Evening star., 1948-07-23
This and That
BIZ Charles E. Trdce,Dell
GEORGETOWN.

Dear Sir:
Surely the blue jay is one of our most in
teresting birds. His abounding vitality and
decisive personality make his every motion
pleasure to watch. He may be clown, but
like all great clowns he has a tragic sense of
life: his anguished cry of alarm is more heart
rending than that Of any other bird. o.
ITO the attentive listener none of his call
is really unpleasant. In the summer it is anus
ing to hear the young jays learning to say
'chevy-chevy' in choked and breathless man
ner similar to young cockerel learning to
crow.
Comparatively few people know that the jay
Is one OF our sweetest singers; like truly SEN
sitive person, he does not shout of his love
from the housetops but keeps 1t for his beloved
alone.
I'VE were fortunate at one time to have
Jay that came every day for peanuts. He would
land with little thud of feet on the small
window shelf over the kitchen door ard wait
for service. Sometimes his arrival would go
unheard and then, patience exhausted he would
give shout when his order Immediately would
be filled.
"It was in the spring that we first heard his
song: his heart was so full of springtide love
that some Of it overfowed to us, and instead
of shout, he would announce mis- presence
with low, ripplng warble that Ernest Thomp-
son Seton in 'Redruff' calls the sweetest of
fairyland music 1t is similar to the canary
but infinitely richer and softer; it could barely
be heard 20 feet away
Our jay could be stimulated by praise and
would sing for so minutes or more to an appre-
clative audience. AS spring waned and family
duties increased, his song gradually ceased
We had our sweet singer one more spring, and
then he did not come again.
Yours truly X. B."
Many OF the sweet whistles in springtime
come from our jays. But many a human lis
tener does not know they are the whistlers,
any more than they recognize that the old
starhngs are the source of similarly sweet
sounds
Both the jay and startling have been smeared
as far as their vocal powers are concerned
Ordinarily all we hear about is the scream"
OF the jay, and the harsh sounds" made by
starlings
Actually, each is a songbird, in all that
the word means Scientifically, all 1t means
is that each bird so labeled has a number of
throat muscles
To most interested persons, however the
word "songbird" means beautiful songs, or at
least sounds.
Even the crow is songbird, in the scientific
sense. He has the proper throat muscles.
The jay is capable Of many odd, interesting
noises, as well as of some very sweet ones
He can make a sound resembling the noise
made by two bits of wood rubbed together, as
In one OF the small noise makers" commonly
sold for parades.
Usually this is accompanied by the action Of
bending at the knees and thrusting the head
far forward
The jay has one sound as if calling cat
and, strange to say. favorite one!
But when the bird cuts loose and swears at
q cat, it is as If he knew and used every short
Anglo-Saxon word in the dictionary.
All Of his music-making ability is part of
his general bubbling spirits. There are few
birds more imbued with life.
Every one knows some particular friend who
somehow seems to be plugged In to a source of
power unknown to most persons.
Well the blue jay is that way
What he does, he does with verve zest,
q boisterous enthusiasm that sets him apart.
1t Is strange, when you come down to it, that
he has any detractors at all; he is at once so
vigorous, SO keen spirited so beautifully colored
and marked, SO interesting creature. He is
real American. somehow reminding one Of the
native Indians, as they are called, rather
absurdly, we always have thought.
The jay was the victim. In the first place. of
smear campaign in the form OF famous paint
ing. showing him with dripping birds egg In
his claws
That posed him as q sort Of serio-comic
villain. and villain he has remained, at
least to many people. Those who are willing
to use their eyes-and ears-know better He
Is . fine fellow, this Jay Of ours, one who makes
every neighborhood better for being In IT,