Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1917-01-30
ROBINS AND OTHER BIRDS.

iiIedUy HUH anu lSlstilt. -SNt'-,
comes the first story OF the first
robin, 400 of him. and we may expect
occurrences of the complaint until some
balmy day in March we really see the
first robin Of the springtime on our
lawna
1t seems bit strange to a person
reared in western Iowa TO hear people
come forward with astounding tales OF
the presence of a robin in this latitude
in winter. For bird lorers-reai bird
lovers, we mean--know, and have
known all along that the robin winters
here in large numbers and the annual
story OF the ''first robin" means no more
than that someone has for the first
time in a given spring heard the spring
notes OF the redbreast.
All men who were reared in small
towns or the country will remember
in the milder days of winter to see
flocks OF robins in the deep woods.
They appear To collect and seek the
depths OF the heaviest timber. where
they manage to stbsist on berries Of
various shrubs and such weed seeds
and possible larvae as they find.
They may be seen by the woodcutter
or the hunter on any bright day OF
January, fitting about the deep. pro-
tecied woods, uttering a peculiar twit-
tering note quite different from their
well known spring or summer song.
But they are the same robins. They
essay short fights among the lower
branches and shrubs and have been
known ever to approach the woodman
to peck few crumbs OF his lunch if he
is not hasty in his actions and throws
the scraps a few feet from himself
1t is likely the birds seek such shell
ter as they can from storms. and hud-
died in the lee of trees and brush heaps
weather out the SHOWS and bitter cold
OF the winter, but no man who makes
even a pretense Of knowing the woods
in winter can fail to know that the
robin. in large numbers. winters In the
| latitude Of Iowa and Nebraska. The
CHEEKY spring note. which marks the
first robin" story every spring. means
| only that the fiocks in the deep woods
! have begun to disintegrate and the
| more venturesome members have be-
gun their hunt for nesting places.
Most OF US are too indolenf nowadays
to start out on a winter day for hike
into the really untroubled wild For one
thing. It's quite a stroll to reach such
a place. and were not properly dressed.
and, anyway, lisa heap nicer to sit in
| doors and read about It,.
But It's hard on our real knowledge
OF Gods outdoors. We greet the red
breast as stranger when he comes out
of his retirement and all the host OF
little feathered folk who stick thru %he
| coolest weather are almost unknown to
us except as once in while one will
| wander into our dooryards in spell OF
| mild weather.
MEN RESPONSIBLE FOR STATE.
lDes Moines Capital
State legislatures are always disap-
pointing. The members come together
with very little thought in regard to
serving the state. A majority Of them
are politicians. Some of them expect
to run for other offices later on. A
majority Of them are seeking advertis-
ing and ambitious to get into the pub
lie eye. Not many Of them aspire to
reach the public eye by the merit of
deeds performed. II man is loud
mouthed and is able to play denn8-
gogue's part, he can make quite a rep
!utation out Of practically nothing. Men
j iowa nave 1eer, NM
4 the state on proposals., sensational in
their nature, tina. were wholly iE1pTac-
ltical
Champ Clark recently said that the
best thing congress could do would be
to abolish the congressional record and