Birds i6i 



said Edna, excitedly, as she opened one of the cages 

 and let a v/ood thrush out. 



*'Why not?" replied William. *'It might not do 

 any good, and still it might. There is no harm in 

 trying." 



So they fastened a tiny message to a number of 

 the birds in such a way that they would not be in- 

 jured or impeded in their flight, and turned them 

 loose with the hope that somebody would get a 

 chance to read it. 



There was a catbird that had been Edna's special 

 pet, singing for her while she worked and making a 

 terrible fuss when she paid too much attention to 

 Snowball. When he was turned loose, he lingered 

 near for several davs and would come to Edna's 

 window in the morning and wake her with a cheer- 

 ful song. Finally, he too disappeared, impelled by 

 the uncontrollable instinct that drove him north- 

 ward. 



But there were many, many birds entirely new to 

 the boys, and it was exciting and pleasant work to 

 observe their habits in the woods and fields and to 

 study them at close range in the bamboo cages. Af- 

 ter the nests were empty they were also collected 

 for specimens. 



The hummingbirds were a source of continual en- 



