birds arrive somewhat later, especially the Scarlet Tanager, and the fruit trees are 

 generally also flowering later, — all coming forth, one after another, to welcome the 

 birthday of June. 



Among the ornamental shrubs the Japan quince, the beautiful Tartarian honey- 

 suckle, and the Japan plum^ were in full bloom. The lowlands were bright with the 

 fragrant meadow pink^, and on the edges of the woods the handsome blue polemonium 

 or Jacob's ladder', the rue anemone^ the fragrant waxy-white flowers of the May-apple 

 or mandrake^, and many others were found. Blue and yellow violets w^ere common 

 everywhere. The next day. May 10, the weather became still warmer, and in the late 

 afternoon and evening the air was rather sultry. Low clouds of a dark gray, color 

 obscured the blue of the sky. After the night had fallen the air was aUve with thou- 

 sands of birds migrating northward. The call-notes of many species could be heard 

 from all sides. Innumerable Bobolinks passed on to the North; they could easily be 

 distinguished by their mettalic notes. Warblers and Goldfinches could also be plainly 

 distinguished by their voices. They all pursued their way northward rather low, and 

 sometimes their forms could be plainly seen. Thousands upon thousands of birds w^ere 

 moving on. Even at three o'clock in the morning I heard their voices. Early in the 

 morning of May 11 all the larger gardens in the city swarmed with migrants, the 

 majority of them being Warblers, especially Chestnut, Blackburnian, Magnolia, Black- 

 throated Green, Black-throated Blue, Black-and-white, Canada Warblers, and others. 



The most conspicuous of all the migrants, however, was the White-throated 

 Sparrow. Its peculiar song echoed from every garden containing ornamental trees 

 and shrubs. Although the van had arrived late in April and early in May, the majority 

 appeared in the second week of that month. In the garden of Miss Hedwig Schlichting 

 they were observed from the day of their arrival till their departure late in May. In 

 the large old apple trees near her house, in the adjoining grounds, and in the evergreens 

 and the ornamental shrubs they felt perfectly at home. My friend fed them under her 

 window twice each day with Canary and millet seed. Sometimes more than twenty- 

 five were picking up the food she supplied, often in company with White-crowns and 

 House Sparrows. She observed that only a few of the last species mingled with the 

 White-throats, and that no quarreling ever occurred. 



"The White-throated Sparrows," Miss Hedwig Schlichting says, "are elegant and 

 noble birds, highly interesting in all their ways and manners, and showing nothing of 

 the vulgar and low traits of the European species. When not molested they are con- 

 fident and even tame. I observe them often for an hour from the open window, enjoy- 

 ing highly their presence. In the broad old apple tree, under which I scatter the food, 

 the sprightly Wood Warblers in great numbers and of many species, the Baltimore 

 Oriole, the Catbird and Yireos are busily engaged in searching for insects and in singing 

 their sweet notes. Now and then one of these Sparrows mounts the top of this or a 

 neighboring tree, warbling with all his power his peculiar and exquisite notes. I even 

 have heard them utter their song on the ground, when they were picking up the seeds 

 which I had scattered around. Often I heard two or three in different directions vicing 

 with each other in pouring forth their melody. This song is quite different from any 



I Primus triloba. 2 Phlox pllosa. •■ Palemonlam cteraleum. t Tbalictrum anemonoldes. » Podophyllum pehatttta. 



