54 
BY TIIE WAYSIDE 
' ‘i 
l I 
I 
And this is the bird that men wish 
to shoot and eat. Yes he is good to 
eat. But is he not much better, from 
any standpoint, when alive? Thank 
heaven, in Wisconsin at least the law 
says that he shall live. It is part of 
our business, as his friends, to see that 
this law remains upon the statute books. 
Prize [Letter 
Shumway, Ills., March 28, 1912. 
Dear Wayside:— 
Spring is here again, and also our 
little feathered friends. The air is full 
of familiar sounds which drives all 
thought of winter away. One morning 
about a week ago, I woke up to hear 
the songs and the calls of the robins 
that had just arrived from the south. 
It seems that when anyone sees their 
first robin, they will exclaim, “I am so 
glad to see the robins, for I know that 
spring is surely here.” Every hour of 
the day now, you hear a new song or 
call. I saw the following birds on 
March the 16th. 
Red-winged Blackbirds, 
Flicker, 
Meadowlark, 
Robins 
Downy Woodpecker, 
Cardinal, 
Junco. 
The Robins, Flickers, Blackbirds and 
Meadowlarks, were seen earlier in the 
month, but I did not keep a record of 
the dates. 
Flocks of blackbirds go flying noisily 
through the air and the marshes are 
one continual strain of music. The 
meadowlarks are also singing their 
clear and pretty songs in the fields. In¬ 
deed the variety of calls puzzled me at 
first but they are only the multitude ( 
sounds that the birds make. 
The Flicker is already pounding c 
the posts and trees while the handsou 
little Downy Woodpecker is busy wit 
its work. It is so much fun to watt 
these birds, already settling down 1 
the work after the excitement is wor 
off. I am putting up a few more bir 
houses, in hopes of attracting the wrer 
when they go a-nest hunting. 
Yours truly, 
Mamie Lane. 
Age 13. 
Barry, Ill., May 3, 1912. 
Dear Wayside:— 
*/ 
I am very much interested in bin 
and am going to write of an interes 
ing sight I saw the other day. 
One day my attention was called 1 
some robins carrying sticks ar 
straws. I knew that they liked strii 
the very best of all things to bui 
with, so I gathered several pieces ai 
broke them up. I went into the lion 
and watched the results; pretty so( 
the female flew down and began 
gather it. It was surprising to s 
how much she could carry at once, 
kept giving them string till they lu 
enough; then they gathered mud ai 
plastered their nest. They had 
nearly completed when I heard the 
screaming. I looked out, to my sn 
prise 1 saw a duel going on betwei 
them and some blackbirds who seemi 
to be trying to tear the nest up. T1 
female robin did the most fightin 
They fought in this way: the robii 
flew to a place about two yards c 
from the blackbird, then they rush* 
at each other. The robin whipped tl 
blackbird the first time, but about 
dozen blackbirds commenced fightii 
