12 THE BIRD OF THE MORNING. 



legs, or lay claim to more than the promise of 

 a tail, he displaj^s the brave, self-reliant spirit 

 of his race. He utters loud, defiant calls, pecks 

 boldly at an intruding hand, and stands — as 

 well as he is able — staring one full in the face 

 without blinking, asserting by his attitude and 

 by every bristling feather that he is a living 

 being, — he too has an " inalienable right to life, 

 liberty, etc. ; " and, in the depths of your soul, 

 you cannot gainsay him. If you have already, 

 in his helpless infancy, made him captive, the 

 blush of shame arises, and you involuntarily 

 throw wide the prison doors. 



To return to my study ; when the maple 

 leaves turned in the fall, and the little home in 

 the tree was left empty and desolate, I had it 

 brought down to examine. It was a curious 

 and remarkably well-made nest, being a perfect 

 cup of clay, a little thicker around the top, well 

 moulded, and covered inside and out with dry 

 grass. This snug cottage of clay has been the 

 scene of some of the sweetest experiences of all 

 lives, great as well as small. For the happiness 

 it has held I will preserve it : and thus moral- 

 izing I placed it on a bracket in memory of a 

 delightful study of the Bird of the Morning. 



