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Range (Eastern United States breeds) (V)

Eastern United States; breeds as far north as Minnesota and Nova Scotia; winters in Central America.

Washington, common S. R., Apl. 28 to Oct. 15. Sing Sing, common S. R., May 4 to Oct. 17. Cambridge, rather common S. R., May 15 to Sept. 25.

Nest, of grasses, bits of dead leaves, and strips of bark, lined with fine grasses, rootlets, and long hairs, generally in the crotch of a bush near the bush near the ground. Eggs, three to four, pale bluish white, 73 x 57 .

In walking among clumps of bushes in clearings or old pastures. look sharp if a small brown bird flies before you, especially if she calls cheep and twitches her tail nervously from side to side. Though she be a sparrowy-looking bird, look well to her shoulders and tail. If you discover a glint of blue and her cries call her mate, you will ever after be a more trustworthy observer-for his brilliant coat is unmistakable. Having made sure of your birds, watch them to their nest-a compactly made cup-too cleverly hidden in the dense green thicket to be to be easily discovered. The color of the eggs will again test your accuracy your accuracy of observation; in varying lights they look green, blue, and white .

The female Indigo is so suspicious that it is hard not to be vexed with her, but the primary virtues of an observer are conscientiousness and patience; so take your hard cases as a means of grace. However distrustful the poor mother bird is, her mate's cheery song makes up for it all. After most birds have stopped singing for the for the year, his merry voice still gladdens the long August days .

I well remember watching one Indigo-bird who, day after day, used to fly to the lowest limb of a high tree and sing his way up from up from branch to branch. bursting into jubilant song when he reached tho reached tho topmost bough. I watched him climb as high into the air as he could, as he could, when, against a background of blue sky and rolling white clouds, the clouds, the blessed little songster broke out into the blithest round that ever bub. FLORENCE A. MERRIAM. that ever bub-