THE BALTIMORE ORIOLE. 
407 
Lists to the noontide hum of busy bees, 
Her partner's mellow song, the brook, the breeze; 
These day by day the lonely hours deceive, 
From dewy morn to slow-descending eve. " 
Though nearly all the American orioles build pensile nests, it is 
certain that none build with the skill, and care, and prevision of the 
Baltimore. He shows much prudence in the selection of a site. The 
tree chosen is always sound and vigorous, and the particular branch high 
up, well covered with leaves, and not likely to be torn from the trunk 
by passing winds. Round a couple of forked twigs, at the extremity 
of such a branch, the distance between the twigs corresponding to the 
intended width of the nest, he fastens strong strings of hemp or flax. 
Then, with the same materials, mixed with a good deal of loose tow, 
he weaves, or rather felts, a wonderfully stout and compact texture, not 
unlike that of a hat " in its raw state ;" and this he deftly shapes, with 
his strong pointed bill, into a bag or purse some six or seven inches in 
depth ; lining it substantially with various soft substances, well inter- 
woven with the external felt, and finishing off with a layer of horse- 
hair. The fabric thus ingeniously constructed is carefully protected 
from sun and rain by the overhanging foliage, which forms a kind of 
natural pent-house. 
It is interesting to know, on the authority of Wilson, that in these 
nests there is a certain individuality of character, as there is in the 
makers. A particular form of building is common to all the birds of a 
species ; but yet each nest has differences in point of detail. We have 
observed this to be the case in the nests of the chaffinch. Whether 
the differences depend on situation, or the comparative abundance or 
scarcity of materials, or on the temperament of the birds, we do not 
undertake to determine. But, as Wilson remarks, some appear far 
superior workmen to others ; and it is possible that age may improve 
them in nest-building as it does in colours. Wilson describes a Balti- 
more oriole's nest, which he had acquired, as cylindrical in shape, five 
inches in diameter, seven inches in depth, and rounded at the bottom. 
The opening at top was narrowed, by a horizontal covering, to a 
diameter of two inches and a half. The materials employed were flax, 
