Evening star., 1947-07-29
This and That
By Charles +. Trace1DeH
"TAKOMA PARK.

Dear Sir:
Il have been reader Of your columns in The
Washington Star for good number of years
and hope to be for lot more
Il am sure you will find the pictures and
writing on English birds enclosed interesting
As boy was taken by my father to hear the
nightingales singing at night.
Perhaps you could tel us about some of
the birds shown in this copy of the Yelling
borough News. Yours truly, W. H. s."
Whenever we see the phrase, English birds" 4"
we think of the diverting music hall success,
Lets All Sing Like the Brides Sing" with its
limitations of popular British birds" all
sounding alike!
Species shown in the pictures mentioned
were the nightingale, the nuthatch, Short
cared OWL nightjar and wagtail.
Forms OF all these, except the nightingale,
are found in this country. Attempts have been
made, as explained here some time ago, to
import the nightingale, but they came to
nothing.
Today the rage for importing foreign birds
has died out Practically no one wishes to do
SO, so 1t Is difficult to understand why 30 many
persons tried 1t in the past.
1t is now realized that in a new land the old
natural enemies are not operative. and this
gives the birds a chance to expand to undue
limits
The starting, for instance, without certain
old world owls, breeds to the nuisance point
Most successful of the importations- from
their own standpoint-are the startling and
the sparrow.
1t is difhcult for some in this country to
realize that in England the startling Is a
favorite bird, loved In song and story.
As for the English sparrow, which some
persons insist is no sparrow at all but weaver
bird. it often wins the hearts of careful
observers.
Truly, if this species were unknown, and
suddenly seen in ones garden, it would be
watched with baited breath by every person
interested in natural things.
** -
The English article says, "The best time
of all to hear the song of the birds Is at dawn"
1t is good time, Of course, but only one OF
the many good times.
Evening, with the song Of the wood thrush,
is certainly one of the best of all.
Another "best time" is any time one happens
to listen!
In this way the careful ear trains itself to
hear and the mind in some measure to under
stand the great industrious mumur of song that
goes on all day long.
Then the mockingbird sings softly, the cat
bird subdues it's NEW, and the song sparrow
chirps so gently, to its young.
Then, If ever. come perfect days" said the
poet, meaning June, but he would have been
as right about July, or August.
All days are perfect for birds.
They are not like us, worried because one day
is too hot, another too cold, one too dry.
another too wet; they have no weather bureau
to inform them Of q rain that doesn't come.
or a dry spell that turns into rain instead.
They know nothing Of ideas about weather
what they have, in abundance. is weather.
We human beings would be better of, some
may think, If we, too, could learn acceptance.
We have gone too far along the road OF
resistance, perhaps, become too immersed In
the creed of the head bloody but unbowed.'
In this second half Of the century we may
realize If we will, that much we have learned
at such cost was not worth the learning; it
had been better for us if the head, bloody or
not had remained bowed little longer. then
our little backs and wings would have been
stronger, and we would have flown away, not
on errands of destruction, but more often on
missions Of peace and goodwill. We might
have learned that even such missions are not
good when compulsion, rather than love, is
their motive force. The old trio Of Ill will,
coercion and cruelty is mans sad offering In
the face of nature: the birds and other natural
creatures may be cruel, at times, but they have
not sullied the face Of creation with coercion,
too often found In our homes. ofaces and Gov.
s-=s