The Burgess Bird Book for Children | Page 9

obediently stopped singing and began to hunt for a tiny little
twig such as Jenny had taken into that hole.
"Well!" exclaimed Peter. "It didn't take you long to find a new house,

did it?"
"Certainly not," snapped Jenny "We can't afford to sit around wasting
time like some folk I know."
Peter grinned and looked a little foolish, but he didn't resent it. You see
he was quite used to that sort of thing. "Aren't you afraid that Bully will
try to drive you out of that house?" he ventured.
Jenny Wren's sharp little eyes snapped more than ever. "I'd like to see
him try!" said she. "That doorway's too small for him to get more than
his head in. And if he tries putting his head in while I'm inside, I'll peck
his eyes out! She said this so fiercely that Peter laughed right out.
"I really believe you would," said he.
"I certainly would," she retorted. "Now I can't stop to talk to you, Peter
Rabbit, because I'm too busy. Mr. Wren, you ought to know that that
stick is too big." Jenny snatched it out of Mr. Wren's mouth and
dropped it on the ground, while Mr. Wren meekly went to hunt for
another. Jenny joined him, and as Peter watched them he understood
why Jenny is so often spoken of as a feathered busybody.
For some time Peter Rabbit watched Jenny and Mr. Wren carry sticks
and straws into that little hole until it seemed to him they were trying to
fill the whole inside of the tree. Just watching them made Peter
positively tired. Mr. Wren would stop every now and then to sing, but
Jenny didn't waste a minute. In spite of that she managed to talk just the
same.
"I suppose Little Friend the Song Sparrow got here some time ago,"
said she.
Peter nodded. "Yes," said he. "I saw him only a day or two ago over by
the Laughing Brook, and although he wouldn't say so, I'm sure that he
has a nest and eggs already."
Jenny Wren jerked her tail and nodded her head vigorously. "I suppose

so," said she. "He doesn't have to make as long a journey as we do, so
he gets here sooner. Did you ever in your life see such a difference as
there is between Little Friend and his cousin, Bully? Everybody loves
Little Friend."
Once more Peter nodded. "That's right," said he. "Everybody does love
Little Friend. It makes me feel sort of all glad inside just to hear him
sing. I guess it makes everybody feel that way. I wonder why we so
seldom see him up here in the Old Orchard."
"Because he likes damp places with plenty of bushes better," replied
Jenny Wren. "It wouldn't do for everybody to like the same kind of a
place. He isn't a tree bird, anyway. He likes to be on or near the ground.
You will never find his nest much above the ground, not more than a
foot or two. Quite often it is on the ground. Of course I prefer Mr.
Wren's song, but I must admit that Little Friend has one of the happiest
songs of any one I know. Then, too, he is so modest, just like us
Wrens."
Peter turned his head aside to hide a smile, for if there is anybody who
delights in being both seen and heard it is Jenny Wren, while Little
Friend the Song Sparrow is shy and retiring, content to make all the
world glad with his song, but preferring to keep out of sight as much as
possible.
Jenny chattered on as she hunted for some more material for her nest. "I
suppose you've noticed, said she, "that he and his wife dress very much
alike. They don't go in for bright colors any more than we Wrens do.
They show good taste. I like the little brown caps they wear, and the
way their breasts and sides are streaked with brown. Then, too, they are
such useful folks. It is a pity that that nuisance of a Bully doesn't learn
something from them. I suppose they stay rather later than we do in the
fall."
"Yes," replied Peter. "They don't go until Jack Frost makes them. I
don't know of any one that we miss more than we do them."
"Speaking of the sparrow family, did you see anything of Whitethroat?"

asked Jenny Wren, as she rested for a moment in the doorway of her
new house and looked down at Peter Rabbit.
Peter's face brightened. "I should say I did!" he exclaimed. "He stopped
for a few days on his way north. I only wish he would stay here all the
time. But he seems to think there is no place