"GENERAL BEM." 277 



daily offering of small spiders and worms with gestures of 

 evident pleasure. These were always presented to him en- 

 veloped in white paper, which he carefully opened and se- 

 cured then his prey before it could escape, even although 

 it was sometimes a difficult task to keep his vigilant eye 

 upon so many apparently escapading when I was called to 

 the field, and appointing me a station, I was expected to give 

 the alarm when one attempted to get away on my side, which 

 he immediately killed and dropped, and then darted after 

 those on the outskirts of the field of action. 



At last, one day, Mr. Webber brought for my sister a 

 wood thrush, which was very wild and savage, and was, be- 

 sides, extremely ugly, but had the reputation of being a good 

 singer, which made us forgive his sullen temper and hope to 

 win him back to more gentle ways, when he should see tha A 

 we would be his friends and that he should be almost free ; 

 besides, Gen. Bern was evidently much inclined to make his 

 acquaintance, and took the first occasion to pay him a visit 

 in his cage-house. This the stranger did not fancy, and drove 

 him out. Bern resented this, by turning on the threshold 

 and pouring forth a torrent of screams and mewings which 

 came near distracting the poor thrush, who darted at him 

 and chased him to the bed, under which Bern darted, and 

 was secure for the present. But from that time there were 

 no more overtures of friendship they were sworn enemies ; 

 the thrush, from detestation of the impudent fellow who in- 

 vaded his residence, and finally appropriated it, to the entire 

 desertion of his own, which, by-the-bye, was much larger, and 

 with which the thrush eventually consoled himself, and Bern 

 continued to occupy, because it amused him to pester the ill- 

 natured fellow which he had set down the thrush to be. Many 

 were the quaint scenes which now daily occurred. If Bern de- 

 sired to take a bathe, the thrush would endeavor to push him 

 out; but Bern was not to be ousted in that style if he could pre- 

 vent it, and commonly sent the poor thrush away in consterna- 

 tion, his musical ear stunned by such direful din as threatened 



