COW BUNTING. 
79 
premises altogether, even after she has deposited one or more eggs. The 
following anecdote will show not only that the Cowpen finch insinuates 
herself slily into the nests of other birds, but that even the most pacific 
of them will resent the insult. A Blue-bird had built fur three succes- 
sive seasons in the cavity of a mulberry tree near my dwelling. One 
day when the nest was nearly finished, I discovered a female Cow-bird 
perched upon a fence stake near it, with her eyes apparently fixed upon 
the spot while the builder was busy in adjusting her nest. The moment 
she left it the intruder darted into it, and in five minutes returned and 
sailed off to her companions with seeming delight, which she expressed 
by her gestures and notes. The Blue-bird soon returned and entered 
the nest, but instantaneously fluttered back with much apparent hesita- 
tion, and perched upon the highest branch of the tree, uttering a rapidly 
repeated note of complaint and resentment, which soon brought the 
male, who reciprocated her feelings by every demonstration of the most 
vindictive resentment. They entered the nest together and returned 
several times, uttering their uninterrupted complaints for ten or fifteen 
minutes. The male then darted away to the neighboring trees as if in 
quest of the offender, and fell upon a Cat-bird, which he chastised 
severely, and then turned to an innocent Sparrow that was chanting its 
ditty in a peach tree. Notwithstanding the affront was so passionately 
resented, I found the Blue-bird had laid an egg the next day. Perhaps 
a tenant less attached to a favorite spot would have acted more fastidi- 
ously, by deserting the premises altogether. In this instance, also, I 
determined to watch the occurrences that were to follow, but on one 
of my morning visits I found the common enemy of the eggs and young 
of all the small birds had despoiled the nest, a Coluber was found coiled 
in the hollow, and the esjgs sucked. 
" Agreeably to my observation, all the young birds destined to cherish 
the young Cow-bird are of a mild and affectionate disposition ; and it 
is not less remarkable, that they are all smaller than the intruder; the 
Blue-bird is the only one nearly as large. This is a good-natured mild 
creature, although it makes a vigorous defence when assaulted. The 
Yellow-throat, the Sparrow, the Goldfinch, the Indigo-bird, and the Blue- 
bird, are the only birds in whose nests I have found the eggs or the 
young of the Cowpen finch, though doubtless there are some others. 
" What becomes of the eggs or young of the proprietor ? This is 
the most interesting question that appertains to this subject. There 
must be some special law of nature which determines that the young 
of the proprietors are never to be found tenants in common with the 
young Cow-bird. I shall offer the result of my own experience on this 
point, and leave it to you and others better versed in the mysteries of 
nature than I am to draw your own conclusions. Whatever theory may 
be adopted the facts must remain the same. Having discovered a 
