t Britain and Ireland the redbreast's nest is spared, while
those of other birds are robbed without ceremony; and his life is
equally sacred. No schoolboy who has ever killed a robin can forget the
dire remorse and fear that followed the deed. And little wonder, for
terrible are the punishments said to overtake those who persecute this
little bird. Generally such a crime is believed to be expiated by the
death of a friend. Sometimes the punishment is more trivial. In some
parts of England it is believed that even the weasel and the wildcat
will spare him.

In Brittany, the native place of the legend, it is needless to say, the
redbreast is thoroughly popular, and his life and nest are both
respected. In Cornouaille the people say he will live till the day of
judgment, and every year will make some young women rich and happy. In
some parts of England and Scotland his appearance is considered an omen
of death. In Northamptonshire he is said to tap three times at the
window of a dying person's room. In the Haute Marne district of France
he is also thought a bird of ill omen, and is called Beznet--meaning
"the evil eye."

In Central Europe, where there is also no trace of a passion legend
attached to the redbreast, he is held none the less sacred. Mischief is
sure to follow the violator of his nest. But by far the most prevalent
belief, and especially in Germany, is that the man who injures a
redbreast or its nest will have his house struck by lightning, and that
a redbreast's nest near a house will protect it from lightning.

These robins are very rarely seen on this side of the Atlantic. Several
of them were brought to this country a few weeks ago from Larne, county
Antrim, Ireland, and were landed in New York.

They are the tamest of all the birds in the British Isles, and are utter
strangers to the timidity which our robin displays toward man. At the
same time they are not pert and presumptuous like the sparrow, but seem
to feel that their innocent confidence in man has gained for them
immunity from the danger of being stoned or shot at, to which nearly
every other bird is subjected to without compunction. The most
mischievous schoolboy in those countries never thinks of throwing a
stone at a robin, although he regards any other bird as an entirely
proper object for his aim. Like every other songster of the feathered
tribe, their age depends on how old they are when captured. If taken
from the nest they will live fo