46 EVERYDAY BIRDS 



" Let 's go and see/' said the master, and we 

 turned in that direction. Sure enough, we soon 

 came face to face with a large hen-hawk perched 

 in one of the trees, while the jays, one after 

 another, were dashing as near him as they dared, 

 yelling at him as they passed. 



At our nearer approach the hawk took wing ; 

 then the jays disappeared, and silence fell upon 

 the woods. And I dare say the schoolmaster 

 gave me credit for being a wondrously wise man ! 



The jay has many notes, and once in a great 

 while may even be heard indulging in something 

 like a warble. One of his most musical calls 

 sounds to my ears a little like the word " lily." 



He seems to be very fond of acorns, and is 

 frequently to be seen standing upon a limb, 

 holding an acorn under his claw and hammering 

 it to pieces with all the force of his stout bill. 

 When angered, he scolds violently, bobbing up 

 and down in a most ridiculous manner. In fact, 

 he is of a highly nervous temperament, and as 

 full of gesticulations as a Frenchman. 



To me he is especially a bird of autumn. At 

 that season the woods are loud with his clarion, 

 and as I listen to it I can often feel myself a 

 boy again, rambling in the woods that knew me 

 in my school-days. With all his faults his ill 

 treatment of small birds, I mean I should be 

 sorry to have his numbers greatly diminished. 



