September 
such glittering beauties as in spring, for they 
fade somewhat as doth the leaf: the golden 
yellow is tarnished, and the jet-black restricted 
and shabby, and all in all they look quite ex 
déshabillé. ‘The largest part of the troop con- 
sists of females and the young, which to ordina- 
ry observation are quite indistinguishable, and 
lack the characteristic features of the males. A 
single ‘‘ black-throated blue ’’ was in their com- 
pany. A few days later came the black-and- 
white creeper, the Blackburnian, and a flock of 
yellow-rumped warblers. At one of the pools 
the ‘‘solitary’’ sandpiper was bobbing his 
head, much like the spotted sandpiper which 
was here for a week in spring, but with the 
under parts, excepting breast, a clear white. I 
think these are the only two species of fresh- 
water sandpipers in this region. 
I exchanged glances with the Maryland yel- 
low-throat, as beautiful as in spring, and near 
him was a ‘blue yellow- back,’’ somewhat 
dingy, but evidently a mature male. At this 
time also came the ruby-crowned kinglet, but 
it was the crownless female, and our monoto- 
nous friend the brown creeper, who with the 
perseverance of the saints has begun his win- 
ter’s work just where he left it off, at the bottom 
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