AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGY. 



195 



company as the Blue Jay, Scarlet Taiiager and others of our noted bird 

 beauties. I think that there is a peculiar magnetism about this bird 

 and its song that attracts everyone. His is a song that is beyond the 

 powers of description or imitation. It is rich, sonorous, and metallic, 

 and above all it is so mysterious; it seems to come from here, there, 

 and everywhere at the same time. Now faint as though the performer 

 were at a great distance, and now it rings out loudly and sweetly as if 

 the bird were at the listeners feet. I remember when I was a boy that 

 I used to liken it to someone whistling the scale through a drain pipe, 

 a sort of spiral song commencing with the high notes and sounding as 

 you might imagine that it would if the bird was being whirled about in 

 a circle by the heels. Nearly every New England woodland seems to 

 be invisibly divided into sections and on each dwells a pair of these 

 Thrushes. They seem always to live at peace with one another as I 

 have never seen a ciuarrel such as generally occurs when a bird of any 

 other variety trespasses upon his neighbors grounds. The nest of the 

 Wilson's Thrush that is shown here was built in a tangled clump of 

 broken down and dried sweet fern. I was a witness to the operation 

 when the bird was constructing it. Although leaves and grapevine 

 bark were scattered about in great profusion it seemed to require a 

 great deal of study and forethought on the part of the little mother 

 before she could find just what she wanted. With each bit that she 

 brought she would settle down in the growing nest and by twisting 

 herself about in it, shape it with her body so that when sompleted had 

 a very deep cup shaped interior, so deep in fact that but two of the 

 eggs are in sight in the photograph, although there were four in the 

 nest. I had serious misgivings when first I saw her at work on it for 

 it was near a path and right out in the open without a shrub of any kind 

 to help conceal it. But in a few days it appeared that Mrs. Thrush 

 knew more about such matters than I, for on each side a luxurious 

 growth of ferns appeared completely hiding the nest from inquisitive 

 eyes. Four little Thrushes have just appeared in the nest and I hope 

 to show them to our readers at a later date if a certain black cat that I 

 have seen prowling through the brush near there, does not find them 

 also. I have often wondered whether or not it be unusual shrewdness 

 on the part of these birds when they leave their nest upon your approach. 

 Vou have probably many times seen birds suddenly appear as if from 

 nowhere, and excitedly scold you from a short distance. Of course you 

 at once know that they have a nest within a very short distance. A 

 Veery will pursue just the opposite course She will glide off through 

 the underbrush without a sound and will not intentionally by any act of 

 hers indicate that she is anxious about her home. A low metallic 

 whistle is her only signal of distress and it is uttered at some distance 

 from the nest. 



