Identifier: ourownbirdsfamil00bai (find matches)
Title: Our own birds : a familiar natural history of the birds of the United States
Year: 1879 (1870s)
Authors: Baily, William L. (William Lloyd), 1828-1861 Cope, E. D. (Edward Drinker), 1840-1897, ed
Subjects: Birds
Publisher: Philadelphia : J.B. Lippincott & Co.
Contributing Library: Smithsonian Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: Smithsonian Libraries

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earance of many of them. Among the first birds which cheer our hearts atthe approach of Spring, is the Pewee Fly-catcher,his soft, sweet, and not unmusical voice often sound-ing through the leafless grove long before the lasttraces of Winter have yielded to the softening sun-beams. The song of the Pewee is a sure and reliableprognostic of the coming of that lovely season whenthe earth again clothes herself in her beautiful gar-ments, and the air resounds with Natures sweetestmusic. The social and familiar habits of this plainand modest little bird, as well as his confiding trustin man, must ever secure for him a conspicuous placein our affections, and entitle him and his little prop-erty to our earnest and zealous protection. Thisfamiliarity, however, sometimes subjects him to beingmade the mark of cruel and unthinking boys, who,with that wilful propensity for throwing stones whichBeems to be part of a boys nature, are so reckless ofconsequences as to tease and torment the poor little
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Upper Jig—Wood Pewee. Lower Jig.—Tyr&nt Fly-catch«r, or King Bird9* (101 ) THE KING BIRD. 103 bird, until one, more lucky than the rest, strikesthe deadly blow. The writer still remembers withwhat sorrowful feelings, when a boy, he once held inhis hand tho body of a Pewee, which with a randomtoss of a stone he had deprived of life. Could allchildren feel as he then felt, how wrong it is wan-tonly to destroy that life which all have an equalright to enjoy, they would cease to make sport of it,and this charming little songster would possess to thefull that security to which he is justly entitled. The Pewee often returns to a favorite summer re-sort for several successive years, occupying the samenest each season, merely repairing the injuries whichit has received during the Winter. Audubon speaksof his having found the same pair of birds occupyinga familiar nook in an old cavern which he had beenaccustomed to visit for a number of years. At onetime he fastened to the legs of ea

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