326 AMERICAN ORNITHOLOGY. 



the forks of which the clever little fellow built a most beautiful cup- 

 shaped nest. It appeared to be made of various mosses, lichens and 

 soft materials, closely woven and cemented together, and the lining 

 inside consisted of thistle-down- Four pretty eggs were deposited in 

 due course and, as far as I know, the young were safely raised and de- 

 parted with their parents in the Fall. I had the pleasure of seeing the 

 entire family frequently perched on the seed salad stalks in our garden 

 feeding in fearless content. 



On both sides of the front porch was a lattice covered with woodbine. 

 In the top of one of these a Robin chose to build her home and showed 

 remarkable tameness during the entire nesting period. On the back 

 porch, also covered with woodbine, a pair of Chipping Sparrows built 

 their nest, a beautiful little piece of workmanship, displaying skill and 

 good taste. A happy little family was raised here in safety. Not ten 

 feet from the Chipping Sparrow's nest, we nailed up a little wooden 

 box which was tenanted for several years by a pair of House Wrens — 

 in all probability the same two. These little birds afforded us many 

 hours of pleasure watching their cunning waj^s and listening to their 

 cheery song. In another box raised on a high pole in the garden, we 

 had a pair of Purple Martins for two seasons, and they helped to swell 

 the population of our bird community. Placed in a hedge row border- 

 ing the yard, I observed each year, the nest and eggs of a Song Spar- 

 row, and their happy notes were to be heard all day long. Near this 

 hedge stood a willow tree, in the drooping branches of which (high up) 

 p Baltimore Oriole swung her basket nest and added her sweet vocal 

 powers to the summer concert. In a small briar patch in the corner 

 of the garden, a Cat Bird made her home and became quite tame, rais- 

 ing four little ones successfully. In the eaves of the shop (although 

 not wanted or cherished) the English Sparrows held sway, and we de- 

 stroyed their nests and eggs on many occasions, as they repeatedly 

 tried to drive away some of our other pets. 



Summing up we have a total of ten birds which nested within our 

 small domain, and in each instance they seemed to feel a sense of se- 

 curity and protection from all harm. In addition to those nesting on 

 our premises, we were favored with frequent visits from many more, 

 such as Vireos, Orioles, Cardinals, Indigo Birds, Chickadees, Nuthatches, 

 Snow Birds, Sparrow Hawks, Flickers, Pine Finches, etc., according to 

 the time of the year. 



Prior to the summer in question, my father had been very ill, and as 

 he was then getting better he spent many days on the porch. This 

 afforded ample opportunity for him to study our birds, and they in like 

 manner became so accustomed to his presence that they were quite 



