231 
so destructive to the foliag-e of the Berry bush are 
mostly kept under in gardens were Sparrows dis- 
cover them ; they also destroy Moths, Butterflies, 
Beetles, and many other insects, 
Mr. Bradley, an intelligent writer, has cal- 
culated that a single pair of Sparrows, having 
young to maintain, will destroy 3360 Caterpillars 
in a week ! and, I have not the least doubt of 
that number of Caterpillars of the Tenthredo 
kind, would, in the same time, strip from thirty 
to forty moderate-sized Berry bushes of their 
leaves, providing the weather proved congenial 
to their habits. Surely this alone is no small 
thing in favour of those almost friendless animals. 
While writing on this subject, I am reminded of 
a remarkable circumstance respecting a Spari'ow 
and cricket. Although it will be leaving the 
proper course of this work, yet it may not be 
uninteresting to some ; therefore, under that im- 
pression, I venture to communicate it from minutes 
made at the time. 
It has been a custom with my family to feed 
the Birds near the kitchen door the Sparrows 
became from habit so familiar and emboldened 
as frequently to march into the kitchen, as though 
they constituted a portion of the family, and did 
not hesitate to regale themselves with any thing 
they happened to meet with in their way. One 
of those foragers, apparently the parent of a 
craving progeny, one day was noticed by one of 
our family that was in the kitchen at the time, to 
