„ the mood for a frolic. He ran up and down 

 the mossy rail; he whirled about it till he 

 &igee^ee/okh-s/s looked like a little gray pinwheel ; he hung 



^1 head down by his toes, dropped and turned 

 like a cat, so as to light on his feet on the 

 rail below. While watching his performance, 

 I hardly noticed that his mate had gone till 

 she reappeared suddenly beside him. Then 

 he disappeared, while she kept up the per- 

 formance on the rail, with more of a twitter, 

 perhaps, and less of gymnastics. In a few 

 moments both birds were together again and 

 flew into the pines out of sight. 



I had almost forgotten them in watch- 

 ing other birds, when they reappeared on the 

 rail and went through a similar performance. 

 This was unusual, certainly ; and I sat very 

 quiet, very much interested, though a bit 

 puzzled, and a bit disappointed that they 

 had not gone to their nest. They had some 

 material in their beaks both times, and were 

 now probably hunting for more — for rabbit 

 fur, perhaps, in the old orchard. But what 

 had they done with it } " Perhaps," I thought, 

 " they dropped it to deceive me." Chickadee 



