140 A BOBOLINK RHAPSODY. 



succession, and sometimes followed by a harsh 

 note that proclaimed his blackbird strain, a 

 "chack!" 



His utterance was thus : "mew, mew (quick- 

 ly), chack !" and I interpreted it into a warning 

 to me to leave the premises. I did not go, how- 

 ever, and after several repetitions his vigilance 

 began to relax. He was really so full of sweet 

 summer madness that it was impossible to keep 

 up the role of stern guardian of the nests under 

 the veil of buttercups and daisies, which he knew 

 all the time I could never find. So, when he 

 opened his mouth to say "chack," a note or two 

 would irresistibly bubble out beside it, as if he 

 said, "You really must go away, my big friend. 

 We cannot have you in our fields ; — but, after 

 all, is n't the morning delicious? " 



After a long conflict between desire to sing 

 and his conviction of duty as special policeman, 

 which ludicrously suggested Mr. Dick in his 

 struggle between longing to be foolish with 

 David Copperfield and to be grave to please 

 Miss Betsy, he fairly gave in and did sing — 

 and such a burst! Everybody has tried his 

 hand at characterizing this bird's incomparable 

 song, but no one has fully expressed it, for 

 words are not capable of it. Perhaps Mrs. 

 Spofford has caught the spirit as well as any 

 one : — 



