28o 



Bird -Lore 



of it, think of it.' 'Purity, purity, purity.' 



6. Usual enemies. Cat about the worst. 



7. Hollow tree or bird-box. Nest rather 

 careless of straw, grass, and feathers. 

 Eggs from four to six. Very light blue or 

 white. Both birds work together in build- 

 ing, hatching, and feeding the young. 

 Two to three broods a season. Food, 8.76 

 per cent, animal, 24 per cent, vegetable: 

 grasshoppers, fruit-pulp (mostly wild), 

 beetles, elderberries, caterpillars, bitter 

 sweet, etc. 9. Should be protected. 10. 

 Slowly migratory by '6' and '7' to southern 

 United States. 



While the second outline might mean 

 nothing at all to strangers, to the children 

 it is simply a review, the key to which is 

 the number that heads each subject and 



refers them to the first outline. They are 

 perfectly familiar with that, having used 

 it over and over with the different birds 

 they have studied. 



On a day when we had thirty-one chil- 

 dren present, we found that we had thirty- 

 seven birds' houses up and more in the 

 process of making. That is a very small 

 part of the houses that the people of the 

 community are putting up. 



We devote the first part of the lesson to 

 telling what birds we have seen (and so 

 on) through the week. If any child doesn't 

 know what bird it is, he describes it and 

 we help him to identify it. Most of the 

 children have Chester Reed's 'Land Birds 

 East of the Rockies,' and we do not lack 

 advanced books of reference when needed. 



WIDE-AWAKE IN KANSAS CITY 



By ISABELLA J. CLARK 



The Horace Mann Junior Audubon 

 Society of Kansas City, Missouri, has in- 

 creased its membership from eighteen to 

 two hundred and seventy. Our class which 

 is No. 1940, was formed in December, 

 19 14, and has since helped to organize 

 eight other classes. All of the members are 

 deeply interested in the study and pro- 

 tection of birds. 



More than two hundred bird-houses have 

 been put up, many of which have been 

 occupied. 



Water and food are kept out at the 

 homes of the different members. Three 

 public feeding-stations have been main- 

 tained this year; 'Buckberry Inn' was 

 opened for the second winter; a feeding- 

 shelf was swung from the branch of a 

 hickory tree; the third station was placed 

 on the roof of the kindergarten. During 

 our coldest weather (below zero) several 

 members of the society carried grain and 

 suet to the woods. The boys tramped down 

 the snow and scattered the grain, while 

 the suet was put in bags which the girls 

 had crocheted, and was tied to the under 

 side of the branches. We were rewarded 

 by seeing a Titmouse fly to one of the 

 trees where we had placed the food, and 



call excitedly to his friends. The society 

 gave the birds a Christmas Party in the 

 woods surrounding 'Buckberry Inn.' The 

 trees were decorated with strings of cran- 

 berries and popcorn. Apples and suet 

 were tied to the branches; nuts, grain, 

 and water were placed on the feeding- 

 shelf. The bathing and drinking pool, 

 which Class No. 2028 built in the cor- 

 ner of the yard, has been kept supplied 

 with water. 



During the Christmas holidays eight 

 members of the society went with me to 

 Swope Park to take a bird-census. It was 

 a clear, cold day, seventeen above zero, 

 and the ground was covered with five 

 inches of snow. We spent an hour in the 

 woods and fields, counting eighty birds 

 representing thirteen species. We then 

 built a fire in the fireplace of the shelter- 

 house, where we roasted 'wienies' and 

 cheese, and discussed our tramp. We 

 decided to spend two hours next Christ- 

 mas in taking a census, just as the older 

 members do. 



Two papers, The Bird World, edited by 

 Class. No. 923, and The Horace Mann 

 Bird Star, edited by Class No. 1940, have 

 done much to keep the members on the 



