October, ig2t 



(Continued from page yS) 

 all the time a worm dangling down his waistcoat. 

 It was his duty to provide, but he took his time 

 about it and gave it an air of pompous condescen- 

 sion. 



In a short time three yellow beaks appeared 

 above the rim, opening at the first sign of ap- 

 proach. Then only I knew the meaning of the 

 word "maw." There was no closing them. A 

 quick gulp and again they were open. After 

 a few days three long necks appeared, and it was 

 at this stage that I marveled at maternal pride. 

 But when at last the birds had feathered out and 

 sat facing me, their beaks tilted upward, their 

 white bibs showing, I berated myself for my 

 distrust. By this time they had begun to give 

 themselves airs. They plumed themselves like 

 old fops. They resented cuddling. Even on 

 cold days when "their mother tried to hover them 

 she found it awkward work, for no sooner would 

 she settle over them than a head pried up each 

 wing, and a small plump figure would sprawl 

 out from beneath her breast. 



AT LAST an evening came when protection 

 was no longer possible. That night as I 

 palled down the curtain, I think I sensed their 

 danger, tucked in for the first time without a 

 sheltering wing, but I was not prepared for the 

 sharp cry of anguish that later brought me to my 

 feet. I arrived just in time to flash my torch 

 upon two beady eyes and a gray figure scamper- 

 ing down the vines. When at last I had clam- 

 bered to the nest and put my hand in, it was 

 empty. Then as my mother held a flaring 

 lamp, I felt about the ground below. In a moment 

 my hands touched something soft and warm 

 a "fat, downv little ball. Then another. Th 

 last I thought that I should never find; and 

 indeed, had I not had in mind the evil fac 

 among the vines, I had given up the search. 

 But finally I came across it, cowering perilously 

 under foot. The first receptacle for the evicted 

 family that we found in our desperation was the 

 big tin to the fireless cooker, and there, after cov- 

 ering it with a warm cloth, we left them, ill- con- 

 tented with their new abode. 



I slept impatiently that night; I could not bear 

 to think of the long weeks of patient brooding 

 with no reward. At an early hour I heard a quick, 

 eager caroling, followed by a hush, the silence 

 of discovery. When in the cool, gray dawn 

 I had rushed out with my burden, the father 

 was already on the trellis, a worm dribbling from 

 his beak, the mother making frantic search 

 among the leaves. Swiftly I moved the tin 

 upon the lawn and waited, but for the first time 

 thev eyed me with suspicion, as though I were 

 but making sport of tragedy. Then lifting out 

 one fledgling, I placed it fluttering in the grass. 

 There was an instant sign of recognition, a quick 

 tilt of the head. Back I put the bird and dis- 

 appeared. In a moment I saw the mother swoop 

 to within a few feet of the tin, hop cautiously 

 toward it, peck its gleaming surface, and then 

 listen, head cocked on one side. Round and 

 round she went, much as I might have encircled 

 an oil tank had I known itto contain my offspring, 

 and at last, after a breathless summoning of 

 courage.she hopped upon the rim.where she stood 

 regarding fixedly the miracle before her eyes. 

 But she was above all things practical, and was 

 soon on the wing in search of food. Once I 

 was sure that the tin had conveyed the idea of 

 home, I moved it to the porch, and as she flut- 

 tered toward it, almost before I set it down, 

 I knew that I was vindicated in her eyes. 



And well I might be, for from that day my 

 labors never ceased. Each morning when I 

 arose to put out my hungry charges, their parents 

 were already waiting, though now quite pa- 

 tiently, with worm in beak. But after all they 

 were providers and had intermittent duties. I 

 was- nursemaid and mine never ceased. There 

 was no reasoning with my foundlings, and no 

 amount of pressure could convince them of their 

 present safetv. They simply didn't like the fire- 

 less cooker. "They had only tolerated the nest be- 

 cause it gave an unimpeded outlook on the world 

 outside. Sometimes a bee had buzzed by and 

 they had opened their little beaks, or a fish- 

 hawk had swooped past and they had cowered in 

 a delightful terror. But this was prison without 

 a view. They protested. They summoned up 

 their growing strength, and in two days the 

 strongest of the trio had fluttered to the rim, 

 where he sat hunched like an old man, but with 

 a look of inquiry and daring in his young eyes. 



