Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-09-14
IN A LETTER BOX.
Story of Two Wrens Who Find a Home In n
Queer Place.


Story of Two wrens Who Find Home In
Queer Place.
New York Tribune.1
During the spring pair of wrens fitted
into the we'll shaded grounds that surround
o gentleman's residence on the Providence
road at Scranton and began to search for a
summer home. They flew about the cor
nice of the house for several minutes, sur
veyed every nook and corner that looked Sc
cluded, and then aligned on a shade tree
and compared notes. For some time the
birds had confab IN low and gentle tones,
their actions indicating that they hadn't
found a place that exactly suited them to
settle down in for the summer. AT the close
of the consultation the wrens sailed out of
the tree and again went to hunting for a
nesting place, and in a short time the male
ran across one that seemed to suit him.
On one of the large wooden gate posts
there was letter box in the shape of little
house. It had a peaked root. a slot on the
street side for the mail carrier TO drop letters
into, and little door on the yard side to
take them out. 1t was rain tight and it
stood in the shadow of large maple. The
male wren found its way into the box
through the slot. He stayed in it less than
a minute, and then he flew out. Joined his
little wife on lilac bush few yards away,
and told her about the cozy spot he had
discovered. Mrs. Wren appeared to be all
in a futter over the pleasant news her proud
husband had brought her, and away they
both flew at once and entered the slot
Pretty soon they came out and flew across
the street to an open field. 1t was soon evil
dent that Mrs. Wren was as we'll pleased with
the box as her mate was, for in a short time
they both sailed back again, each carrying
short piece OF broken twig in the bill. These
they dropped in the bottom of the box, and
back and forth the industrious little filters
went. By night the birds had got the rough
work on the nest pretty we'll under way and
the next day they finished it. Another box
for letters was rugged up on the other gate
post, and the lady of the house watched for
the letter carrier that forenoon and request
ed him not to drop any more letters into the
box where the wrens had taken up their
abode.
About week after the finishing touch
had been put on the nest, the female laid
an egg in it. When she began to sit the
kind hearted housewife opened the little door
and stroked her, calling her pet names as
she caressed her. While she was sitting,
the male fitted among the shrubbery close
by and sang merrily, and one day very in
telligent and highly priced female housecat
that belonged to the family came near catch
ing him. Puss' mistress caught her up,
carried her to the box, showed her the fe-
male wren on the nest, pointing out to her
the hopping male on the fence, and gave
her "a good talking to-" telling her that if
she harmed the birds or the nest it would
90 hard with her. Puss understood.
A new letter carrier poked three letters
through the slot one day and nearly covered
up the sitting wren, but she didn't mind it,
and in a few days she Matched out nest full
of little ones. About the same time the old
cat gave birth to four kittens, and at last
accounts both the wren family and the cat
family were getting along finely and were
much admired by their friends, the human
family.