WOOD NOTES WILD. 17 



new " kinks " in his vocal twistings. He repeated them 

 many times, almost to tiresomeness. They were, 



4. 



The morning of the 14th opened rainy, but the drops 

 did not stop the concert of the birds. On putting my 

 head out to catch the first of it, a pewee was singing, 



Pe - wee, pe - wee. 



and a robin defied the shower in good set terms : 



i '/! 



Whether he meant to sing in E major or minor, I did not 

 decide. 



May 23 I was awake before 2 o'clock A. M., and all 

 was still ; not even a frog peeped. At the first faint com- 

 ing of light the rooster crowed; and in about half an 

 hour I heard the first bird-notes, the robin's. At this 

 hour the robin does not burst into full song, but begins 

 with a subdued twitter, which rapidly opens and attunes 

 his throat for the splendid moment when, yielding him- 

 self to the fresh gladness, he puts forth all his power. 

 The present performance was in a little maple close by 

 my window, where, undoubtedly, he had spent the night. 

 His song was, 



2 



