olours, and others have a plain and homely appearance; some subsist on
fruits, some feed upon insects, and many live by making a prey of and of
devouring the smaller birds."

Here her little daughter exclaimed, "Oh, what wicked creatures! I am
sure I should think it no crime to destroy the nest of such unnatural
birds."--"Very true," replied her mamma, and there are many more of your
way of thinking; and therefore these great birds, who live upon the
smaller class, build their nests in places where they cannot be easily
disturbed, such as in woods, in crevices of rocks, and in other places
most unfrequented by men, or at heights beyond our reach.

"Since, therefore, my dear children, these birds are greatly different
from each other, as well in size as in the mode of living, and in the
variety of their plumage, it will naturally follow that their nests must
also differ. The lark never perches on a tree, and sings only when
mounting in the air, and builds her nest on the ground. The swallow
builds about the roofs of houses, under what we call the eaves, and
sometimes in the corners of windows. The owl, which flies abroad only in
the night, seeks out deserted habitations, or some hollow trees, wherein
to deposit her eggs; and the eagles, who soar above the clouds till
absolutely out of sight, bring forth their young in the cliffs of craggy
rocks. Those birds, which so prettily sport round our houses, and hop
from branch to branch, make their nests in the trees and hedges. Those
who sport on the water, and find their living therein, build their
nests among the rushes that grow on the banks.

"We will, one fine day, take a walk into the little valley that
terminates our large meadow, and you will there see a number of these
pretty creatures busy in selecting the materials of which they compose
their nests. You will observe one employed in carrying off a wheaten
straw, another with wool or feathers in its beak, another with a dried
leaf, and perhaps with a little moss. You may frequently notice the
swallow, on the borders of a limpid stream, moistening in the water a
little bit of earth which he holds in his beak, and with this he builds
his habitation; and, though the outside of its nest is formed of hard
and durable materials, the inside is lined with the softest and warmest.
There are even some birds, who pull off their own feathers to make up a
comfortable bed, wherein to secure their young from every inclemency of
the