with her head):
I'm thrifty Jenny Wren.
The foolish, lazy men
Think they work if they sing all day.
If husband is a martyr,
I'm a great deal, great deal smarter,
For I _talk_ when I've _nothing to say_!

"And though I mind my work,
I also prink and perk,
For Johnny's such a _f-a-s-cin-a-ting_ He!

"_Both_ (beating time with all four wings):
_(She)_ Though you don't care to talk--
_(He)_ We might both take a walk--
_(Both)_ For we are such a captivating WE!
_Exeunt,_ dancing on tiptoe along the trellis."

The House Wren

Length five inches.

Upper parts dark brown finely barred with black.

Under parts gray, washed with brown and very faintly banded.

Tail rather long (for a Wren's), full of light and dark bars, mostly
held cocked up.

A fidgety little bird with a very merry song.

A Summer Citizen east of Indiana, and a Citizen south from the
middle districts.

A Ground Gleaner and Tree Trapper.

THE LONG-BILLED MARSH WREN

"You must always wear your rubber boots when you go to look for the
Marsh Wren," said the Doctor; "and you must be careful where you step,
for this Wren knows where to put his nest safely out of the way of both
House People and cats. He chooses a bunch of reeds, or a bush that is
surrounded either by water or the treacherous green grass of bogs, and
there weaves an oblong or globular nest from coarse grass and leaves,
with a little hole on one side for a door. This done, he goes to a short
distance and appoints himself day watchman to his home. If a footstep
touches the grass ever so lightly, he tells his mate of it and they flit
off; and if any one thinks that by following the birds they will find
the nest, they will be very much disappointed. Mr. and Mrs. Long-bill
will lead them a will-o'-the-wisp dance; and when the House People are
tired, bewildered, and very wet in the shoes, the clever birds will
return home by a secret way, chuckling to themselves. You will know this
little bird by his nervous Wren-like ways and jerking tail, even if you
are not near enough to see his markings and long curving bill."

[Illustration: Long-Billed Marsh Wren.]

"But there are no marshy places near the Farm, so I'm afraid we shall
never see him, except in the wonder room," said Nat.

"By and by when we go to the beach, where our river meets the sea, I
will show you some nests. I speak of this Marsh Wren now so that you
may remember it with the rest of this family