BIRDS’ NESTS. 
259 
rare in it), the winter wrens, and the common 
house wrens. A nest of the winter wren 
which I found in the White Mountains of 
New Hampshire is extremely interesting 
from the care with which it was concealed. 
It was in a retired part of a swampy tract 
of woodland, in a spot with a confusion of 
fallen trunks and branches, and in a low, 
moss-covered stump. The stump I have still ; 
but, without pulling it to pieces, few persons 
would find readily the home within, for the 
entrance is only an inch wide, and is cover- 
ed by a piece of hanging moss. The cavity 
inside is thickly lined with feathers, as one 
finds on inserting a finger. I should not 
have found the nest, after being attracted to 
its neighborhood by the singing male, had I 
not seen the female at work and going in 
and out. 
The common house wrens (small and 
brown, with dark transverse waves) are 
characterized more than any other of my 
feathered friends by pertinacity. Their 
conduct at the time of nest-building is oft- 
en extraordinary. Almost as often as not 
they begin by a quarrel, in which they are 
generally to blame, but are also successful. 
Sometimes they wish to obtain a ready fur- 
nished house, and, finding none unoccupied, 
take possession of the most attractive which 
they can find in the absence of its owners, 
and on the return of the proprietors are so 
persistently rude as generally to drive them 
away. Sometimes they merely take a fan- 
cy to the situation of a neighbor’s home, 
and, having seized upon the latter, pull it 
to pieces to make room for a new structure, 
or fill it up with rubbish of their own col- 
lecting that it may be small enough for 
them, for they quarrel with much larger 
birds than themselves. When they build 
their nest peaceably, though they some- 
times choose a simple cavity in wood, they 
are addicted to choosing extraordinary situ- 
ations, and, having once carried in their ma- 
terials (sticks and twigs, afterward to be 
lined warmly), they are not disconcerted by 
having them removed, but persist many 
times in replacing them. I give below a 
partial list of the interesting situations in 
which the house wren’s nest has been found, 
and I do not doubt that it might be ex- 
tended over a page : an old hat, the sleeve 
of a coat, a tin spout, a broken jar, the 
space between two cogs of a disused mill- 
wheel, the “ box” of a carriage, a stove, a 
ventilator, a wooden pump, a basket, a 
milk can, etc. 
I shall close this article by a conundrum 
and its answer. What birds lay their eggs 
in a nest, yet build no nest nor use an old 
one, do not sit upon their eggs, though 
these are not hatched by the sun, and nev- 
er feed their young ? Secondly, how is all 
this brought about ? The answer to the first 
question is — the cow-birds. The answer to 
the second is longer. It may not seem ap- 
propriate to speak at length, in an article 
on bird architecture, of birds who build 
nothing; but closely connected with them 
is the subject of two-story birds’ nests. The 
cow -buntings do not mate as most other 
wild birds do, but in sjjring and summer 
commonly form small flocks. Neither male 
nor female show any affection toward one 
another, nor toward their young. The fe- 
male, when ready to lay, becomes very 
nervous, as is natural to a mother who has 
no home prepared for her offspring, and she 
therefore looks about anxiously for a nurs- 
ery and a nurse. Finally, she sees a bird 
building, or finds a nest just completed, per- 
haps with fresh eggs in it. She waits until 
the poor warbler, vireo, or sparrow is gone, 
then steals up and lays her egg, sometimes 
returning soon afterward to lay another. 
The mother thus imposed upon soon comes 
back, and in consternation calls her mate. 
Strange to say, they very often accept the 
strange egg, hatch it, and care for the chick 
until he can care for himself. Were it not 
so, the race of cow-birds would no longer 
exist, unless those birds altered their habits 
very materially. Sometimes, however, they 
abandon their nests ; less often they destroy 
or remove the foundling ; very rarely they 
add a story to their nursery, leaving the 
strange egg on the lower floor, where it 
comes to nothing, and laying their own 
eggs in the upper chamber. Among our 
illustrations on page 256 is a representa- 
tion of one of these double nests. When a 
small bird, such as the cow-bunting usu- 
ally selects for the purpose, consents to 
become the foster-mother of the stranger 
deposited with her, her history for the rest 
of the season is a sad one. The parasite’s 
egg is larger than her own, and consequent- 
ly receives so great a share of warmth from 
her body that hers usually become stale, or 
at least it is hatched first. In the latter 
case the young cow-bird soon clears the 
nest for himself and fills it up. His foster- 
parents are now devoted in providing him 
with food. He is greedy and lazy, and 
seems to stay in the nest much longer than 
is necessary. When at last ho makes up 
his mind to take care of himself, and shows 
that he is not utterly helpless, he leaves the 
friends to whom he owes his life without 
thanking them, and, joining his comrades, 
becomes a member of the cow-bird commu- 
nity. The facts just related present many 
interesting questions for discussion. Upon 
these I can not enter here, but let me say to 
my readers that in the study of birds they 
will not only find many subjects for philo- 
sophical speculation, but jnany soiirces of 
pure pleasure, combining healthful exercise 
and the study of Nature, which, if thorough- 
ly appreciated, can not but inspire us with 
good sentiments and good taste. 
