MOCKINGBIRD. 
writes, ‘‘The song may be written thuree, thuree, thuree, 
generally followed by two or three lower notes. Whether 
the accent is on the first or second syllable is hard to tell, 
but a throaty quality, and the presence of the letter r, 
characterize the song.” Bradford Torrey, inimitable in 
word description of bird-song writes, ‘‘ The song as I heard 
it was like this: whit, whit, whit, wit, wit. The first three 
notes were deliberate and loud, on one key, and without 
accent; the last two were pitched a little lower, and were 
shorter, with the accent on the first of the pair; they were 
thinner in tone than the opening triplet, as is meant to 
be indicated by the difference in spelling.’’ This last 
description seems to fit my records almost exactly, con- 
sidering the number of notes in a bird’s song is generally 
variable. The song does not occupy more than one and 
a half seconds of time, and it has been called a loud but 
commonplace ditty. However that may be, the one satis- 
factory thing about it is its easily recognized rhythm with 
a cheeriness about it that absolutely negatives the name 
Mourning! 
Family Mimide 
Mockingbird The Mockingbird is an irregular visitant 
et teed) in the northerly States and rather a rare 
L. 10.50 inches Permanent resident of Washington, D. C. 
Permanent It inhabits the southern United States from 
resident, South lorida to Texas, and its range extends 
northward to eastern Nebraska, Illinois, Ohio, and Mary- 
land. Occasionally it visits Wisconsin, Ontario, Michigan, 
New York, and Massachusetts. On numerous occasions 
it has been reported from southeastern New York, and 
there is good reason to believe it has bred near Roekaway, 
L. I. Other records in this part of the State are, River- 
dale, Brooklyn, Gravesend, Fort Hamilton, Flatbush, Mil- 
lers Place, Shelter Island, and Floral Park, and in the 
westerly region, Dunkirk, Buffalo, Lockport, and Roches- 
ter. There are several records of its breeding in New 
England, notably Springfield.* The general color of the 
* A Guide to the Birds, Ralph Hoffman, p. 96. 
307 
