VI PEEFACE. 



Some time since a book of mine was published, 

 called " Stories about Animals." This book em- 

 braced only that race of the animal kingdom some- 

 times called Gluadrupeds. I never like to use hard 

 words, if I can help it, when I am writing for the 

 young. That is the reason why I named my book 

 as I did, instead of caUing it " Stories about (Quad- 

 rupeds," a title which would have suited some very 

 nice people much better. The volume, however, let 

 its title be what it may, relates only to those animals 

 which make their way through the world with the 

 help of four legs. 



In the Preface to this book a hint was dropped, 

 that if those stories suited my young friends, and it 

 was found that a great many boys and girls took a 

 good deal of pleasure in reading them, the author 

 might take it into his head to write another book 

 filled with Stories about Birds, and that similar 

 books, relating to Insects, Fishes, and Serpents, 

 might follow. Well, the httle people did like my 

 first book. They bought it, at any rate, or their 

 parents bought it for them ; and that is pretty good 

 proof that they liked it. So I began to think of 

 printing my stories about birds. While I was think- 

 ing whether I would do it or not, a good many boys 



