Evening star., 1948-06-09
This and That
By Charles E. Trdceloeu
"GREENBELT, Md.

"GFtEENBELI, Nd.
Dear Sir:
THE cruel closing of q door ended the two
weeks Of pleasure and firsthand birdlore which
my family enjoyed with our founding wood
thrush.
He came to us tenderly borne in the grubby
hands OF my two boys who found him in the
course OF exploring an open sewer Cor some
such dark hole) in the neighborhood. The only
thing not unlovely about him at the time was
his characteristic speckled breast and the prom
ise in his infant cheeping, of pretty songs to
come
"As for the rest of him, he was grotesque,
with half-inch stub for tail, feathers of
odd lengths, mismatched patterns and uneven
spacing. cluster of baby hair stood over his
right eye like an ill-designed eyebrow. His legs
were gangling and supported body that had
the lopSided puffness Of an overused kids base
ball.
But after one evening Of getting adjusted
to each other, bird and family grew mutually
attached. We named him Chi-Chi, after his
chtrp.
I'm his quickly gained trust of us, he soon
got to opening his vast mouth every time any
one came close to him. Usually he was rewarded
with bit Of raw meat or milksop, or q spot
Of water administered through an eyedropper
which he all but swallowed with every drink
I'm few days, as his growing tail gave him
better balance, his favorite perch became any
extended finger. He had no fear, only trust
for human beings, who by this time had taken
to dropping fat, though reluctant, earthworms
and grubs into his maw
That stumpy tail by which we measured his
growth and our pride had reached two inches;
his body was becoming downright sleek in
shape, and he could fly nearly 20 feet from
height-when the fatal day came.
He was on the living room floor showing his
hunger to my 6-year-old boy, who on impulse
grabbed trowel and ran out, to dig another
batch of grubS. The boy closed the door that
time, for a change.
"Out of sheer trust and friendliness, Chi-Chi
that time happened to be right at the boys
heels, scurrying out to see what his latest meal
would be-
HE, of course never had a chance
Sincerely, j. w. S."
Life, some one has said. is balanced on razor
edges.
In no form, perhaps, is this better shown
than in birds.
So tough and capable that warbler weighing
no more than half an ounce can fly 10000 miles
in migration, at the same time the creature is
so fragile that a slight blow will shatter it.
When baby bird is taken in to be brought
up by hand" every precaution must be taken
to prevent tragedies. This story shows the rea-
son why.
The amazing thing is the real heart blow
get i'll, or meets with an accident
The power Of life to cause affection is one
OF the great mysteries. We do not understand
1t, but we value it. In the midst of our atom
bombs and secret weapons" designed to deal
terrible mass death, We cling all the closer to
the personal loves and small affections of the
everyday.
Perhaps in no age has plain everyday afiec-
ton, without admixture of Freud, come more
into its own. Friendship for animals has be-
come sort of cult. If we can keep the bombs
from falling, the world stands on the edge of a
great revival of human kindness directed to
the benefit of our brothers in fur and feathers
Not only shall little child lead us, but
before him will hop tiny bird, bright of eye,
going on into the brotherhood of man and
beasts; and # 1t be any bird, 1t must be the
wood thrush. lovely to behold, wonderful to
hear. so close to the heart Of the universal
mother.
Our Chi-Chi Is gone. but he brought happi-
ness and Joy for time, and tears to the eyes
Of q soldier.
WIN any Of Us ever do betteri