Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-07-28
AN EVENING STROLL
THROUGH NEW HAMPSHIRE
FIELDS AND WOODS.
Quiet Little Tree swallows-Ths
Noisy Young Crow-songs
Of the Birds.
written for The star.


About two weeks ago left my home on
the west slope of Grantham mountain ".
H., just before shutdown. and started north
ward for walk.
The evening breeze. which we always get
here. no matter how hot the day has been,
was just springing up, and il brought with
it, from the distant farms. the fragrance Of
new-mown hay. The nearer fields and the
roadsides had far escaped the scythe.
and they were rich with wealth of tall
daisies. cleaning buttercups, golden cone
flowers and purple clover. all waving to-
gether In a sea OF blue-topped timothy.
Away to the east stretched the forested
side of Grantham. its tall spruce spires
tinged with gold by the parting sun. Be-
low the evergreens, and therefore nearer to
me. ran belt of hardwood. and from &c
deer We're stealing out TO feed In the open
stretches lower down. Slowly they moved
about. often raising their heads to look
around them as though to avoid surprise.
One was followed by a fawn, a spotted,
woooiy legged youngster, that seemed to
flnc some difficulty at times IN keeping up
with his mother as she wandered through
the tail grass and weeds.
The day was drawing 10 a close. but the
birds were still busy From a butternue
tree by the roadside came the insistent calls
or still half-hungry young robins. and peer
ing through the branches I could see three
or the blue-tailed fedglfngs, squatting
around on as many twigs, waiting for their
parents to bring in the last OF the many
ratlons which are required to keep young
robins even reasonably happy between the
dawn and the darkness.
Young Tree Swallows.
On top of tall wire fence across the next
field. sat four young tree swallows which
had just left their nest in bird box in my
garden. They were very quiet little fei.
lows compared with the young robins and
when 1 walked over and picked one of
them of the wire he didn't seem TO mind it
In the least. He might have flown away
had he wished to. but he not afraid,
SO he stayed where he was. But his par@
ents were afraid. and swooped down close
to my head in evident distress So ! put
him back with his brothers, and until q
bend in the lane shut them from my view
! could see their snowy breasts cleaning
In the rays Of the setting sun.
The noisiest thing within hearing was q
young crow, which sat on fence post and
called for food with both vigor and per-
sistence. His parents were visiting him at
frequent intervals and every time they ar
rived with food the noise that youngster
made In swallowing II was heartrendlng. Il
sounded exactly as II the parent bird was
trying to choke him TO death and If such
had been the case I should have had no
hard feelings toward the old one; such
greedy clamorngs on the part of child OF
that age are enough to produce emotional
insanity In any bird.
From the air high above the daisy fields,
came the sharp, short calls of night-hawks,
ana, looking up, now and then would come
the hollow boom which the bird makes
when he checks himself at the end of ono
of his startling earthward swoops. Not al-
ways did he come close to the earth. either.
when making his dive. Sometimes / no.
ticed two birds flying high In the air one
perhaps considerably higher than the other.
Suddenly. the upper one would shoot down.
ward toward the one below him, and as he
almost reached the latter he would check
himself and make the upward turn. pro-
dn(tn0 he
would fly about together for time and
presently, when there a sufficient DIFF
ference in their attitudes, the diving would
be repeated. Unless / was mistaken several
different times, 1t was not always the same
individual of a given pair which did the
diving; apparently they alternated with
more or less regularity.
Rabbit Showed His Heels
As looked down I saw a more lowIy
creature In the person of a fat brown toad,
hopping solemnly along the edge of the
overhanging grass and gobbling bugs of
various sorts and sizes with remarfable
regularity. Then I saw something else
hopping, further up the road and when 10
stopped right in the middle / saw that
1t was not toad, though very little larger
It sat upright very rigid, and II had two
long ears, which stood erect upon It's head;
1t was young rabbit. Now I wanted a
young rabbit, so I walked carefully toward
me coming and hoped to the side of the
road. where he stopped close to the edge
Of the grass. Perhaps he figured that
should not notice him here: at any rate he
remained very still and permitted me to go
up almost within arms length. But just as
stopped to pick him up he suddenly came
to life, and ! saw his hind feet twinkllng
merrfly in the air as he gave me The
Merry Ha, Hair and babe me goodbye.
OF course, chased him. but 1t was of no
use for he reached stone wall several
A.
large for one to move. In fact, L
never even thought of removing them at
first, for as ] reached the wall got a start
which for the moment made me forget the
rabbit entirely. A big grizzly woodchuck
who had been eating his supper when
started after bunny had also retreated to
the stone wall. and S7hen l got there he
whirled around so fercely and gave
shrill a whistle that I instinctively jumped
back, not realizing on the instant what
manner of creature / had come upon. But
than I was. and I could hear his teeth
chattering as long as stayed in the neigh
borhood.
Song of the Hermit Thrush.
From clump OF shrubbery just over tho
wall came the spiral notes of very, ana
from farther away the mountain side
the emphatic voice of a wandering whip
poor-will rose and fell with the rising and
falling of the breeze.
II was not yet dark when left the grass
bordered lane. with its odors of daisies and
clover and wild roses, for a spruce-hemmed
mountain road. A hermit thrush was sing
ing in the dense woodland and I stopped
to listen. He was more than usually
brilliant performer and he sang with slight
pauses and intervals, until the road where
stood was enveloped in gloom. AS he
stopped. and / was about to continue
my walk. dry twlg cracked close TO me,
and half grown fox jumped into the road.
/ did not move. and he looked up for
surprised and uncertain, then,
having made up his mind, he glided back
into the darkness OF the wood.
ERNEST HAROLD BAYNES.