52 



BIRDS AND FLOWERS. 



suet almost as well as the nuthatches. The chicka- 

 dee 's note is the most cheery sound we hear in winter. 

 Well might Emerson admire 4 'this scrap of valor " 

 who 



"just for play 

 "Fronts the north wind in waistcoat gray." 



No wonder the poet inquires 



"What fire burns in that little chest, 

 So frolic, stout and self-possest?" 



There is one good thing about the chickadee : If he 

 comes at all, he comes in flocks. I have seen a dozen 

 of these black-throated, white-cheeked little midgets 

 on my window-sill at one time. They would struggle 

 for the sunflower seed, carry off a bit to a neighboring 

 tree, and then fly back like black-headed bullets after 

 more. 



Although the four preceding species are all that I 

 have ever found common about the house in the win- 

 ter, there are other kinds occasionally seen. The 

 hairy woodpecker has sometimes honored us with a 

 call. Although his coloring is practically the same 

 as that of the downy, his large size, equal in length 

 to a robin, and his big head and beak easily distin- 

 guish him. His rattling cluck might almost be mis- 



