76 WILD SCENES AND SONG-BIRDS. 



The many times I "had been baffled in my pursuit of the 

 mocking bird, only increased the fixedness of my resolution 

 to accomplish my purpose of capture. 



I managed to survive the mortification of mistaking the 

 Shrike, or Butcher Bird, for a new variety, and endeavored, 

 by the most exemplary meekness, to atone for the arrogance 

 of the self-constituted Naturalist and Discoverer. Indeed, I 

 was now, on occasion, quite eloquent upon the subject of 

 the too frequent presumptuousness of youthful and inexpe- 

 rienced amateurs, in jumping at conclusions over the heads 

 of aged and profound science, on the strength of a single 

 " modern instance," with regard to the place and meaning 

 of which, their ignorance may be utterly at fault. 



I have been sensitive on the subject of new varieties ever 

 since, and, although, in spite of my Butcher Bird disaster, I 

 have yet ventured to assert still the existence of a second 

 variety of the mocking bird ; yet I shall do so with the ter- 

 rors of the past before my eyes and on my conscience. 



In the meantime, I shall relate the " pretty and effective 

 manner" in which my pet sister came to my rescue in the 

 case of some young mocking birds with whom I got into a 

 droll difficulty ! 



I commenced to tell this curious affair, but the story of 

 old man B. coming up, set me to remembering something of 

 my own disasters in the same pursuit, and then I had to tell 

 the whole affair right out. The good old man ! If I have 

 had my laugh at him, it is only " turn about ;" for he used to 

 quiz me most unmercifully about my new variety though, 

 by the way, I must say, I have heard of worse mistakes than 

 that being made ! 



"Well, in short, I was riding past the memorable sink-hole 

 spring, a few days after the late denouement, when, to my 

 delight, I discovered a genuine mocking bird upon its nest, 

 in one of those scattered thorn trees to which I have so fre- 

 quently alluded. There was no mistake this time ; and stop- 

 ping my horse at a short distance so as not to disturb the 



