266 THE INVITATION. 



According to my own observation, the 

 number of species of warblers which one liv- 

 ing in the middle districts sees, on their re- 

 turn in the fall, is very small, compared with 

 the number he may observe migrating North 

 in the spring. 



The yellow-romped warblers are the most 

 noticeable of all in the autumn. They come 

 about the streets and garden, and seem es- 

 pecially drawn to dry, leafless trees. They 

 dart spitefully about, uttering a sharp chirp. 

 In Washington I have seen them in the out- 

 skirts all winter. 



Audubon figures and describes over forty 

 different warblers. More recent writers 

 have divided and subdivided the group very 

 much, giving new names to new classifica- 

 tions. But this part is of interest and value 

 only to the professional ornithologist. 



The finest songster among the Sylviae, ac- 

 cording to my notions, is the black-throated 

 greenback. Its song is sweet and clear, but 

 brief. The rarest of the species are Swain- 

 son's warbler, said to be disappearing ; the 

 cerulean warbler, said to be abundant about 

 Niagara ; and the mourning ground warbler, 

 which I have found breeding about the 

 head-waters of the Delaware, in New York 



