One day I was picking violets for mother. Two boys whom I knew passed by. One of the boys had something wrapped up in his handkerchief. I asked him what it was. He told me that it was a little sparrow. I looked at the sparrow carefully so as not to frighten him. I saw that his wing was broken. My friend carried the sparrow to his home. He showed the bird to his father. He asked if he could keep it. [Illustration: Three kids standing] His father said that he must take care of the bird if he kept it. The boy bound the broken wing with string and toothpicks. The wing was soon as strong as ever. Then the little sparrow flew back to his friends. The Sparrow Glad to see you, little bird, ’Twas your plaintive chirp I heard. What did you intend to say? “Give me something this cold day?” That I will, and plenty, too. All these crumbs I saved for you. A Bird House My cousin made a bird house. I liked it so well that I asked him to make one for me. My cousin made a bird house for me, too. It took a long time to finish it. After it was finished, my cousin brought it to our home. Then my father put the house on the branch of a tree. One day I saw a wren fly into the house. Oh, how glad I was! Now many birds seem to enjoy the bird house. [Illustration: Woodpecker on tree] The Woodpecker’s Nest We have an old cherry tree in our back yard. One day last spring we heard a pounding noise outside our kitchen window. Then we noticed that a woodpecker was making holes in the tree with his strong bill. Tiny pieces of wood fell to the ground as the woodpecker kept boring. After a while there was a round hole in the cherry tree. This hole the woodpecker lined with grass. It became the nest which one day held three eggs. Still later, there were three baby birds in the nest. We liked to watch the woodpeckers feed the baby birds. One day the birds disappeared, and the nest was empty. Now I am hoping that next year there will be another nest in our cherry tree. The Building of the Nest They’ll come to the apple tree—Robin and all the rest— When the orchard branches are fair to see, In the snow of the blossoms dressed; And the prettiest thing in the world will be The building of the nest. How We Help the Birds In the winter time it is very cold. The snow often covers the ground. Then it is very hard for the birds to find food. We can help the winter birds by giving them crumbs. It is fun to do this. Sometimes we may throw crumbs on the sidewalk. At other times we put them on the window sill. The birds always find the crumbs. You may be sure that they eat them, too. In the summer time it is often hot and dry. The birds are warm and thirsty.