BIRCH BROWSINGS 



A seeker of birds, and ever on the alert 

 for some new acquaintance, my attention 

 was arrested, on first entering the swamp, 

 by a bright, lively song, or warble, that 

 issued from the branches overhead, and 

 that was entirely new to me, though there 

 was something in the tone of it that told 

 me the bird was related to the wood-wagtail 

 and to the water-wagtail or thrush. The 

 strain was emphatic and quite loud, like the 

 canary's, but very brief. The bird kept it- 

 self well secreted in the upper branches of 

 the trees, and for a long time eluded my eye. 

 I passed to and fro several times, and it 

 seemed to break out afresh as I approached 

 a certain little bend in the creek, and to 

 cease after I had got beyond it ; no doubt 

 its nest was somewhere in the vicinity. 

 After some delay the bird was sighted and 

 brought down. It proved to be the small, 

 or northern, water-thrush (called also the 

 New York water-thrush), — a new bird to 

 me. In size it was noticeably smaller than 

 the large, or Louisiana, water-thrush, as 

 described by Audubon, but in other respects 

 its general appearance was the same. It 

 was a great treat to me, and again I felt 

 myself in luck. 



