CITIZEN BIRD 49 



A scream of surprise and delight came from the 

 group, in which Olive joined. Quickly as the children 

 scrambled into the tree, the Doctor was up tliere first, 

 laughing and saying that it was thirty years since he 

 had climbed that apple tree ; for after he went away to 

 college the old seats had decayed and fallen down. 



"Give me your hand and I'll help you up," called Nat 

 to Rap, who had dropped his crutch and was looking 

 up at the others. 



"No, you needn't," said Rap. "I can climb all right. 

 Sometimes it isn't so handy for me, but other times it's 

 easier, for in tight places one leg doesn't take up as 

 much room as two ; " and he swung and pushed until 

 he was up as high as the rest. 



" Here's a nest Avith eggs in it," whispered Dodo, 

 Avho had crept out on a limb, where a rather large 

 round nest, made of grass and little sticks plastered 

 together with mud, was saddled on the branch — in 

 fact, a Robin's nest. 



" Four lovely smooth eggs, not quite blue and not 

 quite green! Please, can I have them? I saw them 

 first." 



" Think a minute. Dodo," said the Doctor. " A bird 

 will come from each of those eggs. Suppose you take 

 the eggs away from the poor Robins, you will be kill- 

 ing four young birds, besides hurting tlie feelings of 

 their parents and making them leave the orchard, very 

 likely. You must not take any eggs in the nesting 

 season — not even one. I will tell you what happened 

 once in a field where there were some birds' nests in 

 the bushes. 



" The man who owned the field was fond of birds 



