Wildwood Minstrels 41 



not to be found within a radius of a rod from the point 

 where the little diplomat went down. A few days later 

 I made my way to the hilltop, and do you know that the 

 shrewd bi^d played me the same trick? He scuttled 

 down into the bushes at almost the same point as before, 

 and no nest rewarded my search. I went home just 

 about ready to give up my search for Kentucky warblers' 

 nests, for I had been hunting them for a number of years 

 without success. 



However, in a few days I found rny way again to 

 the breezy hilltop. The chats, vireos, and indigo birds 

 gave due warning of my approach, and I felt sure that 

 Master Kentucky and his mate would be on their guard. 

 To my delight, in a few minutes the female presented 

 herself in one of the trees, her bill holding a bunch of 

 worms. Luckily she was not so wary or diplomatic as 

 her husband, and, in addition, she was extremely anxious 

 to feed her hungry babies. Instead of going over to the 

 copse where the male bird had played me such a clever 

 trick, she flew down the path about four rods to a small 

 scrub oak, from which she soon dropped into the weeds 

 below. Then I said to myself, "Aha!" and smiled in 

 a knowing way. 



I walked down the path to the tree, but no Kentucky 

 warblers were to be seen not right away. So I sat down 

 in the path and waited to see what would happen. It 

 was only a short time till the female appeared, with a 

 telltale bunch of worms in her beak. A moment later 

 her mate also arrived, carrying a small worm in the usual 



