78 WESTERN SERIES OF READERS. 



around him. He bites again and again, nor does 

 the last taste pucker his mouth. He knows better 

 than to take puckery persimmon rind. To be 

 sure, he did tear off a bit at first, but if you were 

 watching, you would see him toss it away, and 

 peck out the soft ripe inner part, exactly as you 

 do yourself. Birds do not eat fruit rinds. Their 

 beaks are made on purpose to tear holes in tough 

 skins, as well as to crack seeds and hard-shelled 

 beetles. 



You sometimes wonder why the birds do not 

 finish eating a fig or a peach or a persimmon be- 

 fore they bite another. The truth is, they do eat 

 their fill at first and fly away. No sooner are 

 their backs turned, than along come the honey- 

 bees, who fly in California the whole year. Now, 

 the bee cannot tear open the skin of any fruit. 

 Its tongue is made to sip with, not to dig or bite. 

 So the bees smell the juice of the fruit the birds 

 have left, and take possession, sipping all around 

 the edges, as you may see. When the birds re- 

 turn to the tree, they pick a fresh fruit, and in a 

 moment they leave that one for the bees. You 

 will not see birds and bees eating the same peach 

 or fig at the same time. 



When warbler is done with his persimmon, he 

 flies to the alfalfa-patch and swings on the winter 



