rs ago,
were almost leafless, the trunks even being covered by slippery webbing,
are again yielding a good crop.

In September and October the Cuckoo is silent and suddenly disappears.
"He seldom sees the lovely tints of autumn, and never hears the wintry
storm-winds' voice, for, impelled by a resistless impulse, he wings his
way afar over mountain, stream, and sea, to a land where northern blasts
are not felt, and where a summer sun is shining in a cloudless sky."

[Illustration: From col. O. E. Pagin.
YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOO.
Copyrighted by Nature Study Pub. Co., 1897 Chicago.]

THE RUBY-THROATED HUMMING BIRD.

Is it a gem, half bird,
Or is it a bird, half gem?
--EDGAR FAWCETT.

Of all animated beings this is the most elegant in form and the most
brilliant in colors, says the great naturalist Buffon. The stones and
metals polished by our arts are not comparable to this jewel of Nature.
She has it least in size of the order of birds, _maxime miranda in
minimis_. Her masterpiece is the Humming bird, and upon it she has
heaped all the gifts which the other birds may only share. Lightness,
rapidity, nimbleness, grace, and rich apparel all belong to this little
favorite. The emerald, the ruby, and the topaz gleam upon its dress. It
never soils them with the dust of earth, and its aerial life scarcely
touches the turf an instant. Always in the air, flying from flower to
flower, it has their freshness as well as their brightness. It lives
upon their nectar, and dwells only in the climates where they
perennially bloom.

All kinds of Humming birds are found in the hottest countries of the New
World. They are quite numerous and seem to be confined between the two
tropics, for those which penetrate the temperate zones in summer stay
there only a short time. They seem to follow the sun in its advance and
retreat; and to fly on the zephyr wing after an eternal spring.

The smaller species of the Humming birds are less in size than the great
fly wasp, and more slender than the drone. Their beak is a fine needle
and their tongue a slender thread. Their little black eyes are like two
shining points, and the feathers of their wings so delicate that they
seem transparent. Their short feet, which they use very little, are so
tiny one can scarcely see them. They rarely alight during the day. They
have a swift continual humming flight. The movement of their wings i