162 ON THE EDGE OF THE WILDERNESS 
babies, grown nearly to parental proportions, out 
of the nest, out of the pine tree, and down the 
slope into the open, where the entire family 
emerged one summer morning at five o’clock, the 
parents in the lead, the babies half walking, half 
flying on behind and making such a cawing and 
squawking as would have done credit to fifty im- 
patient automobiles trying to toot a Georgia 
cracker out of the middle of the road. It was no 
small job to feed this growing family, and Jim 
and his wife had to start in early. At that, they 
had the better of the farmer in whose garden they 
sought for grubs, for he had to buy shoes for his 
children, and you know what that means these 
days! 
The babies grew with extraordinary rapidity, 
however, and before long could forage for them- 
selves. ‘There were many other children in the 
eolony up in the pines, and many were the early 
morning games of tag and prisoner’s base the 
flock played in the pasture at the foot of the 
woods, the old folks joining in. At least, that 
is what they looked like, though the crows no 
doubt had other names for them. Games they 
