384 



THE WESTERN WOOD PEWEE. 



THE prey of gentle melancholy and the heir to gloom is this Pewee of 

 the West. The day, indeed, is garish. The leaves of the fragrant cotton- 

 woods glance and shimmer nn<ler the ardent sun: while the wavelets of the 

 lake, tired of their morning romp, are sighing sleepily in the root-laced cham- 

 bers of the overhanging shore. The vision of the distant hills is blurred by 



heat pulsations; the song of birds 

 has ceased and the very caddis- 

 flies are taking refuge from the 

 glare. The sun is dominant and 

 all Nature yields drowsy allegi- 

 ance to his sway. All but Pewee. 

 He avoids the sun, indeed, but 

 from a sheltered perch he lifts a 

 voice of protest, "Dear Mc!" 



It seems uncalled-for. The 

 bird does not appear to be un- 

 happ}'. Flycatching is good, and 

 the Pewee cocks his head quite 

 cheerfully as he returns to his 

 perch after a successful foray. 

 But, true to some hidden impulse, 

 as you gaze upon him, he swells 

 with approaching effnrt, his man- 

 dibles part, and he utters that 

 doleful, appointetl sound, dear 

 inc. His utterance has all the 

 precision and finality of an as- 

 signed part in an orchestra. It is 

 as if we were watching a single 

 player in a symphony of Nature 

 whose other strains were too sub- 

 tle for our ears. The player 

 seems inattentive to the music, he 

 eyes the ceiling languidly, he notes 

 a flashing diamond in the second box, he picks a flawed string absently, but at 

 a moment he seizes the bow, gives the cello a \'icious double scrape, dear iiic, 

 and his task is done for that time. 



The Western \\'oo(l Pewee is a late migrant, reaching the miilille of the 

 State aliont the 15th of Alay, and the northern border from five to ten days 

 later. It is found wherever there is timber, but is partial to half-open situa- 

 tions, and is much more in evidence East than West. It is especially fond 

 of pine groves and rougli brusliv hillsides near water. Cannon Hill, in 



WESTERN WOOD PEWEE. 



