394 GRAY LADY AND THE BIRDS 
colour are they? How long does the mother bird sit? 
Does the father bird care for her when she is sitting? 
For how long do the young birds remain in the nest? 
Who feeds them? What are they fed? Is there more 
than one brood in the season? Where do the birds go 
after breeding? Do they change their plumage? Are 
the mother birds and father birds unlike in size or colour? 
How many kinds of birds do you know? 
These are some of the things which every boy or girl 
wants to know; and we can find out by watching the 
birds! There is no harm in visiting the nests, if one does 
it in the right way. I have visited hundreds of them 
and have kept many records of the number of eggs and 
the dates when they were laid, how long before they 
hatched, and when the birds flew away; and the birds 
took no offence at my inquisitiveness. These are some 
of the cautions to be observed: Watch only those nests 
which can be seen without climbing, for if you have to 
climb the tree, the birds will resent it. Make the visit 
when the birds are absent if possible; at least, never 
scare the bird from the nest. Do not touch the eggs or 
the nest. Make your visit very short. Make up your 
mind just what you want to see, then look in quickly 
and pass on. Do not go too often, once or twice a day 
will be sufficient. Do not take the other children with 
you, for you are then apt to stay too long and to offend 
the birds. 
Now let us see how intimately you can become ac- 
quainted with some bird this summer. 
— L. H. Battey. 
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