spots each season, and had kept it in
such repair that it was still as good as ever. It would last, indeed,
with such treatment, as long as the post and the beams that supported it
held. The post was the trunk of a tall old tree, and the beams were the
branches, so near the top that it would be a very brave or a very
foolish man who would try to climb so far; for there were no stairs.

No stairs, and such a distance up! But Uncle Sam could find the path
that led to it; for was he not a lord of the air, and could he not sail
the roughest wind with those strong wings of his?

[Illustration: _Above all other creatures of this great land he had been
honored._]

Perhaps it was the sure strength of his wings that gave him a stately
poise of pride even as he rested. It could not have been the honor men
had bestowed upon him; for, although that was very great, he knew
nothing about it.

Soldiers had gone into battle for freedom and right, bearing the picture
of Uncle Sam on their banners. Veterans had walked in Memorial Day
parades, while over their gray heads floated the symbol of Uncle Sam and
the Stars and Stripes. Yes, the people of a great and noble land,
reaching from a sea on the east to a sea on the west, had honored Uncle
Sam by choosing him for the emblem of their country. His picture was
stamped on their paper money, and ornamented one side of the coins that
came from the mint, with the words, "In God We Trust," on the other
side. Above all other creatures of this great land he had been honored;
and could he have understood, he might well have been justly proud of
this tribute.

But as it was, perhaps his emotions were centred only on his family; for
his home was shared by his mate and two young sons. He bent his white
head to look down at his twins. They were such hungry rascals and needed
such a deal of care! They had needed care, indeed, ever since the day
their little bodies had begun to form in the two bluish white eggs their
mother had laid in the nest. They had stayed inside those shells for a
month; and they never could have lived and grown there if they had not
been brooded and kept warm. Their mother had snuggled her feathers over
them and kept them cosy; and, when she had needed a change and a rest,
Uncle Sam had cuddled them close under his body; for a month is a long
time to keep eggs from getting cold, and it was only fair that he should
take his turn.

He was no shirk in his family life. He had