NATURE AND ANIMAL LIFE 



suitable boxes and houses for them to nest in. In 

 this way you can attract bluebirds, house wrens, 

 and purple martins. 



In certain respects the birds are much like the 

 weeds. Certain weeds follow our footsteps and 

 thrive best near us; they fatten on our labor. So do 

 certain species of birds follow us, not for protection 

 but for better shelter and better fare. Surely the 

 English sparrow does not dog the footsteps of man 

 for any fancied protection. The wood thrush as I 

 know it seems to love civilization; he, doubtless 

 finds his favorite food morg abundant in the vi- 

 cinity of our dwellings. His cousins, the hermit and 

 veery thrushes, prefer the dense, remote woods, and 

 doubtless for the same reason. The wood thrush's 

 brighter coat seems more in keeping with the open 

 glades and groves than with the denser woods. 



The paramount question with bird and beast, as 

 with us, is always the question of well-being. We 

 consider the matter, we weigh the pros and cons, 

 and choose our course, as we think, according to 

 reason. But the animals are prompted and guided 

 by outward conditions, — the season, the food- 

 supply, their nesting needs, and so forth. Of course 

 primitive man is largely influenced by the same con- 

 siderations; his necessities determine his course. 



It is interesting to note how certain insects be- 

 have like natural forces. Watch the growth of the 

 paper nest of the hornet; see it envelop the obstacles 

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