yS THE RETURN OF THE NATIVES. 



mouse or chickadee than any other member of the 

 family. He is not so restless as many of his 

 cousins are. As he stands on the limb, his wire 

 legs braced to reach for an insect in a bunch of 

 young leaves, I observe his uniform. An ashen 

 coat, with a patch of yellowish green on the back, 

 and a bright yellow breast marked with a rather 

 broad stripe of chestnut near the throat. Why he 

 does not have a liking for the woods in eastern 

 Massachusetts, after May, but hurries Northward 

 to make his nest, is a mystery that he has not yet 

 communicated to man. 



From the edge of the wood I look out upon the 

 meadow studded with dandelion blossoms ; a green 

 carpet on which is scattered myriads of gold pieces. 

 It is a pretty scene with robins and grackles mov- 

 ing about to enliven it. 



Why was this common thrush of ours called the 

 robin? Perhaps the early colonists gave him his 

 name on account of his reddish breast and familiar 

 habits, which reminded them more than any other 

 bird here of that sociable little creature of the 

 dearly remembered fields of England. Mr. Ruskin 

 in describing his robin at home has also given, 

 perhaps without knowing it, a very good picture 

 of our bird " as he foots it featly here and there " 



