156 JVays of Wood Folk. 



of his musical efforts the golden-wing, instead of 

 clinging to the side of a tree, sits across the limb, like 

 other birds. 



A curious habit which the bird has adopted with 

 advancing civilization is that of providing himself 

 with a sheltered sleeping place from the storms and 

 cold of winter. Late in the fall he finds a deserted 

 building, and after a great deal of shy inspection, 

 to satisfy himself that no one is within, drills a hole 

 through the side. He has then a comfortable place to 

 sleep, and an abundance of decaying wood in which 

 to hunt insects on stormy days. An ice-house is a 

 favorite location for him, the warm sawdust furnish- 

 ing a good burrowing place for a nest or sleeping 

 room. When a building is used as a nesting place, 

 the bird very cunningly drills the entrance close up 

 under the eaves, where it is sheltered from storms, and 

 at the same time out of sight of all prying eyes. 



During the winter several birds often occupy one 

 building together. I know of one old deserted barn 

 where last year five of the birds lived very peaceably ; 

 though what they were doing there in the daytime I 

 could never quite make out. At almost any hour of the 

 day, if one approached very cautiously and thumped 

 the side of the barn, some of the birds would dash out 

 in great alarm, never stopping to look behind them. 

 At first there were but three entrances ; but after I 



