268 East and West 
dear friends, the Thrushes, the Wrens, the 
Orioles, the Grosbeaks, the Warblers, the 
Sparrows, and the rest, look askance and be 
inclined to wonder whether he really does 
know all these fine birds or not. One newly 
arrived in society may have misgivings—or 
may not—when he refers to his friends among 
the ‘‘best families”; but one who has long 
moved in this atmosphere—who was born 
in it—can hardly mistrust his right to speak 
without restraint of his charming friends and 
their life. If the birds—exclusive and re- 
served as they are—admit one into their shy 
society with all its traditions, it is not for 
others to cavil. 
My warbler friends are largely Eastern. 
In the West, I have as yet only acquaintances 
among the family, with the exception of 
Audubon’s, the pileolated, and the painted 
redstart which became my friends in Mexico. 
In fact if I except the Western robin, the 
spurred towhee, the golden-crowned sparrow, 
the California jay, and the valley quail—birds 
associated in my mind with a child’s world— 
my old friends are all Eastern birds. My 
Western friends have taken their place be- 
side the Eastern and many have become in- 
deed like old friends. Some, like the solitaire, 
