Wildwood Minstrels 43 



little friends without intending it, for their chirping 

 attracted the attention of one of their worst foes, and 

 drew him to the spot. I loitered about for perhaps ten 

 minutes, and then decided to take one more peep at the 

 pretty domicile before leaving the hilltop. As I drew 

 near, I observed that the parent birds were chirping in 

 a low, but heart-broken way, as if they were almost 

 stricken dumb with terror. Were they so badly fright- 

 ened because I was returning to their nest ? 



I stepped up cautiously and looked down at the nest. 

 It was now my turn to give vent to a cry of consterna- 

 tion, for what I saw was this : A large blacksnake coiled 

 about the nest, the fold of his neck wabbling to and fro 

 in a terrifying way, while with his mouth he was trying 

 to seize one of the bantlings. Fortunately I had a good- 

 sized stick, almost a club, in my hand, and I wasted no 

 time in bringing it down with all the force I could com- 

 mand upon the serpent, taking care to deliver the blow 

 at the side of the nest. The snake tried to uncoil, but 

 another blow broke his backbone, if indeed the first one 

 had not done so, and he was in my power. He had 

 swallowed one of the nestlings, but three were left, and 

 seemed to be in good condition. On my return to the 

 place a few days later the nest was empty, and I fear that 

 the remaining little ones had also been destroyed, per- 

 haps by the mate of the snake from which I had rescued 

 them. 



On the shelf of a steep bluff covered with a riot of 

 bushes and briars a pair of hooded warblers found a 



