IDYLLS OF BIRD LIFE 
m 
girl friend for my partner. We decided to quit the game for that 
afternoon, so as not to disturb the little brooding mother in the 
nearby bushes. The next morning, although Jupiter Pluvius 
had opened the flood gates of heaven and the rain was coming 
down in torrents, I visited my newly-discovered feathered 
friends. To my delight I found that the rain had left the nest 
untouched. Not to take any chances I hastily built a sort of 
shelter to protect the brooding bird. By noon the clouds shifted, 
and old Sol again smiled upon the earth. This same day was 
\ \ i: 1 $ tffjh 
the last I saw of my catbird friends. All during the time the 
catbird’s mate was brooding, hi£ long, glorious song second 
only to that of the bell bird or woodthrush in exquisiteness of 
tone, was heard throughout the day. I did not get to see the 
live pretty dark green-blue eggs, as thev had quickened before 
—"X . . - y 
I discovered the pair. The mother bird scarcely left the nest, 
save to trim her glossy black and slatey-colored feathers early 
\ . . . . ^ 
in the morning. Despite my early rising one morning at half 
past four, to get a peep at the contents of the nest, it appeared 
k ) ' ' -y > k; / ! 
as if she had secured double trimming the day before, inasmuch 
as she remained brooding all day. 
About ten days after my discovery, I saw, while strolling 
through the orchard back of the house, the mother bird busily 
[ 33 
