The Song Sparrow 109 



THE SONG SPARROW 



This is most children's favourite bird: is it 

 yours? Although by no means the belle of the 

 family, the song sparrow is beloved throughout 

 its vast range if for no other reason than be- 

 cause it is irrepressibly cheerful. Good spirits 

 are contagious : every one feels better for having 

 a neighbour always in a good humour. Most 

 birds mope when it rains, or when they shed 

 their feathers, or when the weather is cold and 

 dreary, or when something doesn't please them, 

 and cultivate their voices only when they fall 

 in love in the happy spring-time. But you 

 may hear the hardy, healthful song sparrow's 

 " merry cheer" almost every month in the year, 

 in fair weather or in foul, in the middle of the 

 night and in broad daylight, when a little mate 

 is to be wooed with light-hearted vivacity, 

 when two, three, or even four broods severely 

 tax the singer's energy through the summer, 

 when clothes must be changed in August 

 and when the cold of approaching winter drives 

 every other singer from the choir. The most 

 familiar song — for this tuneful sparrow has at 

 least six similar but slightly different melodies 

 in his repertoire — begins with a full round note 

 three times repeated, then dashes off into a 

 sweet, short, lively, intricate strain that almost 

 trips itself in its hasty utterance. Few people 



