BY THE WAYSIDE. 
43 
was singing. It turned out to be a redstart. 
While we were returning we saw a chipping 
sparrow. The robin was seen next, pulling a 
worm out of the ground. Soon a red-winged 
blackbird rose out of the marsh, the red on his 
wings looking very pretty. A bluejay soon 
came hying over the trees, followed by a 
bronzed grackle. Next we saw a myrtle war¬ 
bler, and close by was a white-throated spar¬ 
row. Above our heads circled some chimney 
swifts. We saw a song sparrow next, singing 
very sweetly. Then we saw the prettiest bird 
of them all, the Baltimore oriole, of which we 
saw quite a few. Next we saw the least fly¬ 
catcher. Then we were attracted by a curious 
song. We could not find the bird that was 
singing it. We saw instead a black and white 
creeper and a golden crowned kinglet. As we 
were crossing the Green Bay tracks we saw a 
bluebird. Then we went into a pasture where 
we saw a red shouldered hawk and a warb¬ 
ling vireo. Our attention was then diverted 
by a nest up in a tree. Duncan climbed the 
tree and peeped into the nest. It contained 
two little birds and an egg. Then he climbed 
down and we sat awhile on the grass. The 
father bird soon came and fed them. Then we 
went over * into Lake Park, where we saw a 
flicker. As we went down to the pump to get 
a drink, we saw a rubv crowned king-let. In 
the marsh were several kingfishers and a jack 
snipe. These we watched for a while and then 
started for home, but had not gone far when 
we saw a vesper sparrow. Our next bird was 
seen between 7th and 8th streets on Vine. It 
was the purple martin. Then we went home, 
for we were very hungry. We had seen twenty- 
five different kinds of birds. 
Howard Gates, age 11 years. 
Retreat, Wis. 
Dear Wayside: —One morning when I was 
?oing to school I saw two robins carrying bits 
>f dry grass and little pieces of cord, and I 
topped to watch them and see where they 
vent. Soon they flew to a berry bush and 
topped into it. When they went away I went 
o see the nest, but they only had it half done. 
At night when I went home from school they 
tad it all done. Now the mother robin is 
aying the eggs and I hope they will hatch. 
Our teacher has just organized an Audubon 
Society of which I am a member, and this 
/eek we are studying about the robin. 
Norma Battles, age 11. 
York, Wis. 
Dear Wayside: —A little while ago a robin 
built her nest in a tree near our house and 
she had four little eggs and now there are 
four little birds. I watched them one night. 
The male was out in the field and found a 
worm and he flew over to the tree and sat 
under it. Then the female flew down and 
took the worm and flew up again and the 
little birds opened their mouths wide and 
she dropped a little into it. Then the male 
flew out in the field again to find some more. 
Mabel Anderson, age 11 years. 
Burkhart, Wis. 
Dear Wayside: —I found a bird’s nest in 
my father’s barn last summer. I watched it 
every day till I found the old bird on the 
nest. Then I knew it was a robin’s nest. I 
got her so tame I could almost lay my hand 
on her. I watched her every day till after 
the eggs were hatched. I happened not to 
look at her one day and when I looked again 
they had flown away. But they used to come 
back and sit by the nest every night. 
Frances Tobin, age 12. 
Belvidere, III. 
My Dear Mrs. Peckham: —I am very much 
interested in birds. To-day I have seen crows, 
thrashers, robins, grosbeaks, mourning doves, 
black-birds, chimney swifts and a hawk and 
blue jays. I love to watch the old birds feed 
the young. 
I think that baby bluejays are so white 
where they are white and so black where they 
are black and so blue where they are blue. 
They have such a pretty “tweet tweet,” too. 
I have two pet pigeons and two canaries. My 
doves are slate-colored with a many hued neck. 
One of my canaries is very much like a spar¬ 
row. The other is a whitish yellow. 
Muriel Lampert. 
Cedarburg. 
Dear Mrs. Peckham: —One bright day last 
summer we amused ourselves by playing ten¬ 
nis. I looked up and saw a robin flying over 
the tennis court with an earth-worm in his 
mouth. A bluejay saw the fat worm in the 
robin’s mouth. He darted at the robin and 
succeeded in snatching the worm from him. 
The robin was not discouraged, as I supposed 
he would be, but went in search of another 
worm and found one. 
