BIRDS OF THE UNITED STATES. 
83 
tering to each other the while, in the most animated manner. At length 
the matter appeared to be settled, and on the ensuing day they commenced 
the erection of a building on one of the poles directly over the anvil. 
Though the hammer was constantly passing close to the structure, yet the 
fearless builders kept steadily at work, and in about three days had com- 
pleted the rough outline thereof. A few days more, and their home was 
ready for occupancy. The narrator often stationed himself upon a log to 
watch them, with his face so near, that their feathers frequently brushed 
against it as they toiled at their task. Suffice it to say, the eggs were 
laid, the young hatched and successfully reared, and the trustful pair 
maintained their serenity and fearlessness till the last. 
The attentions of the parents to their young are unremitting. The 
number of small insects which they collect for them is almost incredible. 
Flies, aquatic larvae, and small moths form a considerable part of their 
earliest diet. But as they become older, other insects are added to their 
bill of fare. When about fourteen days old they are able to leave the 
nest. The manoeuvres of the parents to entice them out, and the assist- 
ance which they render them in their first feeble attempts at flight, are 
among the most curious and interesting of all our ornithological expe- 
riences. A few days’ training gives them complete control over their 
alar appendages, and they are soon as merry and happy as any of their 
older companions, as they sail through the air in quest of insects, or in 
the pursuit of pleasure. By the first of September, they are strong enough 
to endure the fatigue incident to the long journey which they are called 
iqjon to make, in obedience to the supreme law of their being, at this 
season of the year. 
The eggs of this species are white with a roseate tinge in unblown 
specimens, and are marked with spots of reddish and purplish brown, 
varying in size and number, but chiefly collected about the larger end. 
From the Cliff Swallow’s eggs, they differ in having finer spots, and in 
being smaller and rather more elongated. Specimens from different local- 
