84 



THE SONG SPARROW. 



THERE are those who do not know the Song Sparrow by sight or by 

 name, but surely there are none, even tho dwehers in "sky-scrapers," who have 

 not at some time in their hves heard the sweet strain of this modest bird. Scat- 

 tered as it is throughout the length and breadth of our land, along the fence- 

 rows and in the lowland thickets, but especially in the backyard shrubbery, 

 unfortunate indeed must be the boy or girl who has not been cheered and 

 made better, if only subconsciously, by this tender minstrel of common life. 

 Perched upon some post or bush, he greets his childish listeners with "Peace, 

 peace, peace he unto yoxi, my children." And that is his message to all the 

 world, "Peace and good will." 



Silver-tongue's melody is like sunshine, bountiful and free and ever grate- 

 ful. Even in winter the brave-hearted bird avails himself of the slightest pre- 

 text, — an hour of sun- 

 light or a rise of tem- 

 perature — to mount a 

 bush and rehearse his 

 cheerful lay. The song 

 is not continuous, but it 

 is frec|uently repeated 

 through periods of sev- 

 eral minutes, and at in- 

 tervals of nine or ten 

 seconds. But there ! 

 Who could hope to sum 

 uo all the commonplace 

 poetrv and fond enspir- 

 iting of vSilver-tongue's 

 music by an estimate of 

 intervals and seconds! 

 It is of the soul and one 

 of the most sincere 

 things in nature. 



But no matter how 

 gentle a bird's disposi- 

 tion may be, there is ample use, alack ! for the note of warning and distrust. 

 Song Sparrow's scolding note, a single chip or chirp, is more musical than 

 some, but still very earnest. In \vinter the resident birds deny themselves 

 even this characteristic cry, and except for the occasional outbursts of full 

 song, they are limited to a high nasal tss, f(uite indistinguishable from that 

 of the Tree S])arrow, with which they are more or less associated through 

 similarity of haunts. Song Sparrows are not really gregarious birds, but a 

 wayside swamp which attracts one pair is as likely to support a dozen, while 



A GROUND NEST OF THK SONC, SPARl^iOW. 



