FRIENDS IN FEATHERS 



of the winesap, from there dropping to the nest. The male 

 always flew to the closest branch of the next tree, and from there 

 sailed across to the tip of the small branch on which his nest was 

 placed, among several leaf and fruit-bearing twigs, one apple 

 being directly beside and above the cradle. The point of 

 the limb was dead and dry, the tree being badly infested with 

 scale. 



Each time he alighted there he made a perfect picture. 

 There was nothing intervening, clear sky background, while 

 as these birds feed by regurgitation, there was not even a bug 

 in his beak, to obscure its shape and cutting. It was not so 

 long as a Robin's, but suggested it. His eyes were large, bright, 

 strongly rimmed. His back was deep slate gray, his wings and 

 tail almost black, his tail deeply bordered with white at the tip, 

 also the tertiary wing feathers were white-edged. His deep, 

 full-feathered throat was very white, so was his breast, gradually 

 darkening to gray on the underparts. He had a round crest he 

 could erect at will, of much the same gray as his back at the 

 feather tips, the remainder yellow. This you will scarcely credit, 

 but in full light, with crest erected, on his head there was a strong 

 gleam of gold, and were I painting him in this position I should 

 put it in. 



Each time he alighted on the twig, which was as often as he 

 fed his young, possibly ten times an hour, he displayed his every 

 attraction. I pointed this out to Molly-Cotton, then suggested: 

 "As they are such good friends with me, and so well accustomed 

 to the camera, why not move it a few feet to the west, directly 

 in line with where it is, and take his picture the next time he 

 perches there?" "If he will come in front of it, we can move 

 the camera," said Molly-Cotton. So I staked off the exact spot 

 where it should stand, then one on each side we placed the ladder 

 with its erection of boxes, put the camera where I had marked 



240 



