The Unknown Pathway 265 



led me into a society of aristocrats, some blue 

 coated, nearly all blue blooded, and each with 

 their own tree. What a big circle it was. If I 

 had been the Bishop of their souls, I could not 

 have made a pastoral call on each one once in 

 ten years. Some, that I knew first in the chart 

 class, I later on knew as fathers and mothers, 

 grand-fathers and grand-mothers, and as- great 

 grand-fathers and great grand-mothers, uncles, 

 aunts and cousins without end. 



Some birds that I have known, had an indi- 

 vidual acquaintance with, would reach into the 

 hundreds, possibly, up to the thousands, and all 

 have been more or less captivating friends. Human 

 friends drop in to dinner when there is nothing 

 to eat in the house, come and find you shaving 

 and instantly want to try your razor, only to find 

 that you don't know how to strop a razor, and 

 yours should have been junked years ago. Every- 

 thing but your toothbrush you hold in common 

 with your friends; and one may not look in the 

 direction of five and ten dollar loans for in that 

 direction apoplexy lies. Boredom is one of the 

 unmitigated curses from which there is no escape 

 in the best society, unless that society is composed 

 of birds' friends. 



There are people whom we play host to in the 

 way that a horse plays host to a gad-fly and some- 

 times soul-savers come and want to pray, when 



