284 WITH THE U. S. NATURALISTS 



they do not know it, but he may be assured that 

 a flood of gratitude would be his, if his feathered 

 chums knew how to show it. Any boy who knows 

 what the birds need, who knows how easy it is to 

 give it to them, and who does not help to make his 

 little friends happy, is scarcely worthy the name 

 of an American boy. 



''No one, who has not tried it, has any idea how 

 easy it is to surround one 's home with wild song- 

 sters. There are only four things to do. Give 

 them food. Give them water. Give them pro- 

 tection. Give them places to build their nests. 

 It will repay you — if you are of that mean spirit 

 which deems that nothing should be done without 

 pay. The birds will keep your garden free of in- 

 sects, they will snap up any uneasy mosquito that 

 dares to buzz around before bedtime and they will 

 reward you with their sunny presence and song 

 without further labor on your part. There is not 

 a living creature which responds to kindness so 

 quickly as a bird. 



'*It is a mistake to suppose that birds are wild. 

 They are naturally tame and friendly with Man. 

 They learned, and not without reason, to be afraid 

 of him; they can learn, just as easily, to be quite 

 at home with him. What's more, they will chum 



