BIRDS OF PEASEMARSH 



bag they hatched out their families undisturbed 

 by the commotion of the summer cooking ; fre- 

 quently they alighted on the table among the 

 dishes. Very neat housekeepers they were. 

 When they had gone in the fall the rag bag, ex- 

 cept for the little nest of sticks, was as clean as 

 before it had been occupied. 



The next summer they made a nest just 

 under the roof of the back verandah, but here 

 they came to grief. It was a year when beech- 

 nuts were scarce and the red squirrels came to 

 the barns and the trees about the houses for 

 food to fill their larders. When the little Wrens 

 were hatching their second brood a squirrel 

 found them out. The frantic scolding of the 

 birds brought out the occupants of the house, 

 but it was too late to save the eggs. The 

 squirrel had dined, and with egg smeared over 

 his whiskers and paws had made his way off. 

 We could only condole with the bereaved birds 

 and promise them that if they would stay with 

 us we would find some way of providing them 

 a safe nesting place. The little house put up 

 for the Wrens the next spring was but the be- 

 ginning of what could be done for the safety of 

 the feathered tenants. Three years have passed 



[8] 



