A HERMIT'S WILD FRIENDS 



In some way, this little wild bird had dis- 

 covered that I supplied free food to the wild 

 things, and she had called on me to establish 

 friendly relations. I threw a bit of cookie 

 to her and it rolled to the ground. She hopped 

 down, found the food, and ate it on the spot, 

 then looked up for more. I gave her another 

 piece which she carried to the bushes. 



My dinner hour was three o'clock p. M., two 

 meals instead of the usual three. Miss Che- 

 wink was on hand and she was not alone. She 

 had brought along two young gentlemen, 

 who cared more about showing their fine 

 clothes than they did about eating. They 

 strutted around with their tails spread out like 

 fans, and I was soon convinced that they were 

 rivals. The little lady ignored them com- 

 pletely, while she dined with me as freely as if 

 she was not a self-invited guest. 



I suppose it would be the proper thing to 

 describe my guests. The chewink, or towhee- 

 bunting is nearly two-thirds the size of a 

 robin. The male has a coal-black head, black 

 wings and tail. Below he is white with orange 

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