The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-03-18

ana repeats the performance, lltue neg'o uoys
catch many robins In stupetied or semi-stupeneu
condition. A cunous effect Of the poison Is tha'
1t depnves the bird Of a sense Of DANCE moss
under Its influence suffer themselves TO be picked
up ana their necks wrung without an ehvl a'
escape, After three months Of this sort OF HE
II Is no wonder that Robin iiedbeast wantSt2 70
OIL soulcw here by himself and sit down and ih,nh.
His sobrir ~ In March liz due wholly IN the ACT
that the china barnes are all gone. No morGlliy,
lately awakened, restrains him. II the tStIies
lasted all Of the yea he would be dunk All Oh 'o
yea and would never 90 north at an.
II II were possible 10 catch and keen in captivity
full grown hooking birds, those captured now
would h. the most valuable because thrir roper,
have been associaung with hundreds Of emigronts
from New York, Pennsylvania and contiguous
States and they have picked up a vast aSsor'uent
% ,s. melodies They hsSe so n pSey; ,I II ls', ,ur lnsi
loose into yoCaliaa,ion one after another. They
will forget all II this by tn. middle Of summer
and their imita ions then Will m only ot nhuve
birds, because the mOckers have a notably poor
memory, but they begin again IN the !all hs soon
as the first arrivals from the North have caught
their breaths and begun To whistle, chip or tSlt,
te-, and by thu time the cold months an over they
viii he once moro at their b"st One singular
result Of the memorGiivr faculty or irsinct, 81
the mocker is the duets, OF soundduslS, which
often occur between II and the hermit thrush.
the sweetest minstrl II the North. The hermit
thrush when II reaches the south MAINTAINS Its
secreive habits. II lives In thr deepest aud dark
est parts II the forests. II is only rarely seen
upon the edge Of a field and then fits back into
thr fastnesss as II il dreaded the light. lis
solitude and tho difficulty with which I, is ap
preached, however, have no effect upon the sweet
ness II It's voice or the liquid varrty Of its music
It's pipings are often heard In woods which are
quiet and the mocking-bird, when IL hears them,
instantly csnsas Its own song and bends all It's
attention in the cfor, 10 memoriae. The song
Of a hermit thrush Is not easy OF requirement,
both on account Of its purity Of tone and us range
male hooking bird il unable to master II When
this occurs the failure Is due 10 the fact thai there
Is some fault In the individual mncker The
Knockers differ In ability 10 acquire, VI ne STRAIN
Of the hrrmit thrush Burroughs says: ~ Trough
the gencral chorus Of wrens and Wdrbiers, De
lsct this sound rising, pun. and s-'ene, At II a
spirit from some remote height we've slowly chant
Ing a divine accompaniment ms song APP
peals " the sentiment Of the beautiful and sug-
geSts q sorpne religious heautude as no oth.v
sound In nature does. 1t Is not a proud gorgeous
strain Ike the thnagerS ~ the gr0ebcak =, Suc
costs no passion or emotion, but seems 10 BE- the
voice Of that calm, sweet solcrnity no rt'atns
In his best moments. II realizes a pace ami
a deep solemn 10Y that only the finest souls may
know \ few nights ego | assembled a mountain
10 se the world by N sunlight, and when near
the summit tho hermit con m"nced MS evening
hymn. Listening 10 this strain on the lone noun
tain, with the full moon Just founded from the
horizon, the pomp Of YOU cities anl IN v7N' q.
your civilization seemed trivial, ana cheap, ]
have seldom known two Of these bi'ds, 10 be sing
ing al the sal me time in the same locality.
The desire Of the hermit thrush to be alone
is az strong in Louisiana as N ITS Notth'rn
home, but when the m~ock,ng-bird Is engaged IN
mastering its song II is not permitted to he alone.
II must either sing while another singer j. out
pouring its soul ~ II must remain silent alto
eether The result q this IL that thc listener
is often furnished with n double hermit song,
one by the hermit and one By ils inita'or, but
there is no ear so fine that II con detect me "ii'o!,
en~ # II happen that the mocker has Progressed
To- the last stage Of his mcmori2atlol In act,
the wood thrush. the cat bird, the wood weary
and the wood SPARROW often md themselves r'rr.
rily answering a supposed brother hidden, whereas
they ar ~aiIoriing material 10 the nlocker
The man who starts Tor "a stroll through a Louis
lana forest in these days will leave his Waistcoat
at home, for the weather Is warm 10, one IN MOTION,
though To him who hes upon the dead g.ass and
staras up AZ the blue sky il ma, a lingering tang
OF chill In II He will meet IN u walk oi a mile
with tifty different varieties OF birds, and ui these
not less than half will be Of Northern origin The
woods are now ul"n enough 20 afford NOR" un-
obstru,sd view and still suii!ylentiy lHitd 70 give
the requisit, shelter tO their inhabitants. The shades
are well designed to set of the bird culurs, tiere
being less Of the vivid green's 81 summ"r The
evprgrtens are OF a darkness hat Is almost black.
ami bits Of brilliant hue Are as strongly Outlined
against them rs II tn"$ were white Ac'>, We
siake-lIkr path. made by cattle IN searching tor
water, the g,o,beak will dart like a fash Of
flame As II posses upon. som" nnk"d branch,
with n huge gray clunp OF spanish mos b14,ind
II, il seems 10 light up the sur grounding dusk lk'
A stab of fra. From tine thick. green branches
Of a cedar or nTbor Vita, lea ~ a blnrbird, 10 ~
followed IN succession ny "a gf"en-hhckrd ny
catcher. . vireo all in brown, and q SCISSOR toll
oi white, black and slate blue The cause IF their
exit will be q dwarf shriNc, 81 drahiik" gray,
with n bill a. sharp as a needle, a, strong As a
chisrl and as long us itself II may carry upon
this hill a Tiny wren II ~, il will leave tie c'dar
for a locust, which stands all bare oI caves ~ en-
nlen space To itself, and upon one 81 ~" long
thorns OF the locust IL will lmpalr the dead wren,
hanging II a. scientifically as could any butcher
IA truusrr~, after which II Will fly away with nm
iIonic chirp Of satisfaction. The chances are a
hundred 10 one that II will not return o. the wren
and that the corpse will hang untl 4 decays and
falls. OF Is bronze away p%leCenleal By tree ants
1t is the curse Of the shr,ho that It's memory Is ms
short a. It's sword ~ long, ana II l. G"urn"d 70 60
on killing and hanging up It's prey and forgetting
all about 1t 50 long ~ IT'S life lasts.
II the man in the woods will walk until b." comes
To some large pond. IL, edges carprtrd with lIleS
and ferns, he will s~' much Of the %irather'd water
life. rs yet not a du.k Of them all, except the
cnnyashack and Ie'head, has ,gGn' norm
will BE- prr.nirg himself, each Sleeh oiled feather
cleaning in the sun and lis darr green head
blazing like an emerald His swimming, semi
divings, low CluCkS and preanings Will b" ali for
the charming Of a brow y hen which sits drmureily
I'm the pond siT paCps distant and prHtends Ia be
not at all impressed. II h. draws nearer in his
wooing, she will retrcHt md If lie pnrSneN She MI
CuurtlngS make widening circles in The water
u will le eyed disapproyinriv by n ~i'aIningo which
in tender pink stands by the ponds edges placidly
waiting for il dinner to swim by Near II will
be the small, light blue 'ghy poke, one Of the un
gainliest birds in the world, and there may come
from the far side Of the little balm The deep reSo-
nant boom Of the Grea, bittern as ii takes flight
and rises heavily above the trees. The smaller
ID rds will BE- in no wise disturbed by the presence
Of the larger flyers. They know insuncuvely
a bird Of prey from one that IS harmless They
will fly down TO the waters edge Tngly or in
troops, dip in their bills for q drop or two and then
vanish In Southern niddays Of sumner there
Is little woods music. The fierce sun beats down
too relen,lessly for exertion OF any kind, but
in March there is JUS, enough of warmth in the
air 10 suggest that spring is al hand and the long
dim aisles Of trees sre resonant with a thousand
notes. In certain NJ the thicbest places there Is
n riot NJ color and a riot II song Love making
seems 10 call for much motion and much noise