WILD LIFE OF ORCHARD AND FIELD 



the ice in the ponds, the vivid green of the aquatic 

 plants disclosed by its melting, the delicate herbage 

 hiding under the sodden leaves, the gummy and 

 bursting buds, all presage the charms of reviving 

 nature. Then the sounds awake. The frogs bid 

 each other good-morning after their long sleep; 

 the lowing of calves and the bleating of lambs 

 resound from the hill-sides; the tender warble of 

 the bluebird, the cheery call of the robin, and the 

 gurgle of swollen brooks mingle in our ears as we 

 pick our way along the muddy paths ; until, some 

 bright April morning, we discover that surly Winter 

 is gone, and coy Spring is shyly waiting for us 

 to bid her welcome. 



In this company of the heralds of this admirable 

 change of the seasons, none have a better part 

 than the birds, whose wings bear beauty and 

 song. Half a dozen of these messengers — the 

 bluebird, the wren, dove^ blackbirds, and so forth 

 — are especially first-comers, and to them I ask 

 attention. The song-sparrow also belongs here, 

 by good right, but he enjoys an essay all to himself 

 elsewhere. 



Among the very earliest are the familiar blue- 

 birds; indeed, they may occasionally be found 

 all winter long in sunny fields. By All-fools-day 



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