y, Mother Robin balances
herself on the side of the nest and spreads her wings and says 'Now,
children, watch me!' and she floats down to the ground."

"From away up in the tree tops?"

"No, not so high up, because you see robins build in high bushes and
hedges, but it will seem very far to the little birds, as high as the
top of trees and even church steeples would seem to you."

"But if my mother would say, 'Come on, Peter, and jump off the church
steeple, I'm a-gonter do it. I wouldn't feel 'fraid--not a mite, not if
my mo--" But he could not finish the word mother. A realization of
something came over him and again his lip trembled and he seemed on the
verge of more tears and sobs.

"And then the little birds," continued Mary Louise quickly, trying to
keep the tears from her own sweet eyes, "they will look over the edge
of the nest and see their mother hopping around on the soft green
grass, and maybe they will see her catch a nice fat wiggly worm and,
wonder of wonders! and horror of horrors! instead of flying back to the
nest to give it to one of her babies she will gobble it up her own
self. That won't be because she is a greedy mother, but just to let
them realize that if they get down on the grass they can find plenty of
delicious worms for themselves. Then Father Robin will tell them they
are all little cry-babies not to jump up and fly from the nest, and one
by one the little baby birds will make up their minds and before you
know it all four will be down in the grass by their mother. Then,
goodness gracious me! what a busy day they will have! The little birds
are very plump, because their mother and father have worked so hard to
keep them well fed and they have never taken any exercise before except
with their mouths, and their little wings seem so weak and their little
tummies are so fat and so full, but they try and try and by dusk they
have almost learned. At any rate they are able to flutter back into the
bush where their old nest is, not that they ever expect to get back in
their nest. They would no more try to do that than a great big grown-up
man would want to get back in the little cradle in which his mother had
rocked him when he was a baby."

The biography of the robins was finished just as Dr. Weston came in to
announce to Mary Louise and Josie that they had been elected to the
board of governors of the Children's Home Society.

"Oh, but--" faltered Mary Louise.

"No buts at all, Mary Loui