Music of the Wild 



There is Aery little art in their nests, but their 

 effo's are beautil'iillv decorated. Tlie ■s'oung- are 

 colored similar to their elders, the families large 

 arid so cunning as to be irresistible. Xo ])ird is 

 more useful in an orchard, unless, indeed, it be a 

 cuckoo, which is of great Aalue because it eats cat- 

 erj^illars. In protecting an orchard t'vonx jays, 

 ]iaA\ ks, and croA\s, such a pair of fighters sa\es you 

 dozens of more gentle timid birds that carry worms 

 and bugs by the million from fruit trees. In con- 

 sideration of this you should acknowledge their 

 royalty and offer them every encouragement to 

 reign over your premises. 



As ^ye regard harmony, the kingbird is the least 

 musical resident of the orchard. Tilting on a 

 Titled lookout froui the top of the tree in which his nest 

 Musicians ^^ placed, he uses what to me sounds like, "Ka-tic, 

 a-tic, a-tic," for a trilial call and means of com- 

 munication between ])airs. His sustained song, if 

 song it may be called, appeals to me as "Ka-tic, 

 a-tic, querr, kerrr, kerrr!" bvit it is not composed 

 of either mellow or musical tones, and is at all 

 times inflected as if it were a continued call of de- 

 fiance; so that the good folk who attribute to him 

 a "sweet musical song, softly warbled," are the 

 veriest I'omancers. 



The ])icture here given shoAvs a nest nearly fif- 

 teen feet high in one of these old orchards, around 

 which I worked imtil the story of what I did with 



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