68 THE QUEST OF A THRUSH 



thrushes were in another piece of woods 

 near by, or that the birds had retired before 

 the caterpillar army. 



The annoyances that seem involuntarily 

 to spring up around a bird-student did not 

 fail to appear in this place. The sudden con- 

 version of the grassy lane into a pasture by 

 closing the gate and turning cows into it ; 

 the confining a vicious horse in a field with 

 bars near my seat, which imprisonment the 

 animal resented by pushing against the shaky 

 old bars, threatening every minute to break 

 through ; the sudden attack of a fever of 

 building or repairing the road, or cutting 

 grass, which brought men and horses and 

 lumber and great noise and unpleasantness 

 about. All these, and more, grouped them- 

 selves as usual in that place, and completed 

 the desolation the caterpillars had so well 

 begun. 



One interesting study I made of the ways 

 of a party of Baltimore orioles that season. 

 There were at first three of the gorgeous 

 black and gold singers, on the most friendly 

 terms with one another, perching close to- 

 gether on a branch, going down in the grass 



