262 BIRD PARADISE 



very pleasant pattern. I know of no other bird 

 that excels nuthatch in all the evidences of good 

 breeding. I never have known him to utter a 

 harsh note. His ways are ways of peace. Even 

 his note of song, like the bluebird's, is so gauged 

 that it always seems the oifering of a good heart. 

 But the most pronounced of his many virtues 

 is the domestic air which accompanies all his 

 actions. Someway he appears like a true lover 

 of home, with all its family cares and pleasures. 

 His salutation to his mate honors bird fellowship 

 with some of its best greetings. The pair hunt 

 and work and play together, never showing the 

 least sign of disagreement. When I want a stroke 

 of true bird manliness I turn to nuthatch, and so 

 far he never has failed to fill the bill perfectly. 

 Quite frequently, when I am strolling through 

 the swamp, I knock at the fellow's door in one 

 of the old trees of the place. How his little 

 head pops out of the open door and how quickly 

 he follows it with the active body ! I know of 

 no cozier home among the birds, especially in 

 the winter months. The door of the home, like 

 the hearts of its inmates, always stands wide 

 open, and one of the parson's keen enjoyments 

 is the greeting that follows a hearty pull of nut- 

 hatch's latch-string. 



