AN INDIGNANT WREN 101 



in the corner of the room for him, or on my desk. 

 He is not the least afraid, but seems to think it is 

 a secret between us, and so he never comes in if 

 another bird is near. He carries away a good 

 deal, and has, I think, young ones below. If so, 

 that must be a third brood. 



I have the very noisiest little wren in the 

 garden this year that I ever knew ; and I think it 

 is the smallest, although, from its ways and general 

 appearance, it seems to be an old one. I do not 

 know what I had done to offend it yesterday ; but 

 it sat down in the path before me with tail and 

 beak well up in the air, and scolded at me as if I 

 had been robbing its nest ; the little thing was in 

 a perfect passion. Perhaps it did not expect me 

 to be gardening just then, and was building a nest 

 in the faggots close by. It built one first so very 

 near a door and path where there was much going 

 to and fro that I think it was obliged to abandon 

 it. This is in a fuchsia-tree, and looks very 

 pretty, but is very conspicuous. I put my finger 

 in one day when I thought it was abandoned, and 

 found it cold and empty. I put it in later, and 

 there was one minute egg ; again I tried, and the 

 egg was gone removed to another nest, I fancy. 



July 6, 188o. 



The abundance of young birds about just now 

 is wonderful ; quite unusual, I think. They over- 



