as well as outside, if the owner
happened to be away, every piece of furniture, pictures, books, and the
pin-cushion,--where he was detained some time trying to carry off the
large black heads of shawl-pins. The looking-glass absorbed him most
completely on the first day; he flew against it, he hovered before it,
slowly passing from bottom to top, alighted on top and looked over
behind. I think he never solved that mystery to his own satisfaction, as
he did that of the window-glass, which must have been quite as
inexplicable, and it was never without a certain charm for him. He had
no trouble in finding his way home: standing on a cage next to his, he
saw his own door-perch, recognized it instantly (though he had been upon
it only once), and, being hungry, dropped to it and ran into the cage.

The new-comer soon made thorough acquaintance with all his surroundings,
and had leisure to turn his attention to a little matter yet unsettled;
namely, his position in the small colony about him. The first few days,
as already noted, he submitted to impositions; allowed himself to be
driven away from the slices of apple on the matting, and turned from the
bathing-dish on the floor. This was, however, the calm before the storm;
though after all that is hardly a correct comparison, since there was
never the least "storm" about his manner; he was composure itself.
Having calmly and patiently considered the state of affairs, he suddenly
asserted himself and took the position he felt was his right,--at the
head. It soon became evident that he was prepared to defend the
situation by force of arms. He conducted his conquests systematically,
and subdued one after the other, beginning with the least.

The English goldfinch had been very saucy, scolding and flying over him
as he went around the room, in the small bird's way; but one day it came
to a sudden end. The goldfinch in his cage scolded the stranger for
alighting too near his door. The mocking-bird turned, looked sharply at
him, ruffled up his feathers, and jumped heavily to the top of the cage,
turning one eye down upon his small foe with an air that said, "Who is
this midget that insults me?" The finch was surprised, but did not fully
appreciate the significance of this change of manner until he was let
out, when he found at once that his amiable neighbor had suddenly become
an active enemy, who chased him around the room till he panted for
breath, and would not allow him a momen