CHEWINK TOWHEE. 
It possesses a very perceptible accelerando. Perhaps I 
should say it generally finishes with a trill, but I have 
been unable to discover any approach to the two tones 
which necessarily constitute the trill. Nuttall, how- 
ever, seems to think the song is made up of ‘‘ a few tril- 
ling, rather monotonous notes resembling the song of 
the Field Sparrow,” and he is not so very far away from 
the truth. 
Chewink This bird is one of the most vivacious 
foe and beautiful members of the Finch Fam- 
Pipilo erythroph-. ; : 
ae. ily. His black back, white breast, and 
L. 8.35inches Chestnut sides form an uncommon and 
April zoth striking combination of color at once xs- 
thetic and distinguished. Beside the Chewink his near 
relative, the Song Sparrow is a very ordinary and insig- 
nificant-appearing individual, The upper parts of the 
Chewink, including head, chest, wings, and tail, are a 
glossy black; outer edges of the primaries white; white 
also begins at the middle of the chest and extends down- 
ward throughout the under parts; sides a bright chestnut 
red—almost a pure Venetian red; the iris red, and pupil 
black. Female with the same color-pattern, but the 
black replaced by lightish brown, the sides a less bril- 
liant chestnut, and the tail an umber brown. Nest built 
of dried leaves, grasses, and plant fibre, lined with finer 
grasses; it is generally placed on the ground, or very 
near it. Egg white flecked with madder brown. The 
bird is common throughout eastern North America, 
though somewhat locally distributed. There are very 
few in Campton, N. H., plenty on the slopes of Monad- 
nock, in southern New Hampshire, near the summer* 
residence of Mr. G. B. Upton, and extremely few in the 
recesses of the White Mountains. 
As a musician the Chewink is not remarkable for 
melodic ability or for brilliant execution; in these re- 
spects he differs widely from both Song Sparrow and 
Wood Thrush. Either of these two talented singers can 
not fail to impress upon the hearer a sense of the beauty 
of melody rendered by the mellow whistle of a bird; but 
the efforts of the Chewink are amateurish in comparison, 
125 
