1 66 THE FRIENDSHIP OF NATURE 



reappeared the same day as the swal- 

 lows, continued to forage in the pas- 

 tures, and daily augmented their hosts. 

 After the silence of late August, even 

 their harsh cry is not disagreeable, but 

 rather suggests that Nature's doors, so 

 long open to sunshine and summer, 

 though reluctant to close, are trying 

 their rusty hinges. There is something 

 quite exciting as, after much fussing 

 and shifting, a flock of grackles settle 

 down on the maples, and thence to the 

 ground. These birds are extremely 

 wary of alighting on any species of 

 evergreen, and in this are a rare excep- 

 tion. I have watched them year after 

 year, and though the place is sur- 

 rounded by pines, spruces, and cedars, 

 the birds seldom more than brush them 

 in passing. The sun develops a won- 

 derful iridescence in their sombre 

 coats. They appear coal-black from 



