GAME AND ITS PROTECTION. 11 
fui never to invade the high grass or the ripening 
grain—so also, from his innate love of nature, and of 
everything that makes nature more beautiful, he 
spares and defends the warblers of the woods and the 
innocent worm-devourers that stand guardian over the 
trees and crops. The smaller birds destroy immense 
numbers of worms; cedar-birds have been known 
to eat hundreds of caterpillars, and in this city 
have cleared the public squares in a morning’s Visit 
of the disgusting measuring-worms, that were hang- 
ing by thousands pendent from the branches. And 
who has not heard the “ woodpecker tapping” all 
day long in pursuit of his prey? 
With the barbarous and senseless destruction of 
our small birds, the ravages of the worms have 
augmented, until we hear from all the densely-set- 
tled portions of the country loud complaints of their 
attacks. Peach-trees perish; cherries are no longer 
the beautiful fruit they once were; apples are dis- 
figured, and plums have almost ceased to exist. 
Worms appear upon every vegetable thing; the 
borers dig their way beneath the bark of the trunk 
and cut long alleys through the wood; weevils 
pierce the grain and eat out its pith; the leaf-eaters 
of various sorts punch out the delicate membrane by 
individual effort; or collecting in bodies, throw 
their nets, like a spider-web, over the branches, and 
by combined attacks deliberately devour every leaf. 
While these species are at work openly and in full 
sight, others are at the roots digging and destroy- 
ing and multiplying; until the tree that at first 
