RUBY-CROWNED WREN. 85 



and immediately following, the breeding season. The nest is 

 placed on the ground, and the eggs, usually four in number, white 

 peppered with ashy in a close pattern. It enlivens the long days 

 with a fresh, and what we would call really remarkable "clean cut" 

 song that, heard at early morning or in the evening, would induce 

 one to beheve the bird almost inspired. 



Often on a clear, crisp morning I have seen the lark ascend 

 by a series of spirals to an immense height : then, remaining on al- 

 most stationary wing, carol forth such a thrilHng warble that it 

 seemed more like the chant of a spirit than the song of a bird. 



In the afternoon I shot perhaps the most cunning bird known 

 about these regions where it is probably never common, the ruby 

 crowned wren (yRegulus calendulus) . It was flitting about in a small 

 clump of bushes when I first saw it and it me. I was then obliged to 

 wait around for over half an hour before I could again catch sight of 

 and shoot it. It will cunningly crawl or flit from place to place, and 

 it is a mere question of who will continue this game of hide-and-seek 

 the longest, as to whether the bird escapes or is finally obtained. 



One cannot but enjoy these rambles about a "new region ;" at 

 least a region about which so little is known as this. There is a 

 charm of novelty of situation, and to one busy hunting the deHght- 

 ful natural objects with which he is surrounded, the charm is height- 

 ened. I was often reminded, especially on the water, of the enthu- 

 siasm and joy with which Audubon must have viewed these abodes 

 of the water-fowl when entering this new field of ornithology for 

 the first time. How a botanist would have revelled in the new 

 plants that would greet his eye ! and there remain many yet that 

 have not been identified ; while I often think of the field for some 

 enthusiastic collector of lichens, fungi, and mosses. The insect 

 fauna of the region likewise needs studying up, and an expedition 

 into the interior, hke one through Newfoundland, would develop 

 most interesting results. 



Tuesday the 12 th. We took a trip inland this afternoon, and I 

 could not help admiring the beautiful bay which bears the name of 

 the island at its mouth, and which receives that name from being 



