Evening star., 1936-05-18

A curious Spring, ladies and gentle
men, thing Of shreds and patches, one
day cold and the next day hot.
Yet shrubs, in particular, have done
well, with the exception of the favorite
althea. This has been slow in leafing
out. Time will show whether 1t has been
hurt permanently.
Privst hedges, damaged by the intense
cold of the past three Winters, have not
shown any liking for this Spring.
It is too some e-timey," as some one
said of these curious folk who speak
cordially one day, pretend to be indiffer-
ent the next.
AS the result of severe Winters, privet
has given first place to barberry in this
vicinity.
The japanese barberry has come
through with flying colors. Everywhere it
has done well. You will see it thriving
alongside of California privet hedges
which look very moth-eaten, indeed.
In general, however, this has not been
a bad season on the growing things Of
the garden.
All the shrubs, with the exception Of
the althea, have leafed out vigorously,
and given perhaps the best blossom dis
play in several years.
This has been peculiarly true Of the
lilac, both the old common sort and the
French hybrids.
OF the latter, the variety named
Alphonse Laval did particularly well.
The attack on the lilac, If there had to
be one, came in a fortunate year, for
no sooner had it been launched than the
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their detractors,
No one speaks quite so confidently
as he who simply does not know.
Tell your great average man that a
spider is an animal, not an insect, he
will insist to the point of betting that
at least it is bug"
He will not admit to himself that he
has never stopped to think at all about
spiders, that he believes them to be
insects because they greatly resemble
bugs" as he calls them.
Actually, a spider is an animal, and
that Is that.
1t is dangerous to step into such mat
ters in positive fashion, unless one has
happened to look into them; but nor
mally there is nothing the great average
man will attempt so gladly as to speak
positively on something he really knows
nothing at all about
Tell him that crow is song bird,
he will laugh uproariouSly at the idea.
Yet the scientist says that the song
birds, so-called. belong to the super
family Of birds known as Oscines, in
cluding about 5000 species of perching
birds.
The distinguishing mark of these
birds, wherever found, is the possession
of four or more pairs of muscles con-
trolling the syrinx, the organ of voice in
birds.
The crows and Jays, which possess
these muscles, come safely within the
designation of song birds. although the
average person would not so include
them.
AS matter of fact, crows have rich
voices, very human in tone; their cav"
is really far more musical than the So
called songs" of some of the birds
widely regarded by the least versed as
singing birds.
Webster's gives the following defini-
ton of Oscines: "A division Gin recent
classification a super family of pas
serine birds comprising those with the
most highly specialized vocal apparatus.
It's members are commonly referred to
as the singing birds, though many of
them do not sing"
The great naturalist. John Burroughs,
in his introduction to Neltje Blanchan'S s
Bird Neighbors." says of the book: II
can say that it is reliable and is written
in vivacious strain. and by real bird
lover and should prove help and a