6o Birds Every Child Should Know 
marking time, not hopping, sparrow-fashion; 
and he took very dainty, pretty steps that sug- 
gested a French dancing master. Occasionally 
he would scratch the path for insects, like a tiny 
chicken. Although she had never seen the 
teacher, and had expected that the loud voice 
came from a much larger bird, she felt sure that 
this must be he, so she sat down on a log and 
watched and waited. Presently she saw him tug 
at a fine black hair-like root that lay across the 
path, and, snapping it off, quickly fly away, 
away— oh, where did he go with it? She ran 
stumbling after him through the undergrowth 
to a little clearing. There another bird, just 
like him, whom she instantly guessed was his 
mate, flew straight toward her, dropped to the 
ground, ran about distractedly, dragging one 
wing as if it were broken, and uttering sharp, 
piteous notes of alarm. The little girl didn’t 
like to distress the birds, of course, but how 
could she resist the temptation to find their 
nest? So on she tramped around and around in 
an ever widening circle, the excited birds still 
hovering near and sharply scolding her. You 
may be sure she was quite as excited as they. 
At last, a little dome-shaped mound of 
grasses, half hidden among the dry brown oak 
leaves and wild geranium, gladdened her eyes. 
Running around to the opposite side she knelt 
down on the grass, peeped under the arched roof 
