BIRD MISCELLANY. 



Knowledge never learned of schools 

 Of the wild bee's morning chase, 

 Of the wild-flowers' time and place, 

 Flight of fowl and habitude 

 Of the tenants of the wood ; 

 How the tortoise bears his shell ; 

 How the woodchuck digs his cell 

 And the ground-mole makes his well ; 

 How the robin feeds her young ; 

 How the oriole's nest is hung. 



WHITTIER. 



Consider the marvellous life of a bird and the manner of its whole 

 existence. . . . Consider the powers of that little mind of which the inner light 

 flashes from the round bright eye ; the skill in building its home, in finding its 

 food, in protecting its mate, in serving its offspring, in preserving its own 

 existence, surrounded as it is on all sides by the most rapacious enemies. . . . 



When left alone it is such a lovely little life cradled among the hawthorn 

 buds, searching for aphidae amongst apple blossoms, drinking dew from the 

 cup of a lily ; awake when the gray light breaks in the east, throned on the 

 topmost branch of a tree, swinging with it in the sunshine, flying from it 

 through the air ; then the friendly quarrel with a neighbor over a worm or 

 berry ; the joy of bearing grass-seed to his mate where she sits low down amongst 

 the docks and daisies; the triumph of singing the praise of sunshine or of moon- 

 light ; the merry, busy, useful days ; the peaceful sleep, steeped in the scent of 

 the closed flower, with head under one wing and the leaves forming a green 

 roof above. 



OUIDA. 



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