He would not leave us, would not bereave us,—
Not he, though our own birds do!
Cold weather pinches—flown are the finches,
Thrushes and warblers too!
Here’s to the darling, here’s to the Starling,—
English Starling true!
—Edith M. Thomas, in Bird-Lore.
X
SOME MISCHIEF-MAKERS
Crows and Jays, Starlings and Grackles
The children came back very promptly after the mid-morning recess, considering the attraction offered outside. Though cheeks and all available pockets fairly bulged with apples, they had sufficient appetite to enjoy the crisp cookies, plates of which were set at intervals on the plain-topped table in the playroom, together with pitchers of milk or a delicious drink of Ann’s invention compounded of oranges and lemons and sweetened with honey.