'He comes in March, when wind^ are slioiii^. 



And snow returns to hide the earth: 



But still he warms his heart with mirth, 

 And waits for May. lie lin<^ers lonjj;^ 



While flowers fade : and e\ery day 



Repeats his small, contented lay : 



As if to say, we need not fear 



The season's change, if love is here 



\\'ith 'sweet — sweet — sweet — Aery merr\ cheer.' 



He does not wear a Joseph's coat 



Of many colors, smart and gay ; 



His suit is Quaker brown and gray, 

 With darker patches at his throat. 



And yet of all the well-dressed throng 



Not one can sing so brave a song. 



It makes the ]:)ride of looks appear 



A vain and foolish thing, to hear 



His 'sweet — sweet-— sweet — very merry cheer." " 



— From the Sour; Si^an-07{\ by Henry V'au Dyke. 



The Baltimore Oriole {ictenLs gaibuia) 



By Charles Bendire 



Length: /jA to 



Range : Eastern United States, north to Ontario, west to Rocky Mountains. 



About as much a bird of Illinois as of Maryland. — A. W. M. 



Lord Baltimore was signally honored when one of our finest birds was christ- 

 ened with his name because it chanced to carry the family colors, black and 

 yellow. Orioles are a tropical grouj) and the luxuriant tro])ical forests are bright 

 with the gleaming colors of many species of these beautiful birds. Only a few 

 ha\e found their way into the temperate zone, but not one of the tropical species 

 is garbed in more tasteful dress than this exotic which has adopted the elms and 

 sycamores of the temperate zone for its summer home. When chill Xo\ember 

 winds have stripped our shade trees of their foliage then are revealed the long, 

 pendant nests, wrought with so much skill and patience by Madame Oriole, and 

 we begin to realize how many of these birds summer with us. Suitable material 

 for the oriole nest is none too easily found, and the wea\er is not so fastidious 

 that she will not accept strings and yarn of any color which are hung out for her 

 convenience ; so that at the end of the oriole season the bird lover who is willing 

 to co-operate with a ])air of nature's weavers ma\' fall heir to a nest made to order, 

 so to speak. 



180 



