THE GOATSUCKERS, ETc. I4I 
and soon after make a nest of little twigs glued to- 
gether securely against the bricks. They are busy 
enough when they have but themselves to feed, but 
a little later, when the eggs are hatched, they have 
more than double duty to perform, and from very 
early morning until very late at night they zigzag the 
air with tireless, rapid wing, and dart every few 
minutes into the chimney to feed the young birds. 
Perhaps they do get tired at times, for I have fancied 
they twitter less constantly then than in August or 
September when the young can take care of them- 
selves,—there are two broods,—and it is during clear 
September sunny afternoons and after sundown that 
these swifts show us what flight really means. They 
have aerial races then, generally three joining in the 
sport, and the celerity with which they dash down the 
pathless highways of the upper air is simply marvel- 
lous, and the faster they fly the louder they twitter. 
The food of these birds is, of course, insects, and 
the number they destroy in the course of a season is 
simply incalculable. 
Early in May, when we begin to look for wild 
flowers in abundance and the fruit-trees are in bloom, 
the Humming-bird suddenly puts in an appearance 
and adds a charm to the landscape that remains until 
October 1. They feed upon small insects and not 
wholly upon nectar, as is popularly supposed, and yet 
sweets are not by any means unacceptable. They are 
hot-headed little fellows and fight most fiercely at 
times, even occasionally with fatal results. They are 
not exactly gregarious and yet a good many will be 
found together. My study window that I at present 
