o 



cz. ; oats, I'S oz. ; 

 dried elderberries, ij/, 

 oz. ; sunllower seeds, 

 I J^2 oz. ; ants' eggs, 



oz. 



A SOrPLE AND AT- 



TKACTU'E FOOD 



SUPl'I.V 



Perhaps the simplest 



scheme of feeding, the 



least trouble and the 



m o s t attractive t o 



numljers of Ijirds, is 



the t}ing of a piece of 



suet t(j a convenient 



limb, or perhaps to the 



balustrade o f one's 



piazza, preferably in a 



protected spot and one 



that can at the same 



time be easih' watched 



from some window 



(see page 332). 



In all these food- 

 houses various kinds 



of food should be sup- 

 plied — suet, crumbs, 



millet, h e m p, rape- 

 seed, canarv-seed, and 

 the like. On my place 

 the birds have such a 

 ivealth of natural food 

 that it is only during 

 the winter storms and when the ground 

 is covered with snow that they visit the 

 food-houses ; but on many other places — 

 as, for instance, in Meriden, N. H., where 

 Mr. Baynes and the Aleriden Bird Club 

 are doing such good work — there have 

 been food-houses erected on places along 

 the main street, entirely apart from an)' 

 protecting shrubbery or natural food sup- 

 ph", and many of these food-houses seem 

 to be well patronized both winter and 

 summer. 



A\'ater, particularly during the sum- 

 mer months or times of drought, is, of 

 course, necessar}' for the birds. If they 

 can't get it on your place, they will be 

 forced to look elsewhere. The proper 

 installment of a drinking fountain or 

 bird bath is a simple affair, and one that 

 is almost sure to prove a great attraction 

 to the birds, as well as a never-failing 

 source of entertainment to the owner. 



Drinking fountains may be purchased 

 read^' made or manufactured at home. 



This jolly little 

 morsel f nmi the li 

 climliers and can 

 manner. 



I-'hotu Ijy B. S. BowJiih 



ON INTorATE TfiRilS 



white-hreasted nuthatch has just taken a dainty 

 ps of its friend. These little birds are very clever 

 run up and down tree trunks in the most agile 



Almost any shallow receptacle will do 

 when placed in some cpiet spot not too 

 far from protecting shrubbery, but out 

 of reach of skulking cats. \\'here the 

 cats ha\-e not all Ijeen eliminated, it is 

 sometimes safer to place the bath on a 

 pedestal. 



A pool with foundation of concrete 

 sunken in the ground, partially filled with 

 earth and stones and planted with cat- 

 tails, Japanese iris, or other moisture- 

 loving plants, or perhaps with water- 

 lilies and inhabited by a few goldfish, 

 can be made a ^-ery interesting feature 

 of any garden, to say nothing of its at- 

 tractiveness to birds. It is essenLial, how- 

 ever, that the slope of the sides should 

 be gradual and the water at the edges 

 shallow (see pages 338 and 339). 



If one has a brook or natural pond on 

 the place, much can be done, particularly 

 if the bottom of the pond is suitable for- 

 the yilanling of food for ducks. If the: 

 lay of the ground is such that a meadow 



333 



