THE HABITS OF OUR BIRDS. 117 
last epithet he would think of applying to any he has 
seen is the word “frail.” On the contrary, if he were 
asked to name a bird, the nest of which combined beauty, 
completeness, safety, and (in view of the small size and 
light weight of the parent) strength, he could think of no 
bird he would sooner name than the one he is speaking of. 
Remember that the bird, as Wilson himself tells us, “but 
for its length of tail would rank next to the Humming 
Bird in magnitude.” Its nest has invariably been found, 
so far as we know, very large. for the size of its builder, 
with soft but strongly felted walls, a great depth of cav- 
ity, so that there is no danger of the eggs ever rolling or 
being thrown out by the motion of the branches, or of 
being broken. 
same thing, and Wilson may have seen one not finished, 
x e _ that as it may, the whole ger , of Polioptile, ao far aa 
_ We know, P. cærulea, P. melanura and P. Lembergii, ait 
have the same style of nest, and all are conspicuous for 
their elegance and substantial form. | 
The Indigo Bird (Spiza cyanea), Wilson tells us, is 
“numerous in all the settled parts of the Middle and East- 
ern States,” and yet he says“The nest of this bird is 
usually built in a low bush, among rank grass, grain, or _ 
clover, suspended by two twigs, one passing up each side; 
