112 THE BIRDS ABOUT Us. 



lot was literally full of birds. They came one morn- 

 ing or in the night, about May I, and remained until 

 late in October. They were almost as noisy as the 

 street sparrows, but a good deal more musical. They 

 were black-throated buntings. My attempt made at 

 the time to imitate their song resulted in sS-tsee-slt- 

 d-see-see. As this differs somewhat from Nuttall's 

 and Wilson's account, I will add that I think I never 

 failed to hear two or three singing at once, and so 

 may have added notes of one bird to the song of 

 another. This weedy, open lot, on the edge of the 

 town, seemed to be wholly to their liking, and they 

 did not stray from it. There was water at the lower 

 end and grasshoppers innumerable, so the birds re- 

 mained eating, drinking, and making merry until 

 autumn was well advanced. 



I found several nests, all upon the ground, but 

 none with eggs. They all contained young birds, 

 and how they escaped the long procession of prowl- 

 ing tomcats that made night hideous and marred 

 many a day is one of Nature's unsolved problems. 



White-crowned Sparrow. 



