136 BIRDS'-NESTS. 



eurious in such things, on observing the bird begin- 

 ning to build, hung out near the prospective nest 

 Bkeins of many-colored zephyr yarn, which the eager 

 artist readily appropriated. He managed it so that 

 the bird used nearly equal quantities of various high, 

 bright colors. The nest was made unusually deep 

 and capacious, and it may be questioned if such a 

 thing of beauty was ever before woven by the cunning 

 of a bird. 



Nuttall, by far the most genial of American orni- 

 thologists, relates the following : 



" A female (oriole), which I observed attentively, 

 carried off to her nest a piece of lamp-wick ten or 

 twelve feet long. This long string and many other 

 shorter ones were left hanging out for about a week 

 before both the ends were wattled into the sides of 

 the nest. Some other little birds making use of simi- 

 lar materials, at times twitched these flowing ends, 

 and generally brought out the busy Baltimore from 

 her occupation in great anger. 



"I may perhaps claim indulgence for adding a 

 little more of the biography of this particular bird, as 

 a representative also of the instincts of her race. 

 She completed the nest in about a week's time, with- 

 out any aid from her mate ; who indeed appeared but 

 teldom in her company and was now become nearly 

 silent. For fibrous materials she broke, hackled, 

 and gathered the flax of the asclepias and hibiscut 

 Bta\ks, tearing off long strings and flying with them 

 to the scene of her labors. She appeared very cage? 



