THE PERCHING BIRDs. 105 
‘‘fervent, sensuous, and withal perfectly-rounded carol. . . . It ex- 
presses careless joy and exultant masculine vigor rather than the finer 
shades of sentiment.” 

Foxie Finch. 
On the Pacific coast, in the mountains of Cali- 
fornia, and in the Rocky Mountains there are foxie 
sparrows that are “varieties” of our Eastern form, 
much like him in a general way, but with no charac- 
teristic that is an advance over the bird that has ever 
been a delight to all who are fortunate enough to 
know him. ; 
When, forty years ago, it was my good fortune to 
be allowed to go with “the boy” after the cows, 
about sunset, as I passed along a narrow path that 
extended for several rods through a briery tangle, I 
never failed to see a strange black, white, and brown 
bird that seemed to follow us and resent our intru- 
sion by the vehement utterance of what sounded 
like re-tréat, re-tréat. I was told then that the bird 
was the Swamp-robin, and later fell to calling it 
“Chewink.” As with many another bird that gets 
its familiar name from the fancied resemblance of its 
