i66 
LAND OF SUNSHINE. 
Oace disturbed from his slumbers by this midnight carouser the 
tourist in his chamber may as well sit bolt upright in his bed 
and listen and laugh, for it is certain he will not doze off again 
until the reveler in the tree outside has worn his throat 
hoarse. Save for these singing months the mocker is heard 
little but for his short shrill screams as he makes-believe chase 
some other birds from his haunts. 
When singing, he seeks a pinnacle, but when nesting or 
otherwise engaged, this free and easy bird chooses shrubs or 
low trees. He is not shy, but easily tamed, even coming at the 
call of those with whom he is familiar. One may be wishing 
for a glimpse of the famous songster and peering into the 
farthest trees or sky to make him out, when, lo ! within a few 
feet, if one be alert to movement and color, the little fellow 
may be seen sitting or noiselessly dropping from his perch as 
fearless as a caged canary. In flight the mocker is as still as 
a falling leaf, merely flitting, with hardly a movement of the 
wings, hence the stranger thinks him difficult to find. If in 
one of his listening, dreamy moods, the bird challenges one to 
catch him, moving lazily and for a short distance. If a hungry 
spell is on him, he darts quickly to the ground, where he 
peeps longingly under the garden seats as if wishing you would 
take the trouble of moving them so he might help himself to the 
bugs. But he is a poor pedestrian. He never walks, like a 
blackbird, though, if there be some inducement ahead of him, 
he will hop quite a distance, listening as he goes, with head 
erect, and dainty tread as if he spurned the ground. It is 
when he is on the ground that the mocker is more easily iden¬ 
tified. His feathers lie close, and he hops on tiptoe, careful 
that the point of his tail clears the grass. He makes himself 
taller than he really is in his anxiety to take in the whole of 
the situation. He is accused of domineering over other birds, 
with some reason, though his bark is worse than his bite, for 
he seldom actually attacks a fellow creature, contenting him¬ 
self with scolding. Few birds really care for his noise. He 
doesn’t mean anything by it. 
It is difficult for even those most familiar with the birds to 
distinguish the male from the female mocking bird, when the 
former is not singing. He is a little smaller than his mate, a 
trifle clearer and purer of tint. The upper parts are ashy grey, 
the lower parts greyish-white. The wings are blackish-brown, 
with white stripes at the base, more conspicuous in flight. 
The outer tail feathers are white, the others being mixed 
brown and white. The bill and feet are black. The length 
of the bird from tip of beak to tip of tail is about ten inches. 
By the first of April our musician has attained the object of 
his voluble courting, although he continues his melody far 
into the summer. His quiet mate does the nest-building, with 
