DANGER OF AN EARLY EXTINCTION oF sone ‘BIRDS. 177 
busy early and late, faithful laborers in lawns and fields, 
protecting them against their two worst enemies, grubs 
and earth-worms. The number of these destroyed by 
one robin in a season is enormous. <A pair have been 
known to bring to one brood of young more than 3,000 
earth-worms, and that, too, when the birds were sur- 
rounded by ripe fruit which was left unmolested. 
The destruction alone of the cut-worms, saves annual- 
ly to the farmers millions of dollars, more, in fact, than 
enough to pay the injury done by all the birds in 
America. These worms, so destructive to many kinds 
of roots and cereals, come out of the earth at night to 
feed.. Before they get back the robins breakfast on 
them. All the thrushes are early risers, and from this 
well-known trait. comes the truism, “The early bird 
catches the worm.” 
The swallows are on the wing most of the day clear- 
ing the air of gnats, small flies and mosquitoes. The 
number of insects destroyed by these aerial birds is 
enormous. No one can charge the swallows with 
injuring anything that belongs to man, or of eating any 
mite which by any means could be converted by him 
into food or raiment. All the fly-catchers are co-work- 
ers with the swallows, taking their food on the wing. 
They are entirely imsectivorous, and each one literally 
“worth its weight in gold.” 
The climbers seem to have been especially created 
for the protection of the trees, and well do they fulfill 
their mission. They are provided with strong claws 
and stiff acuminate tail quills to assist in climbing. 
