The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1875-12-19
OUR WEE FEATIIERED PETS.
THE BUSY LITTLE FETLOWS VINO
LOTE THE UETROpOLIS.
Our City spnrrOw- and their Peculiar Hnbits
How PuennciOus they IRE How they ln-
,renac. mud Inv Much they Kuoy.

How PuRmnciOus they IRE How they In-
crensc, aud How Much they Know.
Our city sparrows-not the diininutive
Italian. with his three-strngcd. scrcechv violin;
nor his small sister, or somebody's small sister,
who carries the tin contribution cup; nor the |
little folk who pretend to sell shoe strings, shawl
pms and matches; nor the boy who always |
wants "ten cents to buy my mother a loaf Of |
bread :" nor any OF the child astrnys who |
have " no father OF mother" or nobody for a |
mother and everybody for father these in
London are called street sparrows = over in
Paris the male Of the species is the COMM.
Victor Hugos GayrOche In " Les Miserables" Is
a specimen.
We mean the real city sparrows. And we say
tour" city sparrows, because not mothers
son OF them that flies ia any more an English"
sparrow than the Down East descendants OF
Eleazer Bassett, who came over in the May
Flower, are English In England 1t is the
"hOuse sparrow" Artemas Ward calls the kan
CARGO an amoosin little ouss;' orntbologsts
name tho house sparrow the posser d0mcsticiiS,
and, as " ard would say, a domestic cuss he Is.
lie haunts the homes OF men. No woods or
wllds for him. Civilization, the more advanced
the better, Is what he wants for with him CIV
ilzation means crumbs.
THEY POSSESS THE LAND.
II Ia full fourteen years ago since the rst forty
pair arrived In this city. These were the sur
vivors OF hundred pair after the sea voyage.
Change of cline. the salt air, and the Newfound-
land fogs were too much for most of them. The
survivors were turned loose In Union square.
year after four hundred pair were Imported, and
were "let out" mot rented, but given TO the
public In Washington square. For years the
cankcr worm had been the cty's summer curse.
1t was confidently believed that the house spar
u. hn
once celebrated Shermans lozenges. This be-
lief WAS confirmed. When the sparrcws iu-
creased and multiplied the worms soon disap.
peafed but alas so did other birds-thc former
" frequent blue.bird, the occasional. rObin.rcd
! breast and the house wren. known 10 tho little
/ folk ns the "chippin brit" For the spnrrows
are terribly pugnacious. II they are few they
fight among themselves. II they are many they
! combine and drive away all other birds, even
| crows. an they can make things very hot for
| hawk What Young American ~ four wears old
| docs not know the tragic tale of the murder of
] cock fotin, ana how when the crow. ncr's quest
! wns held the hrazen sparrow boldly confessed
| the crime, and said he did It with his bow and
/ which makes Lucretia Boreia mild Old Indy
! who simply soldsassafras and peppermint drops,
! because ne rhymes 70 arrow ana the smhll
! boys say he couldn't be killer when he wasa
Xii birds but somehow he does cause them to
my seriously disappear
MILLIONS OF THEN.
In very Few years oui few hundreds have be
! come n illi lns our city hroods have mt out
colonies which have ueoplod all the adjacent
/ States. And everywhere thcy mullipN mary ell
i've birds 20 the brooi. every summer; and. be-
/ fore cold weather comes. the May brood VIII
! makes twenty birds Tor ono brood IN single
se,-9n. \ long time ago sparrow from this
/ ciiN began TO col0ni2e along the line " the
/ railroad to New Haven. gradually extending
/ tn ir settlements, Of course sticking TO the
towns, ull now they have reached beyond
Su9ingneld ana FAR IN the Wiley Of the Connec-
tIgitt. NE people tNgfNM lI re ArlI ne the