KINGBIRD. 83 
turned roots of a fallen tree. I well remember 
finding a cave nest when we were children. We 
let ourselves down into the cave by a crevice in 
the lime rock, and after groping our way among 
the loose stones that made the floor, and —as our 
anxious fathers insisted-—the roof of the cave, 
crawling along low passages, wedging between 
harrow walls, and hunting for stepping stones 
across the dark pools that reflected the glimmer 
of our candles, we suddenly came into a flood of 
daylight, —a crack in the rocks wide enough to 
make a dangerous pitfall for the horses and cows 
that grazed overhead, but chosen by the phcebes 
as the safest possible nook for rearing a brood of 
baby birds. Down the sides of this shaft the rain 
trickled, keeping the moss green and giving the 
tiny ferns strength to cling to the crannies of the 
rock. Ona ledge just in reach of the tallest of 
us the wise pair of birds had built their nest, care- 
less of the dark cavern below, and happy among 
the moss and ferns. 
>.@.48 
KINGBIRD ; BEE MARTIN. 
THE kingbird is noticeably smaller than the 
robin, but is larger and more compactly built than 
most of the flycatchers. The sobriety of his plain 
blackish coat and white vest are relieved by a 
colored patch that may sometimes be espied under 
