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Our Winter Boarders 



Since my husband put up a lunch- 

 counter last Pecembcr, we have many 

 interesting boarders. It is open on all 

 sides, but has a roof and is placed on the 

 top of a post several feet from our back 

 door. Birds of the woods have come 

 regularly for food this winter. Every 

 morning I watch for my pert little Tit- 

 mouse, the owner of a very crooked tail, 

 who arrives with his mate promptly at 

 7 o'clock every morning. After singing his 

 song, of great volume for so small a bird, 

 he and his active mate fly from the 

 cherry tree to the lunch-counter and help 

 themselves to the hickorynu'.s which we 

 cracked and scattered on the floor; they 

 extract the meats in a comical way by 

 holding the nuts between their feet 



The male Titmouse then flies to our 

 ivindow-sill for suet, which we tied on a 

 short board that is nailed to the window. 

 In this way, I got him accustomed to me, 

 for I sit very close to the window; and now, 

 after watching him at close range for 

 many mornings, he has become quite 

 tame — so much so that after he flew 

 away I raised the window high enough to 

 thrust my hand out on the board. I put 

 a piece of suet between my fingers, sat 

 very still and waited. In a few minutes 

 the female flew to the maple tree which is 

 a few feet from the window. While my 

 eyes were riveted on her, I was startled 

 when I felt sharp claws clamp around my 

 fingers. It was the owner of the crooked 

 tail, who pecked vigorously at the suet 

 in my hand, and who paused long enough 

 to size up my little finger, which might 

 have varied its position by a sixteenth of 

 an inch, and went on with his eating, 

 perfectly contented with his landlady. I 

 look forward every morning to this great 

 treat. 



A White-breasted Nuthatch bobs 

 along up the post to the lunch-counter, 

 only to be chased down again by the Tit- 



(I 



mice; they hold full sway until the four 

 important Blue Jays arrive. Their lively 

 chatter was interrupted by an inquisitive 

 riickcr, which flew on the roof, peered 

 under and flew away, and we have not 

 seen him since. 



One morning four Nuthatches were 

 scurrying up and down on the juneberry 

 tree; the two males couldn't agree, and 

 flew down in the snow and fought viciously 

 while their mates kept busy satisfying 

 their appetites. They, too, come to the 

 window for suet or fried pork-chop — the 

 latter is greatly relished by the Tufted 

 Titmice. 



On the sixteenth of January, while 

 standing at the back door, I heard a 

 Robin singing. We have noticed that the 

 Titmice and Nuthatches carry small pieces 

 of suet from the trees in which we have it 

 hanging, and hide it in other trees. 



We expect many interesting birds to 

 come if "Heiny," the minister's cat, stays 

 on his own side of the street. — V.^nxhie A. 

 RiXGWALT, Ft. Wayne, Iiid. 



The Evening Grosbeak in Nova Scotia 



On March i8, 1913, about 8 a.m., I 

 saw three specimens of the Evening Gros- 

 beak on the grounds of the Truro Armory. 

 The day was fine, but quite frosty. The 

 three birds were very quiet, remaining 

 stationary for the most part, and occa- 

 sionally uttering a note similar to the 

 "beady note" of the Cedar Waxwing. 

 They were all in the plumage of female 

 birds. Their heavy, greenish yellow bills 

 formed a prominent characteristic. I 

 pointed them out to ISIr. L. C. Harlow, 

 instructor in bird-study at the Nova 

 Scotia Provincial Normal College, and he 

 agreed that they could be none other than 

 Evening Grosbeaks. I should like very 

 much to know if they have been seen 

 more than usual in other parts of the East 

 this winter. — Harrison F. Lewis, Truro. 

 N. S. 



73) 



