EARLY GLIMPSES 



robins with us, however unfriendly their environ- 

 ment. The robin is not to be driven from the 

 neighborhood because of prowling cats, and bark- 

 ing dogs, and small boys with slings and a thirst 

 for blood. Just as surely as the military ring in The biue- 

 his voice assures you of his determination to stand "diction" 

 up for his rights, the tremulous, confiding song of 

 the bluebird expresses the doctrine of non-resist- 

 ance. In this way there seems a sort of benedic- 

 tion in its companionship, a suggestion that the 

 social atmosphere is charged with the " charity " 

 and the " purity " which it preaches with such rare 

 and persistent melody. 



Almost simultaneously with the robins and blue- 

 birds arrive the purple grackles. One welcomes Purple 

 them for what they represent rather than for what grac es 

 they are. Their plumage, with its iridescent 

 blacks, greens, and purples, is beautiful, but their 

 voices are strangely discordant, with the rusty 

 creak of unoiled machinery. Occasionally in some 

 note lurks a possibility of sweetness, but immedi- 

 ately it goes off into a discouraging squeak. Their 

 manners also are rude and restless. We endure, 

 however, even welcome, the grackles, because they 

 are among the first heralds of spring. 



The arrival of the song-sparrow, like that of the 

 robin and bluebird, is among the uncertainties of 

 the season. This little creature does not give vent 



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