THE CUCKOO FAMILY 175 
so often seen as heard. His call or song is a 
loud, yet not harsh “ kuk-kuk-kuk” many times 
repeated. Sometimes it begins slow and grows 
faster till the notes run into each other, and then 
grows slow again, ending in a sort of “ cow-cow- 
cow ;”’ but it does not always do so. 
The cuckoo does not manage her nursery 
affairs as other birds do. Most birds lay an egg 
a day, or every other day, so that they hatch 
about the same time; but this bird does n’t 
mind if several days come between. Thus it 
happens that one or more little cuckoos hatch out 
before the rest are ready, and it is common to 
find little ones of several ages in the same nest. 
There may be one nearly grown, another just 
beginning to get feathers, and a third one not 
yet out of the egg. 
There is another droll thing that may be found 
in a cuckoo’s nest. When the feathers begin to 
grow out on young birds, they come wrapped in 
little sheaths. In most cases these sheaths burst 
open and the feathers show, when they are a 
little way out. But in this family it is different. 
The sheath does not open, says Mr. Dugmore, till 
the feathers have grown their full length. Tull 
that happens, the youngster looks as if he were 
stuck all over with white pins on his black body. 
You have heard, or read, that the cuckoo 
