meowed like a cat, barked like a dog, 

 crowed like a Rooster, and finished 

 with a loud, harsh Kee-oo t kee-oo, which 

 put all the birds to flight. 



"The Red-shouldered Hawk," they 

 one and all cried with frightened 

 glances into the air, and Mrs. Wren, 

 forgetting for the moment that it was 

 only Mr. Jay imitating Mr. Hawk, flew 

 over to her nest in the greatest con- 

 sternation. 



"Well, well," she said afterward 

 with a laugh, "it was 'much ado 

 about nothing ' after all. But what a 

 clever fellow that Mr. Jay is to be 

 sure! Really I cannot help but ad- 

 mire him, rogue though he is," and 

 with a pretty flutter of her wings Mrs. 

 Wren gathered the six speckled 

 treasures under her breast and sat 

 down to brood. 



"I don't see how you could have 

 covered more than six eggs, my dear," 

 said Mr. Wren tenderly. "You are 

 such a little body, you know. Mrs. 

 John last year, though, had ten in one 

 brood, did she not?" 



"Yes," sniffed Mrs. Wren, "and her 

 neighbors have never heard the last 

 of it. Such a gossip and braggart as 

 she is. Why, she tells every lady 

 bird that calls on her that her Mr. 

 Wren had three furnished houses when 

 he proposed to her; one in a knot- 

 hole of an apple tree, one on top of a 

 very high pole, and the other well, 

 really I forget; under the roof of a 

 meeting house, I believe. 



"Hm!" said Mr. Wren, turning up 

 his bill, "that's the reason she accepted 



him, I suppose. To my notion he is 

 a most unattractive fellow, ugly as he 

 is proud." 



" Oh, handsome is as handsome 

 does," returned Mrs. Wren, " as our 

 landlady says. But you can't deny 

 that he makes my cousin a good 

 husband. It is very foolish for them 

 to boast so, for they can only occupy 

 one house at a time, and surely they 

 have to earn their food by searching 

 for insects and worms, precisely as we 

 do. Then, too, riches take wings 

 sometimes, and fly away, and as I told 

 one of my neighbors the other day, I 

 am just as happy in this old tin pot as 

 I would be on top of the highest pole." 



" How glad I am to hear you say 

 that," returned Mr. Wren, tears 

 glistening in his little black eyes, 

 " for there can be no true happiness 

 without contentment as our landlord 

 says. Dear little mate! Fourteen 

 days you must sit on the nest. How 

 tired you will be ! " 



"Oh, I don't mind that," replied 

 Mrs. Wren, " if only our birdlings 

 hatch out pretty and good. Once in a 

 while I will fly off for a little exercise, 

 you know, and, like Mr. John, you 

 will take my place on the nest and 

 keep the eggs warm." 



" Oh ! " exclaimed Mr. Wren, rue- 

 fully; "I hadn't calculated on doing 

 that. But we will see. I'm off, now, 

 to get something to eat, and will fetch 

 you as delicious a spider or nice fat 

 canker worm as I can find. Ta, ta, 

 love ! " and off Mr. Wren flew to the 

 orchard, singing as he went. 



119 



