92 Birds of Lakeside and Prairie 



Another king rail took possession of a bedroom in the second 

 story of a Chicago residence. The bird absolutely refused to 

 allow itself to be "shooed" out of the window through which 

 it had come. It showed no fear of human beings, and allowed 

 itself to be picked up without resistance. When it was put 

 through the window it took to flight readily enough, but the 

 chances are that before it had traveled far it managed to get 

 into some other fix. 



There is something of the savage left in us all. I am free 

 to confess that I like to see birds fight. I don't mean that I 

 wish them to fight, but if they must fight I like to see the 

 fracas. In a tree in a field back from the Worth swamp was 

 a scarlet tanager. It was sitting there peacefully enough, 

 and apparently enjoying the view, when a bluejay dropped 

 down from above and went at it beak and claw. I fully 

 expected to see the tanager turn tail and flee before the face 

 of his assailant, but it surprised me and won my admiration 

 by doing nothing of the kind. It gave the bluejay blow for 

 blow. The combatants half flew, half fell to the ground, 

 clawing, pecking, scratching, and screaming. There was a 

 bewildering brilliancy of moving color. There was another 

 witness to this fight besides the human beings who were look- 

 ing at it with all the interest ever centered on a ring contest. 

 The bluejay's mate was in the treetop, but made no effort to 

 take a claw in the affair until she thought that her spouse was 

 getting the worst of it. Then she came down hurtling, and 

 joining forces with her mate, soon convinced the tanager that 

 it had enough. The jays did not follow the defeated bird, 

 who made off like a scarlet streak to the shelter of the woods. 



On our way back to the farm-house we saw a hawk quarter- 

 ing the marsh in search of prey. It was doubtless a marsh 



