HOME STUDIES IN NATURE. 



Chapter I. 



OUR FAMILIAR BIRDS. 



Dueing the past summer my time and attention have 



been devoted almost exclusively to the birds which 



^nested around the house, and I have fully verified the 



fact that in the grove and orchard they can be tamed 



and made quite docile pets. 



The house is situated on the main avenue, near the 

 business part of the village, and is surrounded by a 

 thick grove of native oaks and other trees. Eack of 

 the grove is a fruit orchard, extending to the next 

 street ; between the grove and orchard is the shrubbery 

 — a dense mass of various flowering shrubs. Climbing 

 plants cling about the piazzas in tangled luxuriance. 

 Surrounded as the place is by the din and hum of 

 business, yet on the grounds if is very quiet. No cat 

 is kept on the premises, and a continual warfare was 

 waged against all neighboring cats which ventured 

 within the enclosure. This the birds were quick to 

 learn, and gave cries of alarm whenever this dangerous 



