It was the day after the Fourth of July, and daddy told the children that he must surely tell them about the little birds and what they thought of the wonderful Independence Day.
"Didn't they like it?" asked Evelyn.
"No," said daddy. "They were not so very happy yesterday, but I will tell you all about it, for it is quite a long story.
"You see, some of the older birds knew what the Fourth of July meant. They thought it was splendid to belong to such a fine, free country during all the other days of the year, but on the Fourth of July they did not feel so patriotic. They would have liked it very much if all the little boys and girls had sung songs, but the noise of the firecrackers they thought was most disturbing.
"There were no places where they could go that they didn't find children with firecrackers. Even in front of the farm-houses the children seemed to have firecrackers enough to last them for years.
"The old birds decided that if they went way off in the woods for the day they might get away from all the noise, so they planned to start before dawn. They went, but at the first place they thought of stopping and giving a nice little bird concert, they found a picnic party of children. They waited for a moment until the children unpacked their baskets. But the goodies were not nearly so numerous as the firecrackers.
"So the birds moved on again, and again they found a picnic party and were at a loss what to do.
"The old birds were grumbling and making every one around feel just as 'grumbly' as they were, when a little song sparrow, who had been keeping very quiet during all the fuss, said:
"'Now, look here, I think it is pretty mean of us to grumble while all the little boys and girls are having such a good time. It is right for them to be patriotic, and we should not grumble about the noise they make one day in the year, when we are singing fit to burst our throats every morning just at sunrise. Besides, we should be more appreciative, for we love this free air, and we should feel proud that we can fly about and enjoy it. And, above everything else, think of the times in the spring when those little girls and boys threw crumbs to us when it was chilly, and how often in the hot days of summer we find little drinking-tins in the trees filled with cool water.'
"And all the birds suddenly thought how perfectly right the song sparrow was, and they gave their concert, pretending that the big cannon crackers were huge chords of music accompanying their solos and choruses."