Birds and the Fruit-Farm 305 



across his meadow; or the sunshine that colors his 

 apples. He might as well bring suit against 

 his neighbor because the east wind blew from his 

 neighbor's farm as to attempt to make the birds 

 his own. And doubtless partly because of this 

 incapacity for ownership of birds, every man's 

 hand is against them. 



Who said ''robins"? What fruit-grower has 

 killed seven at one blow, like the famous German 

 tailor? Or has boasted that he slew five htmdred 

 in his cherry orchard? ''They took my cherries, 

 and I'll kill them," says Farmer Grimstone. 

 "They took my strawberries, and I'll kill them," 

 echoes Farmer Pennywit. "They cleaned out my 

 cabbages; I'll kill 'em, " shouts Farmer Truck. 



And they killed the robins. A crop of dead 

 robins. A big crop of cherries? Of strawberries? 

 Of cabbages? That depends. But of course kill 

 the robins. Why? Because their own crops wit- 

 ness against them. Examine and see: 



42% insects — 19% beetles, 10% grasshoppers, 6% 

 caterpillars, 7% snails, spiders, angleworms. 



48% vegetable food — 47% wild fruits, 4% ctdtivated 

 fruits (more in June and July than in August) . What wild 

 fruits? Dogwood, wild cherries, wild grapes, greenbrier, 

 elder, holly, cranberries, huckleberries, barnberries, sumac. 

 Ten times as much wild fruit in the robin's crop as culti- 

 vated fruit. 



I 



But I watched him," interrupts Mother 



Grundy; "I saw him take the largest and best 

 29 



