me swooped down so that I
thought he would certainly strike my face. I instinctively dodged, and
he passed over, so near that the wind from his wings fanned my face.
This was a hint I could not refuse to take. I left him, for the time.

That evening when we went for our usual call, lo! the nest was empty. At
not more than seven or eight days of age, those precocious infants had
started out in the world! That explained the conduct of the anxious papa
in the afternoon, and I forgave him on the spot. I understood his fear
that I should discover or step on his babies three, scattered and
scrambling about under all that depth of grass. The abandoned homestead,
which we carefully examined, proved to be merely a cup-shaped hollow in
the ground, slightly protected by a thin lining.

In a few days the wandering younglings were up in front of the house,
where we could watch the parents drop into the grass with food; and
where, of course, they were safe from anybody's intrusion. I had one
more encounter with his lordship. After the young had been out a week or
more, they seemed in their moving about to get back near to the old
place. As I took my usual walk one evening, down the carriage drive to
the gate, I found two pairs of bobolinks on one tree; the two mothers
with food in their mouths, evidently intended for somebody down in the
grass; and the two fathers, very much disturbed at my appearance. They
greeted me with severe and reproving "chacks," and finally favored me
with the most musical call I have heard from the sweet-voiced bird of
the meadow. It was like "kee-lee!" in loud and rich tones, and it was
many times repeated.

I assured them that I had no wish to disturb their little ones; though,
if I had been able to lift the whole grassy cover to peep at the two
small families hidden there, I fear I should have yielded to the
temptation.

Our bird had been somewhat erratic in making his home far from his
fellows,--so social are these birds even in nesting-time; but now he was
joined by more of his kind from the meadows below, and to the beautiful
waving carpet of green, dotted here and there with great bunches of
black-eyed Susans and devil's paint-brushes (what names!), and sprinkled
all over with daisies, now beginning to look a little disheveled and
wild, was added the tantalizing interest of dozens of little folk
running about under its shelter.

The next week brought to the meadow what must seem from the bobolin