“Wings Rest’ Free Cafeteria 
By E. T. BARoopy 
At the outset of this short account of our activities in feeding the 
birds, 1 might just as well stop being prosaic, become ultramodern, 
and head it “The Birds’ W. P. A.” ‘“Wings’ Rest” is the name we 
have given to our one hundred by one hundred twenty feet of ground 
in the city of Berwyn, Illinois, less than ten miles from Chicago’s 
“loop.” Our home occupies a part of this land which is in one of the 
thickly settled sections of the city. Since coming here ten years ago, 
we have set up a large sign, which only the birds can see, asking them 
to rest their wings and find the shelter and free food which we have 
provided for them. Their piercing eyes must have noticed our sign 
for they have stopped in large numbers! We have seen and recorded 
ninety-three different species which we think is a marvelous record 
and a real compensation for the efforts of my late wife and myself 
to make our yard a shelter and a cafeteria for the birds we loved and 
enjoyed having with us. We planted shrubs which the birds enjoy, 
provided water for their baths and pleasure, and made life very com- 
fortable for them at our “hotel.” Thus the story of our cafeteria 
unfolds itself, an easy and pleasant life for our feathered friends 
and a joy to us. 
Any endeavor to attract the birds naturally attracts their enemies. 
The birds come to feed and their enemies come to feed upon them. 
Our first effort was to fence the whole lot, but this does not stop the 
birds’ worst enemy, the house cat. Immediately we let our neighbors, 
and also the cats, know that any trespassing on our land is done at 
their peril. We favored no breeds of cats nor did we consider the 
sentiments of the neighbors and owners. Our land was _ hallowed 
ground for birds and any cat with courage to enter found life fraught 
with serious consequences. 
Once the question of the cat was well in hand, our attention was 
turned to less desirable birds such as the house wren, blue jay, cow- 
bird, blackbird, starling, owls and the ever-present menace, the English 
sparrow. In this direction we did what is humanly possible to drive 
away such pests without interfering with the wishes and presence of 
the birds we wanted. We eliminated all chances for nesting of the 
house wren, caught the sparrows and blackbirds, discouraged the blue 
jays and starlings. The most effective way of driving away the star- 
ling, we found, is to kill one of their number and let it lie on the lawn 
where the rest could see it. This brought an end to their presence 
for some time. Our ultimate aim in the whole matter was protection 
to the birds we wanted and for this purpose we resorted to hard meas- 
ures at times. 
I recall one bright day in the spring three years ago when I heard 
the pitiful cries of a catbird. I hurried to the spot and found the 
little pet I had observed building its nest in a shrub under my bed- 
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