4 o 
Nature Portraits 
Far in the South he gathers his clans, 
Nor thinks of the regions of ice ; 
Too early yet for housekeeping plans, 
He rev’ls and gluttons in fields of rice. 
Rice-bird, bob-oMink, 
Spink, spank, spink ; 
Hunter is waiting under the bloom, 
Robert of Lincoln falls to his doom. 
Chee, chee, chee. 
By A. Radclyffc Dugin ore. 
I Ins is a near cousin of the famous pompauo. It is rare at Key West. 
OLD WIFE. 
Spring comes : swinging on brier and weed, 
Near to the nest of his little dame, 
Over the mountain-side and mead, 
Another proud groom is telling his name: 
Bob-o’-link, bob-o’-link, 
Spink, spank, spink; 
The meadow belongs to wife and me, — 
Life is as happy as life can be. 
Chee, chee, chee. 
The spirit of science lends itself well to song. The concrete is not 
unpoetic. If in this day we apostrophize and personify nature less, we have 
improved in the spirit and intimacy of our song. The point of view gradu- 
ally has shifted from human interest in natural things to the things them- 
selves. 
