7G MASSACHUSETTS AGRICULTURE. 



green color. The female bird was the most industrious. She 

 would carry off one of these grubs as often as once in live 

 minutes, whenever I watched her movements, and very often she 

 would have two in her bill at a time. One day, close under my 

 window, I saw her bear off three cut-worms at once, all of 

 which were taken before my sight in a space of about a rod 

 square. Never did I see, at any time, an earth-worm in the 

 mouth of this bird, during this month, nor any thing else except 

 cut-worms, of which this single pair must have destroyed an 

 incalculable number. The old birds probably swallow all the 

 hard insects, and save the larva exclusively for their young. 



The fondness of the robin for juicy fruits, which is the cause 

 of the complaints brought against him, is not peculiar to his 

 species ; but it is most remarkable in birds which are exclu- 

 sively insectivorous. And it is well to consider that nature 

 does not grant us a benefit without taking some compensation. 

 We must be content to pay for the services of our useful birds, 

 by allowing them, as a perquisite, a certain portion of the 

 fruits of our soil. We must pay the crow and the blackbird 

 in corn, and the robin and the cedar bird in cherries ; and if 

 it be objected that the robin-tax falls disproportionately upon 

 the fruit-growers, so, on the other hand, the blackbird tax 

 falls disproportionately upon the farmer and the corn-grower. 

 These evils, except as they can be prevented by watchfulness 

 and ingenious contrivances that do not harm the birds, must 

 be patiently endured for the common good. 



Early in May, in 1858, I caught and caged three young 

 robins, after they were fledged, for the purpose of studying 

 their habits of feeding. I commenced by giving them earth- 

 worms and soaked bread. They soon died, evidently from the 

 effects of their farinaceous diet. I then took two others from 

 the nest, and fed them on earth-worms alone ; but upon dis- 

 covering, after a few days, that they were drooping, I fed them 

 afterwards on insects combined with a small quantity of earth- 

 worms, and they immediately revived. All kinds of insects 

 they devoured with eagerness, and remained healthy and 

 vigorous. I never knew them to refuse one of any description, 

 though I offered them no inscots with stings, nor any hairy 

 caterpillars. All kinds of beetles, moths, grubs, crickets, 

 wire-worms, crysalids and smooth caterpillars they freely 



