MY WINTER COMPANIONS. 19 



found flocks of snowbirds and tree sparrows, 

 and felt sure that they were the hardiest birds 

 of my acquaintance ; but this winter only a 

 single bird of these species is seen here and 

 there. If it is the cold weather that has driven 

 them away, one feels disappointed in their 

 powers of endurance, for they can not bear as 

 rio^orous a season as some of our constant resi- 

 dents — the nuthatches and song sparrows, for 

 example. 



But here are some facts of a different na- 

 ture : The brown creepers and kinglets disap- 

 peared last winter when the weather became 

 warm, while, during the present season, when 

 we have snow and nipping, eager winds and 

 sinking thermometers all the w^hile, they are 

 often found in the woods and seem to be as 

 lively and care-free as children at their coast- 

 ing or skating. The creepers, especially, 

 revel in the cold weather, and perhaps take a 

 jaunt to the north in the winter time, if old 

 Sol grows too familiar. He — the creeper — 

 does not wear that thick waistcoat of feathers 

 for nothing, and he believes in winter, in the 

 reality as well as the name. Never has he 

 been more cheerful than this winter, when 

 the mercury stood at six to ten degrees below 

 zero. 



