280 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER 



FEB. 19, 1840. 



For the N. E. Farmer. 



USE- 



BENEVOLENCE IN BIRDS— THEIR 

 FULNESS, &c. 

 The oommunication of H. C. in the Farmer of 

 the 5th inst., relative to the canker-worm, in which 

 he says the only effectual remedy against these 

 insects known to him is " the encouragement of 

 birds," brings fresh to our recollection some rerni- 

 nisences respecting this persecuted, interesting and 

 useful race, which we think will be pleasing to our 

 readers, particularly to the younger ones. We can 

 hardly say with the writer of the article, that " kill- 

 ing a small bird should be placed in our penal code 

 next to killing a child" ; but we do say that it ought 

 to be met with a punishment sufficient to prevent 

 the destruction which annually takes place, in mere 

 wantonness or sport, among the innocent songsters 

 of our groves and orchards. We have been almost 

 disposed in times past to bring the boys before 

 Judge Lynch, and might probably have done it 

 could we have put our hands upon them. 



While residing in Lancaster a few years since, we 

 were located near the river which runs through the 

 town, whose banks and intervals are ornamented 

 with numerous fine elms and other trees, which add 

 much to the beauty of this pleasant village : in 

 these trees the birds congregate in great numbers 

 and rear their young. A gigantic elm, the admira- 

 tion of travellers and the pride of the village, threw 

 out its wide spreading branches over the cottage 

 in which we dwelt, and while it shielded us from 

 the scorching sun, afforded in its ample head, (a 

 forest almost in itself,) a secure retreat for a great 

 variety of birds, whose movements aff'orded much 

 amusement for the family. Among these birds 

 were a pair of crow black-bir^s, who had selected 

 the fork of a partly decayed limb very high in the 

 tree, as a place to build their nest and rear their 

 young. Having in my juvenile days some preju- 

 dice against this bird, as I was taught, that with 

 the crow it would dig up the newly sprouted corn, 

 and commit sundry other depredations, I therefore 

 viewed them with a suspicious eye as I saw them 

 in company from day to day upon my newly planted 



ing, which with the sympathizing cries of the other 

 birds, formed a melancholy concert. 



While the black-birds had perched upon a neigh- 

 boring tree near the road, still giving vent to their 

 sorrow, a boy passed with his gun, fired, and brought 

 them both to the ground and carried them away in 

 triumph: luckily for the boy, I did not 

 barbarous deed, but it was noted by one of the fam- 

 ily and soon reported to me. As I had become 

 somewhat interested in the unfortunate orphan, I 

 proposed to my children that they should feed it 

 with worms until it could take care of itself, and 

 accordingly placed it in a pen under the tree and 

 returned to my work near by. It was not long be- 

 fore I heard from the young bird its peculiar note 

 which it uttered when its parent brought food, and 

 on looking up, saw that it had hopped up on to a 

 joist to which the board fence was fastened, and to 

 my great delight and surprise, beheld a blue-bird 

 in the act of feeding it. That beautiful passage 

 of scripture flashed upon my mind — " Are not five 

 sparrows sold for two farthings ? and not one of 

 them is forgotten before God." My curiosity was 

 now raised to see what would be the issue, and I 

 soon found that any further care on my part would 

 be superfluous, for the young chap had fallen into 

 better hands. It was with the deepest interest I 

 watched the movements of this devoted pair of 

 blue-birds to their adopted one, for it appeared that 

 both male and female had taken part in this work 

 of disinterested benevolence and devoted them- 

 selves with unremitting attention to its wants, until 

 it was able to take care' of itself For a couple of 

 days it remained near the spot where I first saw 

 the birds feeding it, and being near a window, had 

 a gc od opportunity to see how things went on be- 

 tween them. It appeared that the young one kept 

 his benefactors pretty busy ; for their incessant la- 

 bors could hardly satisfy the young gormandizer, 

 as upon an estimate after much attention, he re- 

 ceived a portion of food every 2 1-2 minutes during 

 tlie day, which appeared to consist of worms and 

 grubs The black-bird probably weighed twice 

 as much as both blue-birds, and when it opened its 

 capacious mouth to receive the food, it seemed as 



From the Boston Courier. 



grounds, busily engaged in helping themselves to tjjouoh its kind friends were in imminent danger of 



what they liked best. I satisfied myself soon, how 

 ever, that they had been vilely slandered, and that 

 they were friends and not enemies : it was evident 

 they were clearing my grounds of grubs and worms 

 at a great rate. They soon found that I was no 

 eneiny to them, and consequently became quite 

 tame and familiar, following the plough or harrow 

 with nearly as much confidence as the domestic 

 fowls. It appeared that there was a good state of 

 feeling among the numerous tribes that inhabited 

 the tree, consisting as they did of so many families, 

 embracing the robin, blue-bird, sparrow, golden 

 robin, and a variety of others, and things seemed 

 to prosper among them and go on well, until the 

 night before old fashioned " 'lection," (a, fatal day 

 to the feathered tribe) : during that night there was 

 a very high wind : early in the morning I was 

 a.wakened by an unusual clamor among the birds, 

 and rose to ascertain the cause — I found chat the 

 decayed limb on the fork of which w:is the crow- 

 black-bird's nest, had been broken aff"by the wind, 

 and the nest and contents (five young ones,) pre- 

 cipitated to the ground, and that four of them were 

 dead or dying. The surviving one was nearly 

 fledged and could fly a little. I picked it up from 



being swallowed whole. The blue-birds appeared 

 alternately with the food and lit down a few feet 

 in front of the bird on the fence, and viewed with 

 apparent astonishment, the extended mouth of the 

 young one for a second, then hopping up deposited 

 the food, then as quick back to the first position, 

 regarding for another second with marks of satisfac- 

 tion, the object of charity, and then away for a new 

 supply. 



In a few days the young bird found the use of 

 its wings, and was followed froin tree to tree upon 

 the premises by its faithful providers, for nearly a 

 week : it had by that time learned to find its own 

 food ; and soon it fell in company with some of its 

 own kith and kin, and I could recognise it no more. 

 Whether it ever returned to express its gratitude to 

 its foster parents, we have never learned. 



BIRDS--CANKER WORMS. 

 Mr Editor — I see it stated in your paper of 

 Friday, that the probable reason why the canker. 

 itiless the 1 '^o'^"^ commits small ravages in- < Flob,' is found in 

 the care with which the birds are protected. I was 

 reminded of a remark in Peabody's Life of Wilson: 

 "He enters into a deliberate calculation of the ex- 

 act value of the services of the red-winged black, 

 bird, which certainly bears no good reputation on 

 the farm; showing that, allowing a single bird fifty 

 insects in a day, which would be short allowance, s 

 single pair would consume 12,000 in four months; 

 and if there are a million of pairs of these birds in 

 the United States, the amount of insects is less bj 

 twelve thousand millions, than if the red-wing wer« 

 exterminated." Let any one during the brooding 

 season of robins or of other birds, rise by break ol 

 day and count the number of times old ones retun 

 in one hour with worms and insects, or, if he can ; 

 let him count through the day, and the number will 

 be found to be almost incredible. 



The practice of killing birds for mere amuse 

 ment, is not merely indicative of cruelty and wan 

 of feeling, but is exceedingly detrimental to the in 

 terests of the community. If the farmers reflected 

 and made calculations upon the subject, they woul 

 discourage and oppose it as one of the greates 

 scourges, and would pay a premium to their boy 

 to let the birds alone rather than furnish them wit 

 powder and shot to kill them. 



And, now that I am upon the subject of insect 

 and worms, let me add that there is a very unre; 

 Bonable prejudice against toads. They are exceet 

 ingly valuable in gardens and other places, in coi 

 sequence of the exterminating warfare they ai 

 continually waging against the bugs and worm 

 Any person who has thein in his garden has a trei 

 sure there ; and if he will watch them closely, I 

 will find them accomplishing more in the way ( 

 preserving his squash and cucumber vines and otht 

 vegetables, than he can do with all his troughs < 

 liquid. I think these subjects will be brought moi 

 fully into notice by the gentlemen commissioned b 

 the State to examine its Natural History ; indeed 

 know that one of them, at least, has been at gret 

 pains for two years, to collect from all parts of th 

 country what information he could upon the sul 

 ject, which would be likely to secure the farm* 

 from the ravages which his trees, his grain crop 

 and all the products of his farm suffer from insect 

 and other causes. I would suggest that this sul 

 ject be brought up at the weekly agricultural meet 

 ings, and that persons acquainted with these ma' 

 ters be invited to communicate their informatio 

 upon them. For, notwithstanding all the outer 

 about retrenchment and useless offices, it seems t 

 me that no offices are likely in the end to be moi 

 valuable to us than those which will bring to ligl 

 the hidden resources of this State, and collect a 

 the information, both scientific and practical, whic 



will secure to the agricultural population relii 

 Manyofniy neighbors could testify to the above L^^^ ^^^^.y t^ing which blights and diminishe 

 facts, as some of them called daily to see for them- Uhgii. crops S. Y. 



selves. 



J. B. 



It is moral excellence alone that renders a fre 

 Contentment inclines us to good i people great and happy. Without it, all is empt 



Religion is the sourc 

 I 



CoNTE-fTMENT, 



actions. Innocent pleasures, also have a healthful | splendor and hollow decay. 



influence upon the body and mind. As melancholy | of most of the moral excellence of the race. 

 the grass and placed it in a secure situation, ^up- I and grief wear away our strength, so is it proper- . influence when pure and liberal, is wholesome ar 

 posing the distressed parents would take care of it. tionably increased by cheerfulness and joy. ! ennobling. 



The old ones continued their clamor all the morn- 



