34 



The Cedar bird, which has become domesticated to a cod'- 

 siderable degree, withiu a period of forty years, has discov- 

 ered that our cultivated fruits are more juicy and palatable, 

 than the hard dry berries of the Eed Cedai\ Hence the 

 changing of its name, within my recollection, to Cherry-bird. 

 It now wholly escheweth its former food and haunts, and 

 while it has learnt to love our summer fruits, it has likewise 

 acquired a relish for our canker worms. 



The Eobin is the most familiar bird we have, and has been 

 the longest domesticated. This has taken place in conse- 

 quence of its cherished name, early given to it by our ances- 

 tors, which led them to spare the bird — which name, by the 

 way, more properly belongs to the Bluebird, its mild and 

 quiet habits more nearly resembling the Robin Red Breast 

 of England, than our ardent and vociferous fruit-eating 

 thi'ush which we call Robin. The special legislation afforded 

 the Robin in our Commonwealth, within a few years, has 

 done much to completely domesticate them, and thus render- 

 ing them, in my judgment, a great nuisance to the fruit 

 gTOwer. If any law is necessary to protect our birds, it 

 should be sufficiently broad to cover all of them. I would 

 make no exceptions. The constant and cruel enactments, 

 murderous deeds and mean contrivances to destroy and 

 poison crows, would have resulted, long ago, in tlie destruc- 

 tion of the whole species, were they not very intelligent and 

 sagacious birds, as fully able to take care of themselves, as 

 those who are laboring to destroy them. Our present bird 

 law is a queer piece ot legislation, evidently drawn up by 

 persons, who had not one particle of knowledge, sufficient 

 to classify our birds into orders, deemed by them useful or 

 noxious. For instance, no protection is given in the act to 

 the Swallow family. Woodpeckers, Flycatchers, Wrens, &c., 

 all perfectly harmless, injuring no one, and whose whole 

 lives are spent in destroying noxious insects. I can shoot, 

 or employ others to shoot all the birds above enumerated, 

 every hour in the day, and every day in the year, when thej 

 are to be found, and no penalty would be incurred. But if 

 I should shoot a Robin on my own ground, in the act of 

 eating the last cherry, which he had overlooked on the tree, 

 I should subject myself to a fine of two dollars ! 



The Swallow tribe has undergone more changes, probably, 

 than any other order of birds. The Barn swallows havo 



