presenthome. They certainly follow the whim of the mo-ment and are not influenced by the weather, exceptmechanically, for a violent wind sweeping across th
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubjectbirds, bookyear1896
