THE BIRD'S HOME 11 
A few birds, such as eagles, owls, and some- 
times orioles, and others, repair the home and 
use it again, and woodpeckers sometimes nest in 
the old holes. But generally, after the young 
birds have flown, we may be sure the nest will » 
not be wanted again. 
When the nest is finished, the eggs are laid 
in it, one by one. We all know how pretty 
birds’ eggs are. Some are snowy white, some 
are delicate pink, and some blue. Many have 
tiny dots and specks on them, and a few are 
covered with queer-looking streaks and lines. 
But pretty as they are, I think no one would be 
so cruel as to take them away from the poor 
little mother, if he remembered that her young 
ones are inside them, and that she loves them as 
his own mother loves hin. 
I have heard people say that birds do not 
care for their eggs. Let me tell you what a 
little chickadee mother did when a man tried to 
steal the eggs out of her nest. 
The nest was in a hole in an old stump, and 
the man could not get his hand in, so he had to 
take them out one at a time with a little scoop. 
At first the mother flew at him and tried to 
drive him away. Then chickadees and other 
birds who lived near came to help her. All 
flew about his face with cries, so that he had to 
