The daily morning journal and courier., 1900-04-26


 come back here were the blackbirds.
 They came, as they always do, in focks,
 and seemed to know just where to To-
 cate and many haunts which they
 chose as their homes last year are all
 ready occupied by the black advance
 agents of the warm season.
 "Their vacations were spent in the
 Carolinas, Georgia and Florida" said
 John D. Hicks, who is careful observ-
 CT of the birds of this country, and
 their actions when they come back here
 seem to say that they are glad to be here again. They seem to like company
 and are always in focks, many often
 nesting in the same tree. They never fight, and live peaceful quiet lives, even
 through the days of courtship term
 which with some birds is productive of much discord and conflict"
 People who have had an opportunity
 to study the ways of the blackbird in the counting time know that, despite his love of peace, he is anxious to make conquests, and in these his plumage plays the important part The male bird struts and hops where the sun will show his feathers off to the best advan- tage. These look purple, jet black, bronze and brown from various points kof view He ruffles his feathers, and, | like a dandy misses no occasion to make his appearance striking, until he has made an impression on some female when he relapses into the same state of indifference as to his personal appear ance which often characterizes men whose faultless dress was their distn- l icl, oLn o+o ct n thpir ho phplOr days.
 | The robin, which has also come for the season, is more richly endowed by nature than the blackbird as to plum age but makes no effort at conquest by means of his personal appearance. Fine feathers are of no consequence in the eyes of Miss Ribon, and c. Robin knows it.
 These birds have many peculiar traits. They come from the South in pairs and singly, how and when nobody knows. The flight is usually made at night, and a chirp in the early morning is the first sign that the robins have come again. They go to the country or to places where there are lawns or or chards, and in the selection of their summer homes they show decided leaning toward the habitations of man. The robin must have it's mate, for he believes in domestic bliss, and he sets about the task of househunting soon after the summer home has been reach | ed. His wooing is of a barbaric nature, and requires pluck and perseverance. | He picks a quarrel with another male l bird in the presence of female, and, | knowing that he Is fighting for home. he fights hard The lady bird sits near 1 by, apparently unconcerned and uncon- | scious of what is going on, but she all ways has an eye on the contest, the re- | suit of which Is usually an engagement | in Robnland, with the victorious com blatant as the bridegroom-elect
 Then the female makes active prep arations for housekeeping. Her nest is built after the regulation pattern, of | straw and mud, and the inner wall is made perfectly round by the pressure of the builders Body against the soft and pliable material Mrs Robin is an industrious housekeeper, and works in- cessantly until the home is made ready i for occupancy. The nest is usually built in an out-of-the-way place, but the site is not always skilfully selected and
  small boy. tva
 When one hears a number of song sparrows chirping sweetly at this time of the year he may know that some- where near by a lady sparrow Is the audience, and that the concert is being given for her benefit; that each singer is doing his best to outsing the other because the reward will be more than the applause of a large audience or an increase of salary From her perch on a neighboring itwig she encourages the performers with ,a,pod or a blink, and then with sa ichigH Of approval goes to the master singer and becomes his mate as a reward for his superiority, and the competitors go in search of a more appreciative audience.
 The song sparrow's English cousin, who receives more abuse then praise, and Is here in all seasons, has a less poetic method of wooing, possibly be- cause he has little poetry and no sing ing voice. He has no fine plumage, and hates to fight except for his personal rights, but he has domestic instincts, and, like every respectable bird, wants a mate, and secures her by a peculiar mode of wooing, which is really an ex- hibition of endurance. MT. Sparrow shows by his courtship that he is well { qualified to be a highly satisfactory husband, and one who can endure any ( amount of henpecking. When the spar Z row makes his bow before the bird , whom he wishes to become Mrs. Spar z 'ow he hops and skips about before her l while the lady bird pecks and picks at I nim. When there are several candidates t for her favor she picks each one, and t he bird which makes the least fuss and { stands the abuse with the greatest com I posture is the one which carries off the [ prize. t The phoebe bird, an industrious fly t catcher, is also among the early birds, t md many of them have already come a rom the South. They make their nests f near country homes, and often select S corners on porches and stoops for that | York Tribune. a