230 BIRD PARADISE 



tic in his tastes and the note he utters through 

 the day savors quite fully of quiet home life. 

 The young fellows begin the use of the note 

 pretty soon after they get command of the art 

 of flight. So far as I can tell the bird seems to 

 trill his note of song mostly for the comfort 

 which it secures to him. He goes on his way 

 searching the trees for bugs and worms, tilling 

 out the gladness of his little heart almost at 

 every turn he makes, and he seems to be turning 

 all the time. Like his first cousins, the wood- 

 peckers, he appears to care very little what posi- 

 tion he is in, as he busies himself with his bird 

 duties. It is a standing marvel to me the amount 

 of food he manages to dispose of daily. Their 

 regular hour for eating is all the time through 

 the day. They begin with the day and fre- 

 quently I discover them, eating and eating, as 

 the sun goes down. It is simply wonderful how 

 the birds eat as they do and avoid nearly, or 

 quite, all sickness. Of course they can't eat be- 

 tween meals for they only have one meal a day. 

 But continuous feasting, life apparently made up 

 almost wholly of that, it would seem might 

 throw good health to the winds, but nothing of 

 the kind appears. On and on they go, healthy 

 and happy. No use for doctors or medicine, no 



