The woods are full of voices everywhere; An hundred chipmunks' sharp, quick tones are there; The cricket's chirp, the partridge drum, The harsh-voiced crows which go and come, In Nature's song agree. The breeze that wanders through the firs, The rustle of each leaf that stirs, Are whisperings to me. So, when swift impulse leads in ways unknown, I follow on without a thought of fear; God reigns, and I can never be alone, With Nature near. --TOM CARDER, JR. [Illustration: From col. F. M. Woodruff. AMERICAN SPARROW HAWK. 2/3 Life-size. Copyright by Nature Study Pub. Co., 1898, Chicago.] HINTS ON THE STUDY OF WINTER BIRDS. In attractiveness to children, says James E. McDade, for the Committee of Sixty of Chicago, no department of natural history surpasses Ornithology. Birds are to be found everywhere. In the city parks and suburban groves careful observation will reveal objects of study, even in the depths of winter. The following suggestions are based on practical work which has been done in the G. W. Curtis school during the past two years. No satisfactory work can be done until the children have been aroused to sufficient interest to observe birds for themselves. Pictures and descriptions, however valuable as auxiliaries, can never take the place of personal observation. The best method of arousing this interest is to go out with the children and study the birds. Opera glasses or field glasses will greatly facilitate observation. As a guide in description pupils may have in mind the following points: shape and size of bird; prevailing color; marks on head, wings, throat, or tail; shape of bill; length of tail; where found (whether on the ground, in trees, or climbing tree trunks). These and other details should be emphasized. In all this work strict accuracy must be insisted on. In the beginning, pupils are apt to give inaccurate, and, in some instances, highly imaginary descriptions of birds. A good plan is to encourage them to bring in written descriptions of birds they have seen. Such field work may well furnish excellent subject matter for water color work, as well as a basis for written compositions. Good collections of our native birds may be found in the Field Columbian Museum and in the museum of the Chicago Academy of Sciences, and the curators of these institutions will be found ready to give teachers any aid in their power. Mr. McDade mentions the following as the most common winter birds of this vicinity, not including swimmers and waders: the English Sparrow, the Snow Bird, the Bluejay, the Thistle-bird, the Black-capped Chickadee, the White-bellied Nuthatch, the Northern Shrike or Butcherbird, the Horned Lark, and the Crow.