Elizabeth Gordon

“ Birds are poetry come to life and set to music. If you should stand at the edge of a forest at sundown and hear the birds singing their good-night songs, hear the sleepy little notes grow fainter and fainter until the silence came,—then when the dusk had deepened, you should hear the night birds begin their plaintive songs, you would realize what a different place our beautiful world would be without birds. ”

“ Even in great cities we have always some birds. The saucy little sparrow, who comes so boldly begging crumbs at your window, likes the cities best. Only very thoughtless people, or those who do not understand, would harm or frighten a bird. ”

“ I wonder who Bob White may be
To whom he calls so merrily. 50
KING-BIRD, like some other boys,
Likes to make a lot of noise;
He’s a bit boisterous in play
And sometimes quarrelsome, they say. 51
CATBIRD is good at imitations,
He mimics all his small relations;
And, safely perched upon a bough,
He imitates the cat’s “Me-ow.” 52
SAID PURPLE MARTIN to his lady:
“Here’s a house all cool and shady;
I surely am a lucky swallow—
This beats my building plans all hollow.” 53
“CHE-WEE, che-wee, che-wee-che-wee,”
Said REDSTART, “Will you look at me? ”