nize him in his sober dress of black and white and his chisel-shaped beak. If you 

 do not recognize this sturdy citizen by his coloring, you cannot fail to hear the 

 rat-a-tap-tap with which noise he drums the trees, seeking for insects or grubs 

 concealed in the bark. Up and down the tree he works quickly, stopping now 

 and then to seize his prey with long, pointed tongue, which he projects into the 

 hole he has made in the bark, thus securing the coveted insect. This thrifty 

 citizen has his home in the trunk of some tree. He chisels into dead limbs of 

 trees and, when he has made a hole large enough and deep enough, builds himself 

 a nest. It is a nice, snug home for him in winter, and he is not usually seen out 

 far from home except on sunny days. The woodpecker is a silent bird, and 

 prefers his own society to that of others of his kind. He stalks about by himself, 

 and I have never noticed more than one solitary tapper on the tree at a time. 

 Woodpeckers are home-lovers, and are sure to find their own nests when nightfall 

 comes. 



Another winter favorite is the goldfinch, a dainty bird with yellow vest and 

 jet black turban. His home is in the low bushes that skirt the pastures, and his 

 food he finds at hand in the seeds of the tall weeds that peer above the snow in 

 midwinter. If he can locate his nest in the vicinity of a clump of thistles, he is 

 jubilant; for thistle seeds are much admired as articles of food by these tiny citi- 

 zens. The goldfinch has a sweet voice, and its merry twitterings, when the mer- 

 cury registers even zero, should be a lesson in contentment for those of human 

 kin who are constantly reviling the clerk of the weather. 



A curious bird whom we call one of our citizen birds and of whom much 

 is said, and yet so little really known, is the owl. The solemn face, with its wide- 

 open, staring eyes, gives an appearance of great sagacity ; yet it is a well-known 

 fact that in many ways the owl is a stupid bird. He also has some traits of 

 character which are to be deplored in a citizen of any country. He is a thief of 

 the sneaking type, which arouses contempt. He steals out of his hollow tree at 

 night, making no noise, but creeping silently upon his prey. He has well been 

 dubbed "a cat with wings." His prey is usually some unfortunate field mouse 

 which has ventured forth at twilight itself seeking food. The owl also takes a 

 fancy to small birds, when rats and mice are not in plenty. As may be supposed, 

 his appearance makes a great commotion in the bird world. 



"Look out, for the robber! Look out for the murderer!" the little birds 

 chatter noisily as, at the approach of the owl, they scatter for safe hiding places. 

 The cry of the owl is dismal and makes the flesh creep. I do not wonder that the 

 birds recognize an enemy as they hear the "tu-whit, tu-whoo, tu-whoo," in the 

 silence of the night. 



A robber chief, powerful and daring, whom we are not proud to call citizen, 

 is the hawk. He is a bird of prey, fond of rodents, small birds, and chickens. 

 In a place where I was once living, I saw, in winter, a hawk at the top of a pine 

 tree in a grove across the road. He had a poor sparrow in his talons, dead either 



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