. Nestlings of forest and marsh . ir scarcely able to balance on their un-certain little legs, they will meet any advancewith a defiant peck. For several weeksthey keep close to the father night and day,learning all his sly tricks and villanousways. I have seen a whole family waitingon a tree for the tiny owners of a yellow189 NESTLINGS OF FOREST AND MARSH warblers nest to leave it unguarded. As ifthey knew their deeds were evil, their everylook and act told of knavery, quite differentfrom their usual gallant bearing. That nightI came upon them sleeping in a bunch in thesame tree,
. Nestlings of forest and marsh . ir scarcely able to balance on their un-certain little legs, they will meet any advancewith a defiant peck. For several weeksthey keep close to the father night and day,learning all his sly tricks and villanousways. I have seen a whole family waitingon a tree for the tiny owners of a yellow189 NESTLINGS OF FOREST AND MARSH warblers nest to leave it unguarded. As ifthey knew their deeds were evil, their everylook and act told of knavery, quite differentfrom their usual gallant bearing. That nightI came upon them sleeping in a bunch in thesame tree, and felt certain that with themorning light there would be four less babyyellow-birds in the world. And so it is,that while I can almost hate the jays fortheir faults, I entirely love them for theirbeautiful coloring and their one virtue offamily love. How much better are we thanthey ? Or, rather, are we not much worse,since we kill for love of killing ? Too oftenwe have not even the blue jays one virtueof loyalty to our own. 190. CARPENTERS, MASONS, ANDMINERS A birds nest. Mark it well within, tool had he that wrought, no knife to cut,No nail to fix, no bodkin to insert,No glue to join ; his little beak was yet how neatly finished ! What nice handWith every implement and means of art,And twenty years apprenticeship, to boot,Could make me such another ? Hurdis. THE chimney swift is an anomalyamong our native birds, constructinga nest that is easily first in point of beautyand workmanship ; laying eggs so perfect inshape and translucent in texture as to bestartlingly like pearls, it hides all this loveli-ness in the smutty depths of an old what utilitarian principle of evolutionhave the habits of this bat-like bird been somodified that it has forsaken the sweet, pureair of the forest for a sooty home in thedwellings of man ? Is it for protection fromthe ravages of squirrels and owls ? But191 NESTLINGS OF FOREST AND MARSH every thrifty housewife wage
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, booksubjectbirds, bookyear1902
