the house, as did a pair of blue jays, wood thrushes, 

 and chestnut-sided warblers. These I am still waiting 

 for. I need another June. 



Not one of all these birds is rare or even shy, 

 unless it be the swamp sparrow ; none of them that 

 the veriest beginner should not come to know in the 

 course of one June. For these are almost domesti- 

 cated, our near neighbors and friends, who desire 

 and who will return our friendly, neighborly calls. 



There are other birds, like the hawks, the owls, 

 the herons, the rarer thrushes, sparrows, warblers, 

 and marsh birds, that require time and tramping for 

 their discovery. I know the very log in which I could 

 find young turkey buzzards in June ; the clump of 

 dog-roses where a least bittern will build ; the old 

 gum that for years has harbored a pair of barred 

 owls ; the little cove where, spring after spring, a 

 black duck nests. But I should need a vacation to 

 visit these. 



I watch the others between times, between five 

 o'clock in the morning and breakfast, between break- 

 fast and train time and church time, and on Satur- 

 days to and from the garden. If you are your own 

 gardener, you can carry not only a hoe, but along 



129 



