THE ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK. 
211 
The flight of the Rose-breasted Grosbeak is strong, even, and as graceful 
as it is sustained. When travelling southward, at the approach of autumn, 
or about the 1st of September, it passes high over the forest trees, in the 
manner of the King-bird and the Robin, alighting toward sunset on a tall 
tree, from which it in a few 'minutes dives into some close thicket, where 
it remains during the night. The birds travel singly at this season, as 
well as during spring. 
I am indebted to my friend John Bachman, for the following information 
respecting this interesting Grosbeak : ‘‘One spring, I shot at a beautiful male 
bird of this species, in the State of New York. It was wounded in one foot 
only, and although I could not perceive any other injury afterwards, it fell 
from the tree to the ground, and before it recovered itself I secured it. Not 
having a cage at hand, I let it fly in the room which I had made my study. 
Before an hour had elapsed, it appeared as if disposed to eat ; it refused corn 
and wheat, but fed heartily on bread dipped in milk. The next day it was 
nearly quite gentle, and began to examine the foot injured by the shot, which 
was much swollen and quite black. It begant o bite off its foot at the 
wounded part, and soon succeeded in cutting it quite across. It healed in a 
few days, and the bird used the mutilated leg almost as well as the other, 
perching and resting upon it. It required indeed some care to observe that 
the patient had been injured. I procured a cage for it, to which it imme- 
diately became reconciled. It ate all kinds of' food, but preferred Indian 
corn meal and hempseed. It appeared fonder of insects than birds of that 
genus are supposed to be, and ate grasshoppers and crickets with peculiar 
relish. It would at times sit for hours watching the flies, as these passed 
about it, and snatched at and often secured such wasps as now and then 
approached the pieces of fruit thrown into the cage. Very often, of fine 
moonshiny nights, it would tune its pipe, and sing sweetly, but not loudly, 
remaining quietly perched and in the same position. Whilst singing during 
the day, it was in the habit of opening its wings, and gently raising them, 
somewhat in the manner of the Mocking-bird. I found it very difficult to 
preserve this bird during winter, and was obliged for that purpose to place 
it in a room heated by a stove to summer temperature. It was a lively 
and very gentle companion of my study for nearly three years ; it died of 
cold the third winter. It frequently escaped from the cage, but never ex- 
hibited the least desire to leave me, for it invariably returned to some 
portion of the house at the approach of night. Its song continued about 
six weeks during summer, and about two in the autumn ; at all other 
periods it simply uttered a faint chuck, and seemed to possess many of the 
ordinary habits of the Blue Grosbeak.” 
The food of this beautiful bird consists of seeds of the cereal plants, of 
