A second infant had wisely confined his wandering to his own tree, one
of a group of tall pines that towered above the roofs of the village.
This one could be easily watched as he stood on one branch for an hour
at a time, sometimes in the nest attitude, head sunk in shoulders and
beak pointed toward the sky, again looking eagerly around on his new
world, turning his head from side to side, changing position to see the
other way, and showing himself wide awake although the yellowish
baby-down was still on his head, and his tail was not an inch long. Now
and then the mother was heard calling in the distance, and as she
approached he became all excitement, fluttering his wings, and answering
in the husky tones of the family. A moment later, after a quick glance
around, but without alighting and reconnoitring the whole neighborhood,
as the robin does, she came down beside the eager youngling,
administered to the wide open mouth what looked like two or three savage
pecks, but doubtless were nothing worse than mouthfuls of food, and
instantly flew again, while the refreshed infant stretched his wings
and legs, changed his place a little, and settled into comfortable quiet
after his lunch.
The urchin in the enemy's tree was not the most unfortunate of the
nestlings. One already lay dead on the ground under the nest where it
had fallen, and another came down during the day, though happily without
injury. This one was not very bright, or perhaps his baby wits were
dazed by his sudden descent. He made no objection to staying in my hand
as long as I liked to look at him, and when I placed him on a low
branch, as a hint that it was safer there, he declined to accept my
advice, but flew off and came to the ground again. He was a scraggy
looking, rusty black little fellow, the most unattractive young bird I
ever saw. Shortly after this he clambered up on a pile of brush about a
foot high, without so much as a leaf to screen him, and there he stayed
all day, motionless, being fed at long intervals; and there I left him
at night, never expecting to see him again. But in the morning he
appeared on a low shrub on the lawn, and about nine o'clock he took
courage to launch himself on wing. He flew very low across the street,
and dropped into the tall grass at the foot of a lilac bush. Why the
parents considered that less safe than the open lawn I could not see,
but they evidently did, for one of them perched upon the lilac, and
filled the air with anxious "chucks," announcing to all whom it might
concern--after the fashion of some birds--that here was a stray infant
to be had for the picking up. Perhaps, however, the hue-and-cry kept off
the quiet-loving cat; at any rate nothing happened to him, I think, for
in a day or two the three young birds became so expert on wing that the
whole family left us, and I hope found a place where they were more
welcome than in that colony of house and orchard birds.