THE WOOD-WREN 31 



at first clothed with irregular patches of blue- 

 black down, and, later, with a few pale, greenish 

 grey feathers on head and back, leaving the down 

 visible only about the eyes, which in time opened 

 to the gentle light filtering through the leaves. 

 Nature seemed to have carefully arranged the 

 minutest details for the welfare of the birds. 

 Though packed on the bed of the nest as tightly 

 as goods in a bale, so that it seemed impossible, 

 had the addled egg been sound, for the seventh 

 midget to have found accommodation, the wood- 

 wren's family suffered nothing from the usual 

 ill-effects of overcrowding. No dirt could cling 

 to them, for hardly a single feather grew on the 

 underside of their bodies while they remained in 

 the nest ; side by side they filled their allotted 

 positions, from which they seldom, if ever, 

 moved. 



Probably because they received a more liberal 

 allowance of food, the three near the door of the 

 nest were perceptibly bigger and stronger than 

 the three behind them. Indeed, the nestling 

 that occupied the far corner, away from the 

 light and beyond easy reach of the parent 

 warblers, was the delicate member of the family. 

 But kindly nature, in due time, made amends ; 

 this little bird, when his brothers and sisters 

 left the nursery, remained at home, and for a 

 few days, till he, too, became strong enough to 



