BIRD LIFE IN WASHINGTON 
41 
especially when you are taking a walk 
through the woods on a bright sunny day 
in winter. You may meet him in the deep 
lonely gulches in summer. Then if you 
are very lucky, in some crevice or under a 
log you may find his home. 
The song is a rapid trill. It is hard to 
make words out of it but the ear remem¬ 
bers it after one hearing; its character 
is so distinct. It reminds one of a sweet 
toned bell. 
TULE WREN 
We are to visit a bird colony this time. 
We shall need a particular costume in 
order to be presentable there. Hip boots 
are not usualy considered an essential 
part of a calling costume, but we shall 
need them for we are going to wade. The 
tiny settlement is out among the buck 
beans, cattails, and yellow water lilies. 
Don’t be afraid—it will be the easiest bird 
hunting you ever did. As we tramp 
through the slough, we may find a coot’s 
nest. And then just think of finding a 
whole colony of bird homes! 
The architecture is a little queer. 
Each house looks like a well woven pock¬ 
et. It is made of strips of tule stems and 
lined with down. The houses hang sus¬ 
pended from the tules. 
What a commotion the birds make all 
around us! It can hardly be called music. 
How happy they are in making the noise. 
