48 
OUR HOME BIRDS. 
superior powers and greater variety. The English 
robin is * said to have the sweetest song of all the 
feathered tribe. 
“ The robin is very apt to selectHhe branch of an 
apple tree for its nest, which is always a large one, 
plastered on the inside with mud/ and then lined 
with hay or fine grass. The five eggs are a beautiful 
bluish-green color, and the little ones are brought 
up on worms, caterpillars, and berries. 
“ After singing melodiously from the very begin- 
ning of dawn, in response to the ‘ get-up ’ call of the 
little hair-bird, until the other birds are well under 
way, the robin will suddenly fly down from the 
branch on which he was perched while singing, and 
begin to hunt about on the ground for his breakfast 
with wonderful industry. He can walk about more 
easily than many other birds, and has a particular 
fancy for the large, fat caterpillars that are also out 
walking at this time of day. 
“ The English robin stays at home all the year, and 
seems to enliven the winter with his bright color and 
sweet song. 4 In that season/ says an English writer, 
4 it visits our dwellings, and seeks the warmest and 
most sheltered situations ; and if one happens still 
to continue in the woods, it becomes the companion 
of the fagot-maker, cherishes itself at his fire, pecks 
at his bread, and flutters the whole day around him, 
