238 SOME COMMON LAND-BIRDS. 



or woollen waste ; and store twine, so much of the last that 

 it would seem she must have begged it of the butcher's boy 

 before he got to the door. Probably she did pick it up early 

 mornings in the yards of houses near by, long before men 

 were stirring. 



Did you ever think that some bird's sharp eye was on 

 the lookout for every bit of twine which you throw away ? 

 We begin to appreciate how much our habit of using strings 

 freely means to the birds when we* notice the use they make 

 of threads, cords, and twines. Time and labor are saved to 

 the birds when men are generous with their strings ; and we 

 can make a variety of interesting and simple observations by 

 noting what happens when a good supply of string is at their 

 disposal. A veranda roof is a good place to put them if you 

 spend much time upstairs. Shut the blinds and peep through 

 the cracks to see what kinds of birds come for string. Vary 

 the experiment by putting out weak strings, like worsted, and 

 strong ones, like twine, to see whether the strength of the 

 string is of any importance to them. Place colored strings 

 with the white ones, and notice whether they prefer or avoid 

 the colored ones. Perhaps you may be able to tell whether it 

 is lack of an eye for color or fear of betraying their nests that 

 makes them avoid the colors ; and perhaps you will find some 

 species preferring the colors when a choice is given them. 

 Try them with long strings and short, to see whether they 

 judge their material before they carry it off. Fasten some of 

 the strings in various ways to see whether they notice the dif- 

 ference between those that are free and those that are tied, 

 and how much ingenuity they have in clearing them of 

 obstructions. The more systematic and careful you are in 

 making such experiments the more you will see that is worth 

 notice. Eandom experiments amount to rery little. When 



