158 B1PD NOTES 



May 26, 1889. 



I was quite wrong in supposing that the robins 

 had lost their brood. There are three young ones 

 about in the garden, and as only one of the old 

 ones is in attendance on them, possibly a fourth 

 may have gone off with the other parent. They 

 do divide their forces in that way I know. Three 

 are too much for one robin to feed ; even with the 

 assistance of my almost constant supply of bacon, 

 the poor thing looks worn to a shadow, a bag of 

 bones and feathers rather. I believe I, mainly, 

 am bringing up three large families (one of robins, 

 one of blue tits, and one of cole tfts), to judge by 

 the great packets of bacon they carry off in their 

 beaks ; and in such a hurry ! The blue tit was in 

 such a flurry yesterday that it came in to see about 

 supplies, and then could not get out again ; so I 

 had to catch it and put it out. 



It is curious how different the cleverness of one 

 bird is from that of another kind. Glass never 

 puzzles the robins ; but this old and very clever 

 blue tit, that has fed here for years (I believe), 

 cannot see it or find its way out. Several times I 

 have had to release a blue tit from the window. 

 The cole tit is wonderfully intelligent (it is almost 

 all head and legs, so it ought to be ! ), but it dares 

 not venture in. And yet it has not a speck of fear 

 outside, and carries off larger packets of bacon 



