The Mockingbird 
163 
In their search for a more secure position the sorely distressed 
Mockers sought the protection of a large orange-tree, and on a horizontal 
limb, ten feet from the ground, built a nest. Here more trouble awaited 
them, for a cat climbed the tree, despite the thorns, and ate the young in 
the nest. If the poor birds were discouraged by this series of disasters 
they did not show it in their actions. A week after this last catastrophe 
I saw the female carrying twigs in among the dagger-shaped leaves of 
a yucca. Here, at last, she had found a secure retreat, and reared her 
young in safety, free from the intrusion of man, or ox, or cat. 
If kindly treated, this bird will often become very trustful ; and, if 
you are so fortunate as to have trees and shrubbery about your house, 
he will perch in your doorway, and even hop about your room. I knew 
one that often did this, until one day a heavy hand was laid upon him 
and he was placed in a cage. But the moment he was imprisoned his 
tameness vanished. He refused all food, and, dashing wildly against 
the cruel bars, sought his freedom long and untiringly. Cruelty 
He could hear the buzzing of a Hummingbird’s wings o{ the Ca ^ e 
among the woodbine on the veranda-trellis. He 
heard, too, the twitter of Swifts as they circled and darted about the 
sky, and again and again the songs and calls of his fellows reached 
his ears, as they chased one another about the grove in their mimic 
combats. In his efforts to escape he drove his bill so incessantly between 
the bars of the cage that his head bled from many bruises. At times 
he called loudly for help, and never was content a moment until his 
wings bore him once more into the bright sunshine ; for, like most wild 
creatures that have grown to maturity in the free air, he never could 
be taught to live in captivity. 
A friend of mine once picked up a young Mockingbird that had 
been injured, and kindly cared for it. She placed it in a cage, and fed it 
for a time with ripe berries and a mixture of boiled egg and potato. 
Later, when it was able to fly, she gave it its liberty. Instead of leaving 
it followed her about the house, hopping and flying along the floor. It 
would alight on her arm and feed from her hand. If she were out of its 
sight for an hour it would become uneasy, and, entering the house by 
door or window, would seek her from room to room, chirping loudly in 
distressed tones. For many weeks the bird remained about the house 
and lawn, and would come when called by its mistress. 
Audubon relates a similar instance as happening at Natchez, in 
Mississippi. 
The fact that Mockingbirds, when taken while young, and properly 
cared for, will thrive in captivity, is unfortunate for the preservation of 
the species. Thousands of young are collected each Exportation 
year and placed in cages, but only a small number of Forbidden 
captives survive the first few months of their im- 
prisonment. The exportation of caged Mockingbirds is prohibited by law. 
“In winter,” wrote Audubon, in the second volume of his Birds of 
