Citizen Bird: Scenes from Bird-Life in Plain English for Beginners. Elliott Coues
of birds—a lower order that seem made for food—not singing nor helping the farmers; but even these should not be shot needlessly or in their nesting season. But the higher order—the perching Song Birds—should never be shot, except the common Sparrow of Europe that we call the English Sparrow. His habits are wholly bad; he meddles with the nests of useful birds and is a nuisance to his human as well as bird neighbors.
"To prevent confusion Heart of Nature has divided the habits and appetites of Birdland, so that instead of a great many families all building in one kind of tree, or eating the same sort of insects or seeds, each has its own manners and customs. Thus they divide among themselves the realms of the air, the water, the trees, and the ground. Some birds, as the Swallows and Flycatchers, skim through the air to catch winged insects. Others, like the Woodpeckers and Warblers, take the scaly insects from the bark of trees. Others that walk on the ground, like the Robin, the Thrush, Meadowlark, Crow, and Red-winged Blackbird, eat ground things, such as the fat cutworms which mow with sharp jaws the young plants of corn, cabbage, and onions."
"Please, Doctor Hunter," asked Rap, "I thought Crows and Blackbirds were wicked birds that ate up grain and corn, for the miller always puts up scarecrows to keep them away."
But before the Doctor could answer the children caught sight of Mammy Bun coming down from the house carrying a tray. Upon this was a pitcher, some glasses, and a plate full of cakes, which, when she came under the tree, they saw were delicious-looking buns, as light and brown as good yeast and careful baking could make them.
"Ah, mammy, mammy," cried Olive, Dodo, and Nat together, "how did you know that we should be hungry now, and we are simply famishing?"
"Well, honeys, I jess guessed it, I reck'n. I know'd massa was a-learnin' you'uns suffin', and it allers 'peared to me that learnin' was mighty empty work. I know'd Massa Doctor was never a one to keep his patients holler, and least his own folks!" Mammy gave a big comfortable laugh as the Doctor took the tray from her hands and the children thanked her heartily, while little Rap smiled hopefully on seeing that there were six buns on the plate—that meant one for each and two for the Doctor, he thought.
"No one can make such buns as mammy," said Olive, old as she was breaking hers in half, to find the lump of sugar soaked with lemon juice that she knew was inside. "She used to make them for me when I was a little girl; that is why I named her Mammy Bun, and we've called her that ever since."
"I thought it was a funny name," said Rap.
"One for each of us, and one for the dish," said Olive, passing the plate around. "One for the dish? What do you mean?" said Dodo.
"Mammy says it is always nice to have more food on a dish, than people are likely to eat, so that they shall see there is enough and the dish shan't feel lonely. You see, that last bun belongs to the dish."
"This time the dish will have to feel lonely," said the Doctor, who had noticed that Rap was looking at his bun, and not eating it; "for I think that Rap would like to take that one home to his mother by and by."
From that day Rap always believed that the Doctor could look into his head and see what he was thinking of.
"As we have been talking about the insect-killing that Citizen Bird does in order to pay his rent and taxes, as a good citizen should, I will tell you of the six guilds in Birdland, into which these citizens are divided in order to do their work thoroughly."
"What is a guild?" asked Rap.
"A guild is a band of people who follow the same trade or occupation, and birds are banded together according to the ways in which they work, though some may belong to several guilds. We will name each of the six guilds:
"1. Ground Gleaners.
"The birds who feed largely upon the insects which live in, on, or near the ground.
"2. Tree Trappers.
"The birds who feed on insects which lurk about the trunks and branches of trees and shrubs.
"3. Sky Sweepers.
"The birds who, while on the wing, catch flying insects.
"4. Wise Watchers.
"The large, silent birds, who sit in wait for their prey of field-mice and other little gnawing mammals, as well as insects.
"5. Seed Sowers.
"The birds who eat wild fruits and berries, and after digesting the pulp and juice, sow the seeds with their bodily wastage.
"6. Weed Warriors.
"The birds who crack seeds in their stout beaks, eat the kernels, and so destroy millions of harmful weed-seeds.
"You must write the names and definitions of these six guilds down in your books, because when you hear about each bird I will tell you to which guild he belongs, and if you know where and upon what a bird feeds it will be easier for you to find him. All the Land Birds belong to one or more of these guilds; but perhaps we shall find before we are through that some of the Water Birds have a guild of Sea Sweepers."
For a few minutes the children scribbled away in silence.
"My book will be very mussy," said Dodo, "for I can't write well when I sit all humped up on a branch."
"Of course you cannot," said the Doctor; "but by and by you can copy it out neatly in a clean book, and it will give you something to do on rainy days, for there are some things that we always remember better if we have once written them down." Presently Rap said, "It must be because you never have let any birds be killed here that there are more kinds than I ever see anywhere else—some of every guild, I think. I've often wondered how it was."
"There are four Robins' nests in this one tree," said Olive, "and the old birds have been flying to and fro while we talked, and never dreamed of being afraid."
"Yes, children, Orchard Farm always has protected its Bird Citizens, and it always will, in my time."
"And in mine, too," said Olive. "You see if each person would care for the birds on his own land, the Battle of the Bugs would soon become less terrible."
Then the children laughed to think how funny a real battle would be, with an army of little bugs drawn up on one side of a field and big House People with guns and cannons on the other.
"But even against cannon," said Olive, "the bugs would have the best of it, because they can fly or hop, and the worms can crawl into the ground."
Then the Doctor finished this lesson by saying, quite seriously: "Every time you children deny yourselves the pleasure of taking an egg from a nest, or think to spread a little food for hungry birds, when cold and snow almost force them to starve, you are adding to the food-supply of your country. To be sure, it may be only a few grains of wheat here and an ear of corn there, but it all means bread-food of some sort, and the bread of a nation is its life. So we must learn to love and protect this feathered neighbor of ours, who works for his own living as well as ours, pays his rent and taxes, and gives, besides, free concerts to the public, daily. He certainly deserves the name of Citizen Bird. His patriotism, which is simply his love of the country where he was born, leads him to return to it whenever he thinks of settling down in life and making a nest-home, no matter how far he may have wandered away at any other time; and this patriotism makes him one of the greatest travellers on the face of the earth."
CHAPTER VI
THE BIRD AS A TRAVELLER
Rap went up to Orchard Farm one morning very early to take Nat for a walk through the fields, down to the river, to see some birds that had arrived in the night.
It was only five o'clock, but Dr. Hunter was walking to and fro in the garden, listening to the burst of bird-music as eagerly