s the only gray member of her family. Young or old, summer or
winter, Solomon and Mrs. Otus were gray, though, young or old, summer or
winter, their fathers had both been of a reddish complexion.

Now this sort of variation in color you can readily see is altogether a
different matter from the way Father Goldfinch changes his feathers
every October for a winter coat that looks much the same as that of
Mother Goldfinch and his young daughters; and then changes every spring
to a beautiful yellow suit, with black-and-white trimmings and a black
cap, for the summer. It is different, too, from the color-styles of Bob
the Vagabond, who merely wears off the dull tips of his winter feathers,
and appears richly garbed in black and white, set off with a lovely bit
of yellow, for his gay summer in the north. Again, it is something quite
different from the color-fashions of Larie, who was not clothed in a
beautiful white garment and soft gray mantle, like his father's and
mother's, until he was quite grown up.

No, the complexion of Solomon and his sons and daughters was a different
matter altogether, because it had nothing whatever to do with season of
the year, or age, or sex. But for all that it was not different from the
sort of color-variations that Mother Nature gives to many of her
children; and you may meet now and again examples of the same sort among
flowers, and insects, and other creatures, too.

But, reddish or gray, it made no difference to Solomon and Mrs. Otus.
They had no favorites among their children, but treated them all alike,
bringing them food in abundance: not only enough to keep them happy the
night long, but laying up a supply in the pantry, so that the youngsters
might have luncheons during the day.

Although Solomon had night eyes, he was not blind by day. He passed the
brightest hours quietly for the most part, dozing with both his outer
eyelids closed, or sometimes sitting with those open and only the thin
inner lid drawn sidewise across his eye. It seems strange to think of
his having three eyelids; but, then, perhaps we came pretty near having
a third one ourselves; for there is a little fold tucked down at the
inner corner, which might have been a third lid that could move across
the eye sidewise, if it had grown bigger. And sometimes, of a dazzling
day in winter, when the sun is shining on the glittering snow, such a
thin lid as Solomon had might be very comfortable, even for our day
eyes, and s