172 Sketches of Some Common Birds. 



immediately betray his deep alarm at his situation among 

 such uninviting scenes. As the days pass, however, if 

 the bright weather continues, the first arrivals discover 

 more confidence; others come among us with their brisk 

 ways and nervous chirps, and the first visitors seem to be 

 assured that all is right. The opening week of their 

 sojourn seldom passes without our hearing their familiar 

 trills from the door-yard elms and maples. Toward 

 nightfall we may hear their sharp, modulated squeaking, 

 and see them coursing swiftly through the air seeking 

 resting places for the night. 



The flight of the robins is strong and business-like. 

 They seem to know where they are going, and follow an 

 air-line in their course to their destination, swerving swiftly 

 to either side to avoid obstructions in the line of their 

 flight. Like all other strong-flying birds, they use the 

 tail to wonderful advantage in guiding their movements 

 and in alighting. A noticeable feature of the tail is the 

 white spot on either side, at the extremity of the outer 

 feather; and when they spread their tails to rise from the 

 ground in flight, these markings are always revealed. If 

 they are to fly only a short distance, they will probably 

 keep the tail spread to assist them in stopping, and the 

 white marks will be seen during their movements. 



Soon after the males have settled among us, the females 

 arrive, and later the jealous tilts of the rival robins are 

 frequent occurrences. It is common to see one male jeal- 

 ously pursuing another in and out of the foliage and 

 around the bushes of the lawn or garden. Frequently 

 there are three robins in the group, generally one female 

 and two males, who are ardently seeking her favor, and 

 are correspondingly jealous of the presence of the other. 

 One spring when I was walking along a railroad beside 

 the public park of my native village, two robins swept 

 into view from a neighboring garden, one in fierce and 

 blind pursuit of the other. In attempting to cross the 

 track ahead of me, both struck the end of a tie and both 

 dropped disabled upon the ground, where they lay until 

 1 reached the spot and picked them up, when they slowly 

 revived and fluttered heavily away. These jealous con- 

 flicts are accompanied by loud squeakings uttered in shrill, 



