so strong, that he said he wanted to fly
away, too, and see what the ground and other trees were like.

"Not to-day," Mrs. Bird told him. "Wait until your wings are a wee bit
stronger, and then I'll teach you to fly."

When both Mr. and Mrs. Bird had flown away, this same little bird said
to his brothers: "It seems quite easy to fly; all you need to do is to
flap your wings. I think I'll try it alone."

"You had better not!" the others told him.

"Yes, I will," the little bird said.

He hopped to the edge of the nest, and began to flap his wings. He did
not quite dare to raise his feet, though, for he felt rather timid when
he looked down and saw how far away the ground seemed to be. But he
flapped his wings so vigorously, pretending to fly, that he lost his
balance and fell. He was not hurt, for the grass was tall and soft, but
he was greatly frightened, and cried out for his mother.

Mrs. Bird was too far away to hear him, but a little girl did. She
picked him up very gently, and ran to show him to her father.

"Look at this cunning little bird which I have found! May I keep it for
mine?" she asked him.

"No," said her father. "See, it is only a baby bird, which has fallen
from its nest, and is crying for its mother. Show me where you found it;
perhaps I can reach the nest if we can discover it among the leaves."

The little girl pointed out the tree to her father. He placed a ladder
against it, and, climbing up, was able to drop the little bird into its
home.

In a few days Mr. and Mrs. Bird were ready to teach all their babies
to fly.

"Come on," they said, "spread your wings, jump into the air, and fly
just a little way, to that other limb of the tree."

Three of the little birds obeyed at once, and reached the resting place
in safety. But the fourth little bird was afraid to try, because he had
fallen before.

"Don't be a coward," urged his father and mother. "You fell before
because your wings were not strong enough to bear you up, but now you
will have no trouble."

The little bird wouldn't budge.

The parent birds knew it was time for him to learn, so they pushed the
foolish little fellow out of the nest, and watched him spread his wings,
and flutter to the ground. There he found more courage, and after a
while he flew up to join his brothers on the tree.

"I was sitting at my window," Mother told Johnnie Jones, "and saw it all
happen. Of course I can't understand the language of birds, and