THE OSPREY. 



when each pair retires quietly into its own 

 chimney where it reared its joung-. 



A sing-le Crow could hide itself an}-- 

 where, but a thousand are sure to attract 

 all kinds of enemies, first of all the 

 deadly g"un. Of course, we have to pre- 

 sume that habits were formed l^efore the 

 chimney, before the g'un, and even long- 

 before man was on the scene. A dozen 

 eyes will often see an approaching- danger 

 sooner than one pair would, but this is 

 no reason wh}" birds should unite into 

 armies of hundreds and thousands. 



Social love binds bitd to bird, and it is 

 only during the period of reproduction 

 that most birds can free themselves from 

 it. Onl}' birds of very easy flight, of 

 long and amj^le wings, such as Pigeons, 

 Swallows, Herons, Terns, (lUlls, and 

 birds of the ocean which carries the food 

 to them, can afford to breed in large colo- 

 nies. All others have to scatter more or 

 less, and keep apart until the young ones 

 can provide for themselves. All Hirun- 

 dinidas and many Icteridai' belong to the 

 most sociable landbirds; not onh' do the}" 

 prefer to breed in company, but as soon 

 as their offspring- is able to fly the dis- 

 tance, the whole family betakes itself to 

 the common roost. 



But the Cowbird takes the prize for 

 genuine socialism; it cannot even remain 

 long enough alone to hatch its eggs. Ex- 

 perience has taught most of our landbirds 

 that during the breeding season each pair 

 must have a certain district, and to avoid 

 misunderstandings, to keep others posted 

 in regard to this matter, and at the same 

 time to remain in contact and on good 

 terms with all their neighbors, they have 

 invented a ver^' nice way of interchange 

 of thought and feeling: their songi 



Song with a bird means not only a de- 

 sire to attract and please the females; the 

 songs given in his chosen home contains 

 a kind of Monroe Doctrine, a declaration 

 that the songster regards that particular 

 district as his domain, and that he is 

 ready to defend it against all intruders; it 

 is a friendly message to his neighbor to 

 keep out! Birds which breed in colonies 

 need no song, and have none. 



The Lark, 



Up like a wing--ed rocket there 

 Thro' the bou^^ant wave of the morning- air. 

 With a song- in a thousand .s])arks of joy 

 Like a shower of stars, love's hope to cloy. 

 Charles S. Reid, Walhalla, S. C. 



Three Da'ys in the Sierras, 



BY CHKSTKK BAKI.OW, SANTA CLAKA, CAI,. 



The evening of June 17th found me 

 climbing- the grade to Placerville on my 

 wheel, having with usual good fortune 

 missed the train at Sacramento, com])ell- 

 ing me to cover the sixty miles of rolling 

 and mountainous road awheel. Through 

 Shingle Springs, El Dorado, and finally, 

 in tortuous windings up the last grade, 

 and I could see the twinkling lights of 

 Placerville against the dark background 

 of the canyon in which it is situated. 

 Five minutes' ride down the grade and j 

 was in Placerville, one of the liveliest of 

 the '49 mining towns, most of which are 

 now relics of by-gone days. Next morn- 

 ing, shortly after 3 o'clock, two tourists 

 and myself were comfortabh" stowed away 

 in the stage, and were soon on the road 

 to the high Sierras. The dawn and sun- 

 rise were magnificent, and the scenery 

 ever-changing and picturesque. My des- 

 tination was a point in El Dorado county 

 about fifteen miles above Placerville, and 

 which was reached shortly before 7 o'clock, 

 while the stag-e continued on toward Lake 

 Tahoe 



By arrangement, I was to meet my 

 friends, Messrs. Osgood and Beck, at this 

 point, but as they did not put in an ap- 

 pearance until evening, I improved the 

 day in looking over the country. Fyffe, 

 the stage stati(m, is situated on the old 

 emigrant road from I^ake Tahoe to Placer- 

 ville, at 3,700 feet altitude, and on all 

 sides is a thick g-rowth of timber, chiefly 

 pine, with spruce and a few cedars inter- 

 mixed. Near by is a canyon, at the bot- 

 tom of which flows a small stream, while 

 a few miles to the north is the American 

 river. In suitable places there are growths 

 of bushes and underbrush and an abund- 

 ance of a low, thick weed known as 

 "mountain miser}-," which supports a 

 small white flower of peculiar odor. 



In general, bird life is quite plentiful, 

 though certain species resort to certain 

 localities. At the time I was there, June 

 18 20, it was evidently late for fresh eggs, 

 and the character of the region made find- 

 ing nests difficult. Soon after my arrival I 

 was eager to investigate the forests a few 

 hundred yards away, and upon taking a 

 trail into" the pines, a sprightly Mountain 

 Chicadee was the first bird to greet me. 

 I wandered on, and discovered a small 



