perching.

[Illustration: From col. F. M. Woodruff. AMERICAN MOCKING BIRD.]

JUNE.

Frank-hearted hostess of the field and wood,
Gipsy, whose roof is every spreading tree,
June is the pearl of our New England year,
Still a surprisal, though expected long,
Her coming startles. Long she lies in wait,
Makes many a feint, peeps forth, draws coyly back,
Then, from some southern ambush in the sky,
With one great gush of blossoms storms the world.
A week ago the Sparrow was divine;
The Bluebird, shifting his light load of song
From post to post along the cheerless fence,
Was as a rhymer ere the poet came;
But now, O rapture! sunshine winged and voiced,
Pipe blown through by the warm, wild breath of the West,
Shepherding his soft droves of fleecy cloud,
Gladness of woods, skies, waters, all in one,
The Bobolink has come, and, like the soul
Of the sweet season vocal in a bird,
Gurgles in ecstasy we know not what
Save _June! Dear June! Now God be praised for June._

--LOWELL.

[Illustration: From col. Chi. Acad. Sciences. BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT
HERON.]

THE BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT HERON.

What a beautiful creature this is! A mounted specimen requires, like
the Snowy Owl, the greatest care and a dust tight glass case to
preserve its beauty. Dr. Coues' account of it should be read by those
who are interested in the science of ornithology. It is a common bird
in the United States and British Provinces, being migratory and
resident in the south. Heronries, sometimes of vast extent, to which
they return year after year, are their breeding places. Each nest
contains three or four eggs of a pale, sea-green color. Observe the
peculiar plumes, sometimes two, in this case three, which spring from
the back of the head. These usually lie close together in one bundle,
but are often blown apart by the wind in the form of streamers. This
Heron derives its name from its habits, as it is usually seen flying
at night, or in the early evening, when it utters a sonorous cry of
_quaw_ or _quawk_. It is often called Quawk or Qua-Bird.

On the return of the Black-Crowned Night Heron in April, he promptly
takes possession of his former home, which is likely to be the most
solitary and deeply shaded part of a cedar swamp. Groves of swamp oak
in retired and water covered places, are also sometimes chosen, and