Have you siieanl ak the tas ikinals of iobins wiisiah | 
may be seen in your neighborhood belong to the thrush 
family? Do you actually know the Western Robin and his 
 eousin, or are you a little hazy about their appearance? Can 
_ you recall more than the tawny red bréast, which so remind- 
ed our New England ancestors of the English Robin that oo 
they gave the familiar old country name to their commonest 
bird, the American Robin, of which these are a few that — 
sometimes stray into the Pacific regions in the winter on 
_ the return trip from Alaska? Have you watched their 
black-tipped yellow bills dive into the earth and come up 
with, to them, a delicious mouthful? Have you noticed © 
their white eyelids and the white spots near the front of | 
their eyes, when they seem to wink at you over a good bird © 
joke? Have you wondered at the spring birds with spotted 
_ lower parts that follow Mr. and Mrs. Robin about, teasing 
mother and father for something to eat, when they ought 
to be feeding themselves, if size decides such matters? Have 
you seen the long black tails when the birds flitted around — 
corners to escape some over attentive cat or dog and noticed _ 
the white on the inner webs of the tail feathers of eastern — 
birds which the others lack? If you cannot recall such 
glimpses, thaw out a little, and begin to notice your neigh- 
bors, for they will repay you for the time you spend on them. 
There are many reasons why a robin should be one of the - | 
first bird acquaintances. His ten-inch length is a standard by | 
which nature lovers measure rarer kinds of winged animals. 
After a beginner knows wel! the size of this nearly tame, 
wild bird, that will so accommodatingly wait to be looked 
over, it will be easier to judge dimensions, when olimpses 
are caught of other feathered creatures in parks or 
meadows, for most birds are maddening 1 in the way wey can 
hide. 
| i novice may Hosinie denriy distracted over the sights 
and sounds of a dense forest. Once in a bird class, two © 
students told their instructor that she had nearly lost their 
ee 
