BY THE WAYSIDE 
85 
SCHOOL BRANCH DEPARTMENT 
Every Wisconsin School Branch is required to subscribe for at least one copy of BY THE WAYSIDE. 
Letters to this department should be 
written on only one side of the page, 
should give name, age and address of the 
writer and, should be mailed by the first 
of the month; Illinois writers sending to 
Miss Mary Drummond, Spring Lane, Lake 
Forest, Ill., and Wisconsin writers to Miss 
Edith Edwards, Appleton, Wis. To each 
writer whose letter is published will be 
sent a beautiful colored picture of the bird 
of the month. For the best letter each 
month we will send the Wayside free for 
one year. Preference will be given to 
letters about the bird study for the month 
and to original observations. 
The wren button, which is the badge of 
the Audubon Society, costs two cents and 
can be bought from Miss Mary Drummond 
or Mr. Moyle. 
Any Wisconsin society, may, by paying 
the express, have the use of the Gordan 
and Merrill Libraries of bird books by 
applying to Mr. Moyle. 
A set of colored bird slides with a 
typewritten lecture may be rented from 
Chas. E. Brown, State Historical Building, 
Madison, Wis. Illinois Schools may use, 
without expense, a library or a lecture 
with lantern slides, by applying to Miss 
Bunnel, Academy of Sciences, Chicago. 
For the month of May let us study 
the Goldfinch, a most beautiful little 
bird. In the spring instead of going 
immediately to home building they col¬ 
lect in flocks and enjoy a sociable time 
fora week or so. Have you noticed any 
peculiarity in the Goldfinch’s flight? 
Where does he build his nest? in bush 
or tree or on the ground? When did 
you first see him this year? Of course, 
he is not the most wonderful singer but 
h his song is always cheerful. 
Illinois Prize Letter. 
Biggsville, 111., April 28, 1909. 
Dear Wayside: 
We saw some Blackbirds with red 
wings one night going home from school. 
They were very black and had some red 
and a little yellow on the top of the 
wing. The female is brownish. This 
Blackbird likes to build near a stream. 
It has a clear whistle and has another 
call in three parts. They sometimes fly 
with other Blackbirds. I am glad to 
see them. Spring is here to stay when 
these Blackbirds come. 
Yours truly, 
Aged 9. Elizabeth Whiteman. 
Cullom, Ill., April 20, ’09. 
Dear Wayside: 
One Saturday night in February it 
snowed and sleeted awfully hard and in 
the morning when we woke up every 
thing was white and the trees and bushes 
were covered with ice for it had rained 
Saturday afternoon. The next day my 
papa went out walking and he went down 
the west side of town. As he was walk¬ 
ing along he saw a Bluejay trying to fly 
but it could not for its wings were all 
covered with ice. He picked it up and 
brought it home in his hand. I put it 
in a little box under the stove to let its 
wings dry. When they were dry I picked 
it up to give it something to eat but it 
wouldn’t eat anything. It got out of 
my hand some way and began flying 
around the room. Papa caught it 
again and let it outside and it flew in 
the top of a tree near by. 
Yours truly, 
Aged 10. May Brady. 
Elkhart, Wis., April 17, 1909. 
Dear Wayside: 
One day in April I saw a large flock 
of Red-winged Blackbirds. They are of 
a black color and are like soldiers 
dressed in their black uniforms. They 
