AN UNNAMED BIRD. 141 



the word his skin would be sent to me ; but after 

 knowing the little family in their home it would 

 have been like raising my hand against familiar 

 friends. Could I take their lives to gratify my 

 curiosity about a name? I pondered long and 

 weighed the matter well, trying to harden my 

 heart ; but the image of the winning trustful 

 birds always rose before me and made it impos- 

 sible. I will put the case before you, and you 

 can judge if you would not have withheld your 

 hand. 



One day, hearing the sound of battle up in the 

 treetops, I hurried over to the scene of action, 

 when out dashed a pair of courageous little dull- 

 colored birds in hot pursuit of a blue jay, whom 

 they dove at till they drove him from the field. 

 My sympathies were enlisted at once. Fearless 

 little tots to brave a bird four times as big as 

 themselves in defense of their home ! How hard 

 to have to build and rear a brood in the face of 

 such a powerful foe ! I wanted to take up the 

 cudgels for them and stand guard to see that no 

 harm came. 



Planting my camp-stool under their oak, I 

 watched eagerly to have my new friends show me 

 their home. As I waited, a pair of turtle doves 

 walked about on the sand under the farther 

 branches of the tree ; a pair of woodpeckers sat 

 on a dead limb lying in wait for their prey; and 

 a couple of titmice came hunting through the oak 



