314 FINCIIES, smanows, ETC.

Remarks—The female ot‘ this species is rather a puzzling bird, and may be mistaken for a Sparrow. lts unstreaked hat-k and the slight tinge of blue generally present on the outer web of the wing— and tail—feathers should serve to distinguish it.

Bettye—Eastern United States; breeds as far north as Minnesota and Nova Scotia; winters in t‘entral America.

Washington, common S. It, Apl. 25 to Oct. 15. Sing Sing, common S. R, May 4 to Oct. 17. Cambridge, rather common S. 1%., 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 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 cheap 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. com- pactly made cup—too cleverly hidden in the dense green thicket to be easily discovered. The color of the eggs will again test 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 conseientiousness 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 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 branch to branch. bursting into jubilant song when he reached the topmost bough. I watched him climb as high into the air as he could, when, against a background of blue sky and rolling white clouds, the blessed little songster broke out into the blithest round that ever bub- bled up from a glad heart. FLORENL'E A. MERRIAM.

The VAluen HUNTING (600. l’amerina easier/1w), a species of our Mexican border, has been once recorded from Michigan.

601. Passerina. ciris (Lin/1.). PAINTED ’irs'rmo; Noxmumt, .At/I. a.-~llead and sides ot'the neck indigtrblue; hack golden green, rump dull red; under parts bright red; wings and tail tinged with dull red; greater \\'ing~eoverts green. All. 9.—L‘pper parts bright olive—green; under parts white, washed with greenish yellow; wings and tail fuseous, margined with olive»green. L., 5‘25; W., 2'70; 'I‘., 2'17»; 13., '42.

[tangle—Breeds from the Gulf States northward to Kansas. southerl’l Illi— nois, and North (,‘arolina ; winters in the tropics.