88 BIRD STORIES FROM BURROUGHS 



mannered birds ; but the veery and the hermit 

 build on the ground, where they may at least es- 

 cape the crows, owls, and jays, and stand a good 

 chance of being overlooked by the red squirrel 

 and weasel also ; while the robin seeks the pro- 

 tection of dwellings and outbuildings. For years 

 I have not known the nest of a wood thrush to 

 succeed. During the season referred to I ob- 

 served but two, both apparently a second attempt, 

 as the season was well advanced, and both fail- 

 ures. In one case, the nest was placed in a branch 

 that an apple-tree, standing near a dwelling, held 

 out over the highway. The structure was barely 

 ten feet above the middle of the road, and would 

 just escape a passing load of hay. It was made 

 conspicuous by the use of a large fragment of 

 newspaper in its foundation, an unsafe mate- 

 rial to build upon in most cases. Whatever else 

 the press may guard, this particular newspaper 

 did not guard this nest from harm. It saw the 

 egg and probably the chick, but not the fledge- 

 ling. A murderous deed was committed above 

 the public highway, but whether in the open day 

 or under cover of darkness I have no means of 

 knowing. The frisky red squirrel was doubtless 

 the culprit. The other nest was in a maple sap- 

 ling, within a few yards of the little rustic sum- 

 mer-house already referred to. The first attempt 



