retreats, which have not yet been cov- 

 eted by their selfish Enghsh cousins. 



The message, which the sparrow car- 

 ries to the student of nature, is that his 

 size invites but little molestation, while 

 his communal instincts, coupled with his 

 undoubted courage and his extraordin- 

 ary faculty of rapid generation, invites 

 the conclusion that he will eventually 

 supplant all the smaller species of bird 

 life in the south. That this will work 

 mischievous results, in the future, may 

 be debatable. His present record cer- 

 tainly justifies some of the indictments 

 brought against him, but none of these 

 are sufficiently serious for the general 

 condemnation, which, in some few iso- 

 lated instances, have led to legal enact- 

 ments for his extermination. 



In the first place, he is here by invita- 

 tion and that he is contented and happy 

 in his adopted home, is really a tribute 

 to our well-known hospitality. If he 

 has abused his freedom, he has only de- 



veloped traits and characteristics well- 

 known to those who brought him. In 

 the second place, he has not abused 

 courtesy to any grievous extent. His 

 predilection for the gutter and the offal 

 of the streets, is an instinctive one, and 

 if oft"ensively reminded of his congre- 

 gating in trees, by the laws of gravita- 

 tion, we must grant him the same ar- 

 boreal rights of all other fowls of the 

 air. 



On the whole, I must confess to an 

 admiration for this proud and even 

 autocratic little sparrow, who seems to 

 be at home anywhere and everywhere, 

 from Winnipeg to the Equator. As an 

 invited emigrant, turned loose upon 

 his own resources, I think he has be- 

 haved himself with even more grace, if 

 not gratitude, than many of those two- 

 legged individuals, who may have pre- 

 ceded or followed him to "the land of 

 the free and the home of the brave." 

 Andrew James Miller. 



AMONG THE TREES, 



THE HOLLY. 



The sun was shining brig^htly from a 

 deep, blue sky, as Mabel walked briskly 

 along the snow-covered street. Sleigh- 

 bells added their merry music to the 

 laughing, happy notes of the boys and 

 girls, who flung snowballs at one an- 

 other, or sprang lightly on passing 

 sleighs, farmers cracked their whips 

 and laughed loudly as they gave the 

 boys an extra tuml^le into the fleecy 

 snowdrifts. All was merriment, for was 

 not this the joyous Christmas time? 



**Look, mother, isn't that a great arm- 

 ful of holly?" asked Mabel, as she en- 

 tered the kitchen where her mother was 

 supcrinlcnding llio ])rcparalions for the 

 next dav's dinner. "Isn't it beautiful? 



I don't think I ever saw .a finer lot," 

 continued Mabel proudly. 



*Tt is beautiful," said her mother, as 

 she looked more at the glowing cheeks 

 and sparkling eyes of her daughter, than 

 at the holly. 



'Tt's a perfect winter day; just look 

 at the sky. We read much about the 

 beautiful skies of Italy. I'm sure they 

 cannot surpass that." 



"'I've often thought so myself, Mabel, 

 especially on those clear, bright days in 

 mid-winter. The sky then seems a 

 clearer, deeper blue than at any other 

 time. I'm so glad you love Nature, Ma- 

 bel, she is fascinating at all times, as 

 well as instructive. Now, dear, I wish 



i 



