126



Correspondence.



of bacon rind, almost too heavy to carry, and cache it under the loose bark of a

dead tree or stump; and the wish within me has followed just as often, that no

other bird or beast might discover it, in order that the bit of food would help the

devoted mother bird to keep her eggs warm in the bitter cold of late winter. In

the latter part of last June, our camp was constantly visited by campbirds,

several being youngsters of the year, their bluish bills and darker heads pointing

unmistakably to immaturity. It was at this camp that I had the delightful

and unusual experience of having one of these birds boldly take meat from my

hand, without any preliminary training, and also take food from my hand,

while 1 was seated alone in the timber, away from camp and its possible associa¬

tions of safety, and food abundance. This bird (or these two birds?) hopped

boldly along the ground, or on the log, and fearlessiy took meat from the out¬

stretched hand, and with the second piece proffered, tugged hard, while I mis¬

chievously held it fast. I have never seen them disagreeable to each other ; they

always impress me as jokers, deceiving their bird neighbours by imitating per¬

fectly a hawk’s scream or other birds’ songs. They are always good company

and greet one at each new camp as though they were the ones just left at the old

camp. One of my camping companions always said to them, as they appeared

when we unpacked and were making a new camp “ Hello ! got here ahead of us,

did you?” I never tire of watching their adroitness at 1 lifting ’ an unguarded

bit of food. The Colorado bird is just as facile in spearing a chunk of butter as

is his Canada cousin in carrying off a biscuit almost as large as himself. One of

the pleasantest recollections of many camps in high altitudes, is that of a camp-

bird uttering his delightful whisper song, while perched on the tip of a tall spruce

whose tapering top was aglow with the last warm lights of a dying day.


Denver, Colo. W. H. BEItGTOLD, M.D.



THE EDITOR ASKS FOR ARTICLES AND NOTES.



