Bradford reporter. [volume] (Towanda, Pa.) 1844-1884, 1857-07-30
The Mocking Bird of America.

The American mocking bird is the prince o
all song-birds benig altogether unrivaled il
the extent and variety of his vocal powers
and besides the fullness and melody of his or
iginal notes, he has the faculty of initiating
the notes of all other birds, from the hummins
bird to the eagle. Pennant states that ht
heard Gagged one initiate the mewing of s
cat, sand the creaking of sign in high winds
Burlington says, his pipes come nearest to the
nightingale of any bird he ever heard The
description, however, given by Wilson, in hi:
own nlmitable manner, as far excels Pennant
and Darlington as the brd excels his fellow
| songsterS Wilson tells us that the ease, ele-
gance and rapidity of his movnents, the an
| imation of his eye and the intelligence he dis
plays in laying up lessons, mark the peculiarity
Of his genius. His voice is full, strong and
musical and capable of almost every modula-
| ton, from the clear and mellow tones of the
| wood thrush to the savage scream of the bald
eagle. In measure and accents, he faithfully
follows his originals, while in strength and
sweetness of expression, he greatly improves
upon them. In his native woods, upon q
dewy morning, his song rises above every
competitor, for the others appear merely as
inferior accompaniments. His own notes are
bold and fnll, and varied seemingly beyond
all limits They consist of short expressions of
one, three, or at most FIVE or six sylab!es, gen.
orally uttered with great emphasis and rapidity
and. continued with undiminished ardor for
half an hour, or for an honr at q time. While
singing he expands his tail, glistening with
white, keeping time to his own music: and the
buoyant gaiety of his action is no less fascinating
than his song. He sweeps round with en-
thusastic ecstacy: he mounts and descends. as
his song swells or dies away; be bounds aloft
with the celebrity OF an arrow, as if to recover
his very SOUL expired in the last elevated strain
A bystander might suppose that the whole
feathered tribe had assemble together on
trial of skill, each striving to produce the
utmost effect, SO perfect are his limitations
He often deceivcs the sportsman, and even
birds themselves are sometimes imposed upon
on this admirable mimic. In confinement, he
loses little of the power or energy Of his song.
He whistles for the dog; Cesar starts up.
wags his tail and runs to meet his master.
He cries like hurt chicken, and the hen hur
about with feathers on end to protect her
injured brood He repeats the tune tught
him. though it be of considerable length, with
perfect accuracy. He runs over the notes Of
execution and effect that the mortified song
sters confess his triumph BY their immediate
silence. His fondness for variety, some sup
posc, Injuries bis song. His imitation of the
Growing Of cocks, aud his exquisite warblings
after the blue bird are mingled with the
screaming Of swallows or the cackling Of hens.
During moonlight both in the Wild and tame
state, ne sing: the whole night long. The
hunters, in their nocturnal excursions. know
that the moon is rising, the instant they hear
his delightful solo.
After Shakespeare, Darlington attributes.
in part, the exquisitenesS of the nightiugales
song to the silence of the night: but if 50.
what are we think of the bird w1ch, in the
open glare eff day, overpowers and often silenc-
es all competition? The natural notes OF the
American mocking bird are similar to those of
the brown thrush.-ACDUBoy