BLACKBIRD 



757 



BLACKBURN 



of America for jams, jellies, preserves, wine 

 and dessert, but it also grows wild in cool cli- 

 mates. The leaves are three or five, round- 

 pointed; the blossoms, pink or white. The 

 berries are plump and juicy, somewhat longer 

 and more solid than a raspberry. Most varie- 

 ties are black, but a new Burbank creation 

 is a beautiful transparent white. And in his 

 thornless blackberry Burbank has developed a 

 blackberry stalk as smooth as velvet. 



Blackberries thrive on well-drained soil. 

 The weak and diseased stems of the shrubs 

 should be cut off each spring, and the outer 

 stems cut back about one-third of the length. 

 The early Harvest, Snyder afld Agawam are 

 three favorites. 



Blackberry Jam. Although fresh berries can 

 be obtained only during a short season, yet 

 the delicious flavor of blackberries may be 

 enjoyed all the year. Pick over and wash a 

 quantity of berries. Weigh the fruit and 

 measure an equal weight of sugar. Put the 

 berries into a preserving kettle, mash them as 

 they are being heated, and when considerable 

 juice has been pressed out add the sugar grad- 

 ually. Let the mixture boil up well, then 

 skim out the fruit or strain it. Boil the juice 

 again until it is thick and will jelly. Put the 

 fruit back and boil once more. Then pour 

 into jars and seal. 



BLACKBIRD, the family name of several 

 species of birds whose distinguishing feature 

 is the glossy black coat of the male birds. Of 

 the North American blackbirds none is more 

 familiar than the red-winged variety, known 

 also as the swamp blackbird, red-winged oriole 

 and red-winged starling. The red wings are 

 from seven and one-half to ten inches in 

 length, and receive their name from the scar- 

 let, yellow-tipped shoulders of the male, which 

 otherwise is as black as coal. The female, 

 as is true of most birds, is somewhat common- 

 place in appearance, with blackish-brown 

 upper parts streaked with rusty black and gray, 

 and dusty-white under parts streaked with 

 reddish-brown. 



These birds breed throughout the United - 

 States, and in the summer are found in East- 

 ern Canada, west to the Saskatchewan valley 

 and north to Great Slave Lake. They begin 

 their southward migration in October, or early 

 in November, traveling in large flocks, and are 

 often winter residents of Mexico. Some, how- 

 ever, are brave enough to endure the hardship 

 of a New England winter, and refuse to join 

 the autumn migration parties. 



The favorite nesting place of blackbirds is 

 a low bush on the edge of a pond or the moist 

 grass of the marshes. In the nest, which is 

 made of grass, leaves and mud, are deposited 

 from three to five eggs, pale blue in color, with 



A slender young Blackbird built in a thorn trees 

 A spruce little fellow as ever could be ; 

 His bill was so yellow, his feathers so black, 

 So long was his tail, and so glossy his back, 

 That good Mrs. B., who sat hatching her eggs, 

 And only just left them to stretch her poor legs. 

 And pick for a minute the worm she preferred. 

 Thought there never was seen such a beautiful 

 bird. D. M. MULOCK. 



streaks and spots of black or purple. They 

 are cheerful, sociable birds, given much to 

 noisy chattering, and for this reason are some- 

 times regarded as a nuisance. Yet their liquid 

 warbling would be very delightful if they did 

 not perpetually interrupt their singing with 

 discordant notes which sound like fretful com- 

 plainings. They feed upon worms, insects, 

 fruit and grain, and their frequent raids upon 

 the unripe corn of the farmer have given 

 them an undesirable reputation. On the other 

 hand, they more than offset the damage done 

 to the corn by the service they render in de- 

 stroying immense numbers of harmful insects. 



For other familiar species of blackbirds, see 

 COWBIRD; CROW BLACKBIRD. See, also, BIRD, 

 subtitle Migration of Birds. 



BLACKBURN, next to Manchester the most 

 important center of the cotton industries of 

 England. It is twenty-four and one-half miles 

 northwest of the latter city, and 210 miles 

 northwest of London. It is an ancient city, 

 at one time the capital of a district named 

 Blackburnshire but now incorporated in Lan- 

 cashire. The cotton industries give employ- 

 ment to many thousands of men, women and 

 girls, and the town also has important manu- 

 factures of hardware and machinery. The mill 

 operatives of Blackburn earn higher wages 

 than any others of the laboring classes in 

 England, and they form large clubs among 

 themselves, to which they subscribe weekly; 

 the total sum subscribed is drawn annually 

 in order to spend a week at the seaside. 



