“When you please, Frank,” said Uncle Thomas. “Suppose we say to-morrow night; perhaps that will suit the convenience of the young ladies.” “Oh, quite, Uncle Thomas!” said Mary; “it will be quite convenient for us whenever it is so to you.” Mama having given her assent to this arrangement, the little party, full of smiles, bade Uncle Thomas good morning. * * * * * On the following evening, accordingly, they again met, and when they had duly greeted their kind old Uncle Thomas, and seated themselves round his elbow-chair, he began:— “Birds, my dear children, of which I promised to tell you some stories, are perhaps the most interesting class of animals in creation, whether we consider them in regard to their habits or to the curious structure of their bodies, by which they have been fitted by Nature for the place which GOD has assigned them, or to the Instincts which have been implanted in them. In most minds their recollection is associated with all that is most beautiful and romantic in natural scenery. We meet with them in our walks, chirping and frolicking among the village hedgerows, or see them soaring, with almost untiring wing, high above the mountain tops, or hear their solitary voices as they make the wide-spreading and desolate moor seem even more lonely with their harsh and far-sounding notes. Wherever we direct our steps we are sure to find Birds enlivening and cheering the scene, or adding fresh interest by their varied and characteristic occupations. There are few indeed who cannot say with Cowper:— “Ten thousand warblers cheer the day, and one The live-long night; nor those alone whose notes Nice-fingered art must emulate in vain; But cawing rooks, and kites, that swim sublime In still repeated circles, screaming loud; The jay, the pie, and e’en the boding owl, That hails the rising moon, have charms for me.” “Birds,” continued Uncle Thomas, “have been divided by some naturalists into Land and Water Birds; but more recent and systematic writers have introduced a more extended classification. Cuvier, an eminent French author, divides them into Birds of Prey—such as the Eagle and Vulture; Sparrow-like, or hopping Birds—such as Jays, Thrushes, &c.; Climbing Birds—such as Parrots; Poultry Birds—such as Turkeys, Pheasants, &c.; Running and Wading Birds, which are easily distinguished by their long legs; and Web-footed Birds—such as Ducks, Geese, Swans, &c.” To this long and rather uninteresting detail Mary and Jane listened as patiently as possible. But no sooner was it finished, than the latter seized the opportunity to ask Uncle Thomas whether the Eagle was not the largest Bird in the world, and whether it was a native of Britain, as she had heard a story lately of one having carried off a child to its nest to feed its young?