FIRST STEPS TOWARD THE HOME 53 



by the insects, and right soon. These feathered 

 friends will have to be fed, and the quicker you be- 

 gin to provide for them the quicker they will put 

 in their work for you. Let it be understood at once 

 that your acres are to be free from dangers and 

 alarms. In fact, I think you would do well to put 

 up your bird houses before you put up your own. 



Plant a grove of basswoods to give food to your 

 bees and wild cherries with mountain ash and bush 

 honeysuckles to make sure that the birds are never 

 out of food. Then banish guns, except to destroy 

 common foes. Birds are very sensitive to the beauti- 

 ful and quick to appreciate safe retreats. I am some- 

 times ashamed to note the ease and grace with which 

 they construct their country homes the common 

 sense and bird piety which they manifest while train- 

 ing a family. 



At this rate you say we shall never get a country 

 house built at all. Well, what I wish to emphasize 

 is that to build a house is a very insignificant part of 

 home-making in the country. What you are after 

 is life full, true, happy, long life under the best 

 conditions for rational development, and that does 

 not consist in building for yourself a huge box of a 

 house in which you will do a lot of house cleaning 

 and a lot more around it of planting and digging. 

 If you cannot find help and moral uplook and a big 

 measure of poetry, with keener eyes and quicker ears, 

 and a growing sympathy with Nature, you might bet- 

 ter stay in the crowd. 



