48 



JOURNAL OF MAINE ORNITHOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



()bserv:itioiis had led him to think dif- 

 ferently, and his force of argument 

 led me to believe it better to let the 

 catbird's nest alone. 



Thus year after year I looked for the 

 catbird's return, and our acquaintance 

 grew and ripened into a better friend- 

 ship. 



While about my home. I did not 

 meet with tliese birds, as I lived well 

 up on the top of a hilly region, and 

 only met the catbirds down along the 

 streams and lower lands. I envied my 

 cousins who lived on either side of me, 

 near the banks of the Wilson Stream, 

 where they could see and hear these 

 birds, as long as they remained with 

 us. But long after I despaired of ever 

 finding these birds nesting in the 

 thickets of the high, upper lands, 1 

 found, on my return from school, in 

 the spring of '93. a pair of catbirds 

 had come to the sidehill, which sloped 

 to the westwai'd of my home, and in 

 a thick clump of hazel bushes about 

 fifty rods from the house, had built a 

 nest and entered upon the duties of 

 homelife. The site chosen, so high up 

 from the bottom lands, and streams, 

 was rather unusual, and afforded me 

 much pleasure, in watching them so 

 near my home. I was so egotistical 

 as to believe that they had come up 

 tliere out of their usual course, to nest, 

 simply because I was so fond of the 

 birds, and that the catbird was an old 

 favorite of mine. Be that as it may, 

 they left a greater doubt of their lik- 

 ing for me in my mind, for the next 

 spring, (after I had gone away from 

 home, and there was no one left to 

 watch them building their nest and 

 rearing their young) they came to the 

 grape-vine witliin a few feet of the 

 house, built a nest and entered upon 

 their usual household duties, and 

 cheered those who remained with their 

 morning songs. It was a pleasure to 

 my mother, when she wrote to me that 

 my catbirds had built in the grapevine, 

 and that their songs constanly carried 



her thoughts to the one who loved the 

 birds, but was away from home. 



In the month of .June a severe acci- 

 dent came to me. having fallen and 

 fractured my skull. 1 was carried 

 home, very weak, with sight and hear- 

 ing nearly gone, but enougli hearing 

 remained to hear the songs of the cat- 

 birds, and as the long, weary days 

 wore by, their song was a constant de- 

 light to me. As the summer days drag- 

 ged slowly on, and health and strength 

 crept back by degrees, I was again 

 able to roam about among the trees 

 and flowers, and I felt that the songs 

 of those catbirds had helped to nurse 

 and cheer me back to health and 

 strength, and that they had been sent 

 to cheer me up through those long, 

 never-to-be forgotten days of illness 

 and pain. The next year they return- 

 ed and reared their young in a clump 

 of roses, near the house, and each suc- 

 cessive year I liave found them nest- 

 ing, either in the roses or grapevines, 

 always near the house, as I have re- 

 turned to my old home for a short va- 

 cation. 



Of the many species of birds that 

 nest in the garden or orchard, those 

 catbirds have become the favorites 

 with all the family. Thus by giving the 

 birds some slight protection and en- 

 couragement they are glad to nest 

 about our homes and gardens. Not 

 only do they bring us pleasure with 

 their songs and strange ways, but they 

 help to protect our trees and flowers, 

 fruits and crops, from the ravages of 

 the many insect pests that are so de- 

 structive to the vegetation. Besides 

 this, by encouraging them to nest 

 about our homes, it affords those who 

 love the study of our feathered friends 

 a better opportunity to observe their 

 ways and habits. 



For instance: While laying in the 

 hammock in the shade, near the nest 

 of this pair of catbirds, the summer 

 just mentioned, as I watched the two 

 birds flitting here and there among the 



