76 UPLAND AND MEADOW. 



mated Carolina wrens building within ten paces of each 

 other. Both nests were but just begun, and anticipating 

 a row before many days, I was consequently constantly 

 on hand. To precipitate it, I placed a tempting roll of 

 threads and carpet ravellings in a conspicuous position, 

 and lingered near until they were discovered by the 

 birds. As luck would have it, the sparrow and the 

 wren spied the mass at the same moment, and both, 

 with hawk-like rapidity, darted at it. They met. " The 

 deuce!" chirped the sparrow. "Who's afraid?" twit- 

 tered the wren ; and there they sat, facing each other. 

 But sitting still is not an accomplishment of the wren 

 family, and this one thrust his beak into the mass to 

 carry it o£E. "No you don't," ejaculated the sparrow, 

 and he put his foot in it, in both senses of the phrase. 

 The interference was too much for the wren, and he 

 " went for" that sparrow. Head over heels through the 

 air and over the ground went these angry birds, and 

 their noise called out the other birds, who had been 

 waiting for more nest-building materials. These new- 

 comers took matters very philosophically. The sparrow 

 followed her mate, to see which would whip ; the wren, 

 with full faith in her husband's prowess, glanced about 

 for nesting-stuffs, and, spying the " bone of contention," 

 lifted it up, although as large as herself, and bore it off 

 to her home. 



Tired of fighting, or having agreed to compromise, 

 the combatants separated, and shortly returned to the 

 wood-pile, where the coveted materials had been lying. 

 Were they going to divide it? They hopped to the 

 very spot, and lo ! it was gone. I imagined those birds 



