g story of an oriole. He says
a friend of his curious in such things, on observing the bird
beginning to build, hung out near the prospective nest skeins of
many-colored zephyr yarn, which the eager artist readily
appropriated. He managed it so that the bird used nearly equal
quantities of various high, bright colors. The nest was made
unusually deep and capacious, and it may be questioned if such a
thing of beauty was ever before woven by the cunning of a bird.

Nuttall, by far the most genial of American ornithologists, relates
the following:--

"A female (oriole), which I observed attentively, carried off to
her nest a piece of lamp-wick ten or twelve feet long. This long
string and many other shorter ones were left hanging out for about a
week before both the ends were wattled into the sides of the nest.
Some other little birds, making use of similar materials, at times
twitched these flowing ends, and generally brought out the busy
Baltimore from her occupation in great anger.

"I may perhaps claim indulgence for adding a little more of the
biography of this particular bird, as a representative also of the
instincts of her race. She completed the nest in about a week's
time, without any aid from her mate, who indeed appeared but seldom
in her company and was now become nearly silent. For fibrous
materials she broke, hackled, and gathered the flax of the asclepias
and hibiscus stalks, tearing off long strings and flying with them
to the scene of her labors. She appeared very eager and hasty in her
pursuits, and collected her materials without fear or restraint
while three men were working in the neighboring walks and many
persons visiting the garden. Her courage and perseverance were
indeed truly admirable. If watched too narrowly, she saluted with
her usual scolding, _tshrr, tshrr, tshrr_, seeing no reason,
probably, why she should be interrupted in her indispensable
occupation.

"Though the males were now comparatively silent on the arrival of
their busy mates, I could not help observing this female and a
second, continually vociferating, apparently in strife. At last she
was observed to attack this _second_ female very fiercely, who slyly
intruded herself at times into the same tree where she was building.
These contests were angry and often repeated. To account for this
animosity, I now recollected that _two_ fine males had been killed
in our vicinity, and I therefore concluded the intruder to be left
wit