Now that the Bird Day idea is being taken up and spread by the United States Government in the interests of economy, it will do much to sweeten the lives of the coming generation. The natural impulse to love and watch the birds will be encouraged instead of being disregarded. Hast thou named all the birds, without a gun? Loved the wood-rose, and left it on its stalk? O, be my friend, and teach me to be thine! --EMERSON. No longer now the winged inhabitants That in the woods their sweet lives sing away, Flee from the form of man, but gather round, And prune their feathers on the hands Which little children stretch in friendly sport Towards these dreadless partners of their play. --_Extract from_ SHELLEY'S _Queen Mab_. PART II NOTES ON REPRESENTATIVE BIRDS KINGBIRD (_Tyrannus tyrannus_) CALLED ALSO BEE BIRD, BEE MARTIN, AND TYRANT FLYCATCHER Length, about eight and one-half inches; spread of wings, fourteen and one-half inches. The upper parts of body are a blackish ash; top of head, black; crown with a concealed patch of orange red; lower parts pure white, tinged with pale bluish ash on the sides of the throat and across the breast; sides of the breast and under the wings rather lighter than the back; the wings dark brown, darkest towards the ends of the quills; upper surface of the tail glossy black, the feathers tipped with white. This bird is a common summer resident of the Middle States, where it usually arrives the last of April. The name _tyrannus_ given to it is descriptive of the character of the male, since during the breeding season he is anxious to attack everything wearing feathers. His particular aversion is hawks and crows, which he assails by mounting above his adversary and making repeated and violent assaults upon his head. He will even drive the eagle from his vicinity. The farmer could have no better protection for his corn fields than the near-by nest of a pair of kingbirds. They eat some honeybees, but for every bee thus taken they destroy ten noxious insects. They can be easily frightened away from the vicinity of the hives without being killed. The kingbird's nest is made of slender twigs, weed stalks, and grasses, and is placed among the branches of trees, fifteen to twenty-five feet from the ground. There are usually four or five eggs, white, spotted with brown. They have generally two broods a year. [Illustration: KINGBIRD] FLICKER (_Colaptes auratus_) CALLED ALSO YELLOW-HAMMER, PIGEON WOODPECKER, HITTOCK, AND YUCKER