He always slept at the foot of my bed, and as soon
as it was daylight he would come up and creep into my arms, and nestle
there till I rose.... I fed him on seed and sand, but he had food with me
besides, such as a little potato at dinner-time, and bread and butter at
tea-time."
Does this account of a tame sparrow encourage you to try to attach one
of these little birds to yourself? I am afraid it would not be possible
unless, as in the case of this birdie, it was one taken from the nest.
The poem about birds' nests tells only of those made by our home-birds, but
we can read of wonderful nests made by those in foreign countries. Perhaps
the most clever nest-builder is a tiny Indian bird, called the "Tailor,"
because it actually sews leaves together, using both its bill and its
feet, to make a safe hiding-place for its eggs, no bigger than peas, where
neither snake nor monkey shall find them. It first chooses a plant with
large leaves, then sews a dead leaf to the side of the green and living
one, and in the space between the two, it lays its tiny eggs. It gathers
cotton from a shrub, and with its long bill and slender little feet works
away until it has spun a thread; then, using its bill for a needle, it
pierces holes through the leaves, and sews them securely together. Should
you not like to see such a wonderful nest, and still more to watch the
little tailor--more like a bee than a bird in size--at his work?
[Illustration: TAILOR-BIRD'S NEST]
I will tell you of one more nest; it is of a very different kind, and is
made by a swallow which lives in the islands east of Asia, and is generally
called the Java swallow.
Pages:
276
277
278
279
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291
292
293
294
295
296
297
298
299
300