THE OOLOGIST 



41 



but I am coming to that soon. 



If this was newspaper ornithology 

 instead of being written for our be- 

 loved little magazine, The Oologist, it 

 would be up to me to state right here 

 that I found a live Robin in one of the 

 Owls crops and that it had been there 

 two weeks. Well, we came home 

 with the Owls, and after a good tak- 

 ing care of the nail wound, I retired 

 for the night. The next morning when 

 I tried to arise and that foot started 

 to hang downward I simply went wild, 

 but up I had to get so up it was. 1 

 then discovered we were in the throes 

 of a terrible blizzard, and I guess it 

 was universal all over the United 

 States from what I later learned. 1 

 never will forget that day .April 16, 

 1921, the worst blizzard we had had in 

 years, with a cutting wind and bitterly 

 cold. I put in that day soaking my 

 foot in hot water and slapping in tur- 

 pentine. About 9 o'clock in the morn- 

 ing I happened to glance out of the 

 window and there was a dear little 

 Robin, floundering in the snow and 

 nearly exhausted. I hastily got into 

 my shoe and went out and opened the 

 vvoodshed door and in Mrs Robin 

 went. Then I got her some food and 

 water and she wasn't a bit afraid but 

 ate and drank heartily. I said to her, 

 "Now, Mrs. Robin, I shall lock you in 

 here till morning and then I will let 

 you out." She chirped right back. 

 She kept talking and so did I, till my 

 foot got my attention again and then 

 I had to leave her. The next morning 

 was clear and warm and I found Mrs. 

 Robin bright and active after a good 

 breakfast, so I left the woodshed door 

 open and she came out. About a half 

 hour later, lo and behold, on my win- 

 down sill was a fresh Robin's egg. I 

 will always think she catne to my 

 window and laid that egg in payment 

 for the night's lodging. I most forgot 

 the incident, but a week later a pair 

 of Robins built a nest near my back 



door in the eaves trough. Now, you 

 see, like all bird men would naturally 

 think, I said to myself, this is the 

 satne Robin I befriended, and she is 

 so appreciative of my kindness that 

 she is building her nest as close to 

 me as she can. I knew it would be 

 washed away in the first rain so I put 

 up a shelf under the eaves and then I 

 carefully removed the nest and tied it 

 on the shelf. At first they resented 

 the removal and didn't take to it kind- 

 ly, but after a day of leisure in look- 

 ing it over they decided to accept it, 

 but although the nest was completed 

 and a very fine one they recupped it 

 and built it up almost making a double 

 nest. Soon four eggs were laid but 

 only one hatched and the bird reached 

 maturity. I took the three addled eggs 

 and plus the one on the window sill 

 made a complete set of four which is 

 a' good enough set of Robin's eggs for 

 an ornithologist that is no oologist. 



This last December 17, 1921 I was 

 surprised to see a female Robin enter 

 my woodshed through the open door 

 late one afternoon. She certainly has 

 lingered late as the birds had been 

 gone a long time I went out to feed 

 her but she flew out and disappeared 

 and did not return. 



Of course I will never know if the 

 spring, nesting and late Robin were 

 one and the same little female I be- 

 friended, but one loves to imagine so 

 anyway. 



The Owls were alive and full growa 

 the last I heard of them in late Oc- 

 tober. I had collected them for a 

 friend taxidermist in Sac City, Iowa 

 and shipped them to him and I think 

 he intended to mount them as soon aj 

 they reached maturity. My foot was 

 very painful for a week, but healed up 

 perfectly, 



O. M. Greenwood, 

 Manchester, Iowa. 



