Ke 
340 PURPLE MARTIN. 
large dragon-flies, grasshoppers, and butterflies make the principal food. The young 
Martins do not leave their box until they are six weeks old.” 
The most dangerous enemy of our beautiful Martin in the neighborhood of man 
is the European Sparrow, which occupies the nesting-boxes and Martin-houses before 
our Swallow makes its appearance in spring. In this connection I quote from an article 
written by my friend, Mr. Otto Widmann, of St. Louis: 
“Immediately on arriving in early spring the Martin seeks a box—his old box of 
last year, if possible. A few days afterwards his mate joins him, and’ the pair regard 
the chosen box as their home long before they begin nest-building. During this time, 
in the full enjoyment of their honey-moon, the pair used to leave home together when 
going out in search of food. Of late they have begun to take turns, one staying at 
home to keep the Sparrows out. This is an important strategical progress, because it 
is comparatively easy to keep the Sparrow out of a box, but it is impossible for a 
Martin to dislodge him after he has built a nest. 
“Besides being much more intelligent and courageous than the birds with which it 
comes in conflict, the House Sparrow has several really good qualities which are worthy 
of imitation by our native birds. Its diligence is marvelous. After removing their nest 
in the evening, one is surprised to see the heap of material which this single pair has 
carried in within a few hours the following morning; and this is done day after day 
with wonderful perseverance. 
“But the most prominent trait of its character, and the one which explains in a 
great measure the immense multiplication of the species, is the unsurpassed attachment 
of the parent Sparrows for their offspring. A Sparrow never deserts its brood. If one 
of the parents is killed, the other will do all the work alone. If a young one happens 
to fall down from the lofty nest, it is not lost; the parents feed it, shelter, and defend 
it. If a young Sparrow is taken from the nest and placed in a cage, the mother feeds 
it for days and weeks, even if she has to enter a room to get to it. Many young 
Martins tumble out of their nests, and are invariably lost. The parents make much 
noise about it, and try to make the young fly up, but finding that they can not do it, 
they let them perish, and even if placed where they could easily get to them, they do 
not feed them. In times of drought many young Martins starve to death, being some- 
times entirely deserted by the parents. 
“While from the four to six eggs which the Martins lays, on an average only two 
young are successfully reared, the Sparrow succeeds in bringing up all ane young 
hatched, which are four or five. 
“The Sparrows have traits of character which may set a good example to some 
of our birds, and I hope they will follow it. If they do so, the danger of being displaced 
by the foreigner will be greatly diminished. (March 10, 1888.) 
“As a great lover of birds, I am naturally inclined to be mild in censuring their: 
misdeeds, and although I have been living in war with the House Sparrow since its 
appearance, I still hoped sometimes that our native birds would learn to repulse the 
intruder, and that its presence might yet be tolerated to a certain degree. It was in 
such a spirit of reconciliation that I wrote last March, but the experience of this spring 
has demonstrated more clearly than ever that leniency toward the House Sparrow 
