"Another pigeon from Ballinasloe, in Ireland, belonging to a gentlemanby the name of Bernard, was let loose at eleven o'clock in the forenoon,with a note appended to it, directing dinner to be ready at CastleBernard at a given time, as he purposed being home that day. The messagereached its destination, which was twenty-three miles distant, in elevenminutes, being at the rate of one hundred and twenty-five and a halfmiles an hour."
"I had no idea that they could fly so fast," remarked Mrs. Symmes.
"These are by no means remarkable cases," added grandpa. "The eagle hasbeen supposed to fly one hundred and forty miles an hour; and a bird bythe name of swift, one hundred and eighty. But the most extraordinarythat I ever heard, was of a titlark who alighted on board a vessel fromLiverpool, when thirteen hundred miles from the nearest main land, andnine hundred miles from a wild and barren island. Sea birds retain theirposition upon the wing for a wonderful length of time."
CHAPTER V.
KATY ROBIN'S CAPTIVITY.
Not long after the rainy day, Mr. and Mrs. Robin were invited to Mrs.Bill's nest, to give their advice regarding her future prospects.
"Here am I," said she, "a lonely, sorrowing bird. Soon I am to part frommy dear children, who will, in the order of nature, form new ties, thusleaving me still more desolate. I have a proposal from a robin, whohas, like myself, been cruelly bereft of his mate, to become his wife. Ifeel it is due to the relations of my husband to ask their approbationbefore I take so important a step."
Mr. Robin politely waited for his wife to give her opinion, but shenodded her head in desire that he should speak first.
"You have not mentioned the name of the robin," he said; "but if he isone whom you can esteem and love, I advise you to accept his offer. Do Iexpress your opinion, my dear?"
"Certainly," responded Mrs. Robin.
Mrs. Bill then uttered a peculiar cry, and a bird who had been seated onthe top of the tree, flew into the nest.
"How do you do?" said Mr. Robin, recognizing a bird that he had oftenmet.
"This is my friend," said Mrs. Bill, turning her head modestly on oneside.
"He will make you a kind husband," added Mrs. Robin. "I knew and lovedhis dead wife."
This matter being so pleasantly arranged, the company took their leave.
When they reached home, they found the young robins absent; and theywent to the Observatory and passed an hour or two in singing duets,after which they descended to the cottage door, wondering their childrendid not return.
It was nearly an hour later, when they heard in the distance dreadfulshrieks and cries of distress, and darting from the tree in thedirection of the sound, met Jack and Molly flying at full speed, as ifpursued by an enemy.
"O, O!" groaned Jack; "I've lost my darling sister, my beloved, whom Ihad chosen for my future mate."
Molly's cries were heart-rending; and it was some time before the almostdistracted parents could wring from their afflicted children the causeof their grief.
At last, with broken sobs and expressions of anguish, Jack, tremblingwith agitation, began: "We went, soon after you left this morning, tovisit Canary, and from there we went to several farm yards, where we sawa quantity of grain scattered on the ground. At last, grown weary ofeating, as the sun was very warm, we hopped near a house under the shadeof a cherry tree. Soon a little girl came to the door, and scatteredsome crumbs on the step. Katy thought she looked very much like Annie,and began to chirp most merrily.
"The child laughed and laughed, and tried to entice Katy inside thehouse; but she was not disposed to go without me. She seemed to thinkshe was taking too much of the attention to herself, and turned, in hersweet, affectionate manner, to introduce us.
"'This is my brother Jack,' she chirped; 'and this is my dear Molly.'She looked so cunning, that I hopped up and nestled her head in mybreast. The little girl then ran and called a tall boy, and talked veryloud and fast to him; but though I turned up first one ear and then theother, I could not understand a word she said.
"They kept scattering crumbs, and we, without once thinking of danger,advanced farther and farther, as they retreated, until Katy and I werewithin the room. But we were scarcely inside the door, when, with a loudslam, it was shut to, and we were made prisoners, though neither of usat first realized this.
"The tall boy opened another door very cautiously, and stepped through;but presently returned with a cage similar to that in which Canary isconfined. He came softly toward Katy; but at the same instant adreadful fear darted through our minds--a fear of being made prisonersfor life.
"'Take care, Katy,' I cried; 'don't let them catch you;' and I flew tothe top of the door. She flew away too; but they chased and chased fromone side of the room to the other, while all the time she uttered themost piteous cries, as if she were pleading for her life, until thecruel boy caught her by the tail and pulled the feathers out. The girlthen sprang forward, and, throwing a cloth over her, held her until herbrother brought the cage, when they thrust her into it.
"She lay so still upon the bottom of it that they thought she was dead;but as soon as she began to moan, they directed all their attention tocatching me. I suppose they would not have found it very difficult, forI was so full of anguish at the thought of being separated from mybeloved mate, that I cared little what became of me, had not some oneentered the room just as I was flying toward the door, and so I escaped.
"Molly had witnessed all the scene from the window, and was cryingdreadfully when I joined her."
CHAPTER VI.
JACK ROBIN'S LOVE.
All the while her brother had been relating his sad tale, poor Mollystood on the side of the nest, shaking from head to foot. In the courseof an hour she was so ill that her parents feared she would die, andthus that they should be deprived of two children in one day.
"To think," cried Mrs. Robin, "that we were singing so gayly while ourloved ones were in such danger and trouble!"
"We must contrive some means to rescue her," said Mr. Robin, sternly."I, for one, will perish before I will leave her to so horrible a fate."
Jack at this remark gave a cry of joy. He had the greatest confidence inhis father's capacity, and wondered he had not thought of this before.
"Why can't we go at once?" he exclaimed. "Mother will nurse sick Molly,and I will show you the house."
Mrs. Robin and Molly added their entreaties, and the birds flew away.When they reached the house, they found the cage already hung on a hookover the front piazza.
Poor Katy was uttering the most piercing cries, and striking her wingsagainst the wires of the cage. As soon as she saw her father andbrother, she gave a scream of delight, and fell to the floor of herprison house.
Jack alighted on the wires, and called her by the most endearing terms.
Mr. Robin perched on a bough hanging over the piazza, and contemplatedthem with strong emotion. "O, how cruel!" he exclaimed, "to separatesuch loving hearts."
At this moment the tall boy, with his sister, came to the door, and thefather listened earnestly to their voices, to learn whether they wouldbe friends to his imprisoned child.
"Good by, father; bid mother and Molly good by for me," cried Jack. "Ihave determined to remain in captivity with Katy, rather than leave herto pine and die alone. Yes, darling sister, I love you better thanfreedom, or even than life. Here I will stay to comfort you with myaffection."
Dear little captive, how her heart beat and her bosom swelled when sheheard this! She flew to the upper perch of the cage, and put her beaklovingly to his.
"I cannot deny such a wish, my dear Jack," said Mr. Robin, "though itwill pierce your mother's heart with sorrow to be deprived of twochildren. I love you better for your ardent affection; but I do not atall despair of your release. Good by, dear ones; I go to consult ourfriends at the cottage."
As soon as he was fairly out of sight, the tall boy brought a stool, andstood upon it, to take the cage down from the hook, and carried it intothe house, Jack still remaining perch
ed upon the wires.
There were poor Katy's tail feathers still lying on the floor; but theheroic bird cared not for those. He only longed to have the door opened,that he might feel his sister's soft head nestling once more against hisown breast.
He did not have to wait long, for as soon as the room doors werecarefully secured, the cage was opened, when he flew in.
"Now, darling," said he, "we must be all the world to each other. Letus forget every thing else in the joy of being reunited."
Katy was so happy, that she could only flutter her wings, and givegentle cries of delight.
As soon as they became somewhat composed, Jack hopped down from theperch to examine the cage. Like that in which Canary was confined, ithad conveniences for eating and drinking, and a nice bath tub. Inaddition to this, the little girl soon stuck between the wires a pieceof cracker and a large lump of sugar.
"This stone, my dear," said Jack, "is, I suppose, for us to sharpen ourbeaks upon."
"O, how sweet!" exclaimed Katy, as she tasted the sugar; and before theyleft it, they had diminished it about one half.
When the tall boy thought they were a little wonted to their new home,he hung them out in the sun again; and here we will leave them while wereturn to their parents.
Mrs. Robin was indeed sorely grieved when her husband returned alone.Molly still continued to suffer so much from the shock she had received,that she could scarcely fly to the ground for her food.
"I still have hope," cried Mr. Robin, "that our friends may find a wayto relieve us, if we can make them understand what our trouble is."
It was in vain, however, that he chirped, and cried, and flew from thedoor off in the direction of his distressed children; and thus day afterday and week after week went by, and still Jack and Katy remained incaptivity.
Mr. and Mrs. Robin, with Molly, visited them many times in a day, andcarried them fine worms. Nor did they wholly forsake Canary, whose fatewas even worse than their own. They carried many tender messages fromone cage to the other, thus enlivening the imprisonment of both.
Dick, to his parents' great sorrow, had expressed little sympathy forhis brother and sister, and had never once visited them, though he gaveas a reason that he feared himself being captured. He was joined nowalmost wholly to Mrs. Bill's family, and seldom returned to his parents'nest.
CHAPTER VII.
THE RESTORED ROBINS.
One morning, Mr. Robin, his wife, and Molly, came, as usual, to thecottage for crumbs. They were very much excited, and hopped hurriedlyabout the room, flapping their wings and jerking their tailsincessantly.
"What can they want?" exclaimed Annie. "There is something the matter, Iam sure."
Grandpa gazed thoughtfully at them, and then said, "The little one hasnever been as cheerful since the loss of her companions; perhaps theyare intending to leave this part of the country."
"O, I hope not!" exclaimed Annie, almost ready to cry. "I should missthem dreadfully."
This was indeed the case, Mr. and Mrs. Robin having long given up allhope of procuring the release of their children; and finding that theywere well fed, had concluded to leave for a time, in the hope thatchange of scene would restore Molly to health.
Fred and Annie were sincere mourners for their pretty birds; and thoughmany others came and sang on the old elm tree, they insisted that nosongs were so sweet as those sung by their old friends. Their schoolcommenced, however, about that time, and this somewhat diverted theirminds.
On rainy days, Annie begged her grandfather for a story about birds; andhe smiled as he related the account of a stork who refused to becomforted when separated from his mate, until a looking glass was placedin his house, that reflected his own image, which he took to be hismate, and was thus pacified.
He also told her about the blind woman who was led to church everySunday by a tame gander, who took hold of her gown with his bill.
He related to them the story of the strange attachment which was formedbetween a goose and a fierce dog, so that she made her nest in hiskennel, and sat on her eggs with her head nestled against his breast.
To these incidents of birds he added that also of the raven whoregularly travelled over the stage road in one coach, until at a certaintown he met another coach of the same line in which last he took passageand returned to his home.
* * * * *
We must now pass over several months, and relate an adventure whichoccurred late in the fall. Fred and Annie one morning received aninvitation to a party given by one of their schoolmates, on theafternoon of the same day.
As they entered the house, dressed in their Sunday suits, theircountenances glowing with pleasure, Fred heard the familiar chirp of arobin, and, glancing to the window, saw a large cage containing a pairof their favorite birds.
"O Fred!" cried Annie, suddenly, growing pale with excitement "there areour lost robins."
Jack and Katy (for it was indeed they) instantly recognized their youngfriends. They flew rapidly from one side of the cage to another,striking their wings against the wires in their vain efforts to fly toher.
Mrs. Jones, the lady of the house, at that moment entered the room. Fredadvanced toward her, and fixing his frank eyes full on her face, said,"Those are our robins, ma'am."
"Do you think so?" she asked, with a smile. "If you can prove that theybelong to you, you shall have them, cage and all; but they have beenhere a long time."
"If you will please open the cage, I will show you that they know us,"said the boy, earnestly.
"What is it?" inquired Mr. Jones, coming forward and joining the group.
His wife repeated what Fred had said.
"What makes you think they are yours?" asked the gentleman, kindly.
"Their parents came and built a nest in our tree," said the boy. "Whenthe little ones were hatched, we always fed them, and they grew so tamethey would eat crumbs from our mouths, hop about the room, and alight onour heads."
"Yes!" cried Annie; "and one we tackled, that largest one, into a papercart, and he drew it all round the room, and then flew with it to thetop of the mirror."
"How many young ones were there?" asked the lady.
"Four," answered Fred; "but one was a naughty bird, and his parents hada great deal of trouble with him. The other was a little darling; butafter these went away, and did not come back, she pined, and at lastthe old robins flew away with her."
Annie then related how Molly was fastened to the nest.
The whole party of children were standing about eagerly listening."Well," said the gentleman, "I will close the doors of the room and openthe cage. If they fly to you, or seem in any way to recognize you, Iwill restore your property."
"And the cage too," said the lady.
"Birdie, birdie," called the little girl.
Katy hopped quickly from her perch, and flying over the heads of theothers, alighted on Annie's shoulder.
Jack quickly followed, and perched on her head.
"If you will please give me some crumbs," said the happy girl, tears ofjoy standing in her eyes, "I will show you how they eat from my mouth."
"Here, birdie," she cried, placing a piece between her teeth.
Jack alighted on her finger, then flew forward and caught the crumb inhis beak, after which both he and his sister repeated the feat manytimes.
Mr. Jones laughed heartily, as he called his little girl to his side,and putting a piece of sugar in her mouth, told her to call the robinsas Annie had done.
She did so; but though Jack and Katy turned their bright eyes toward thesugar, of which they were very fond, and chirped loudly for it, yet theywould not leave their old friends.
Mr. Jones bade Fred take the birds, while Annie left the room, to seewhether it was not accident which had led them to alight on her head.But the moment she returned, they flew to meet her, and showed thegreatest pleasure when she caressed them.
"I'm afraid," said the gentleman to his daughter, "that you'll have togive
up your pets."
"I don't care for them now," answered the child. "They never play anytricks for me; they only stay cooped up in their cage."
"When you go home, then, you may carry them," said the lady. "But howwill you get them back to the cage?"
There was some difficulty in this, to be sure; for Katy and Jack, havingonce tasted the joys of liberty, did not like to return to captivityagain. But at length by coaxing they succeeded in making them enter thedoor, which was quickly closed upon them.
"O mother! O grandpa! what do you think Fred is bringing?" shoutedAnnie, running forward and opening the cottage door.
Now, being so near the end of my book, I can only tell my young reader,in a few words, how delighted the robins were to return to their oldhome;--how in pleasant weather they flew around the nest in the elmtree, but always returned to the cage at night;--how during the coldwinter they learned to warble forth their thanks to the dear childrenwho had proved such loving friends;--how the old robins returned withthe warm breath of spring, and were welcomed with delight by Jack andKaty, who had begun a nest of their own;--how Molly had found a mate,and built a nest on a bough near her parents;--and how sweetly atsunrise and at sunset they all carolled rich music, until the whole airresounded with their song.