AN OWL'S HEAD HOLIDAY. oT3 
past me from behind, and, with none of that 
poising over the entrance such as is commonly 
seen when a swift goes down a chimney, went 
straight into the trunk. In half a minute or 
less he reappeared without a sound, and was 
out of sight in a second. Then I picked up my 
rubber coat, and with a blessing on the wren 
and the tanager, and a malediction on the mos- 
quitoes (so unjust does self-interest make us), 
started homeward. 
Conservatives and radicals! Even the swifts, 
it seems, are divided into these two classes. 
‘Hollow trees were good enough for our fa- 
thers ; who are we that we should assume to 
know more than all the generations before us? 
To change is not of necessity to make progress. 
Let those who will, take up with smoky chim- 
neys ; for our part we prefer the old way.” 
Thus far the conservatives; but now comes 
the party of modern ideas. “ All that is very 
well,” say they. ‘Our ancestors were worthy 
folk enough ; they did the best they could in 
their time. But the world moves, and wise 
birds will move with it. “Why should we make 
a fetish out of some dead forefather’s example ? 
We are alive now. To refuse to take advan- 
tage of increased light and improved condi- 
tions may look like filial piety in the eyes of 
some: to us such conduct appears nothing better 
18 
