VI PREFACE TO FIRST EDITION 



but I have done what I could to bring home the 

 " river and sky " with the sparrow I heard " sing- 

 ing at dawn on the alder bough." In other words, 

 I have tried to present a live bird, a bird in the 

 woods or the fields, with the atmosphere and 

 associations of the place, and not merely a stuffed 

 and labeled specimen. 



A more specific title for the volume would have 

 suited me better ; but not being able to satisfy my- 

 self in this direction, I cast about for a word thor- 

 oughly in the atmosphere and spirit of the book, 

 which I hope I have found in " Wake-Robin," the 

 common name of the white Trillium, which blooms 

 in all our woods, and which marks the arrival of all 

 the birds. 



