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[Illustration: "MR. OWL AWAKENED THE FAIRIES AND TOLD THEM TO
LISTEN TO HIS BOOK."--_Page 2_]


DADDY'S BEDTIME BIRD STORIES

by

MARY GRAHAM BONNER

With four illustrations in color by
Florence Choate and Elizabeth Curtis







[Illustration: Emblem]

New York
Frederick A. Stokes Company
Publishers

Copyright, 1917, by
Frederick A. Stokes Company

All rights reserved; including that of translation
into foreign languages




  TO
  "E. E. E."




CONTENTS


                                                                  PAGE

  OLD MR. OWL WRITES A BOOK                                          1

  THE WOODPECKERS START A BIRD BAND                                  4

  THE CARDINAL BIRD AND THE ROBIN                                    7

  THE WINTER WRENS' DEW-DROP BATHS                                  10

  THE SEAGULLS MOVE TO BLUEY COVE                                   13

  HOW THE LITTLE REDBIRD BECAME RED                                 16

  POOR OLD MR. OWL'S TOOTHACHE                                      19

  THE SOLOIST OF THE BIRD CONCERT                                   22

  THE ROBINS OPEN A SPRING SHOP                                     25

  THE RACE BETWEEN THE SECRETARY BIRDS                              28

  THE QUARREL BETWEEN NAUGHTY LITTLE SPARROWS                       31

  THE SUCCESSFUL CONCERT OF THE CHICKADEES                          34

  THE COLONY OF STARLINGS GIVE A BALL                               37

  ROBIN REDBREAST'S AND MISS ROBIN'S WEDDING                        40

  THE TAME CANARY BIRD AND HIS MISTRESS                             43

  THE PET BIRD OF THE WARD                                          46

  THE EAGLE'S PRIDE AS THE BIRD OF FREEDOM                          49

  WHAT THE BIRDS THOUGHT OF THE FOURTH OF JULY                      52

  MR. NIGHTINGALE'S NEW FRIEND MR. BLACKBIRD                        55

  MR. PLAIN SPARROW CALLS ON DUCKS                                  58

  FARMER'S SCARECROW PROTECTS A CORN-FIELD                          61

  THE BRAVE BROWN SPARROWS IN WINTER                                64

  WHAT THE RAINBOW THINKS OF THE WORLD                              67

  EAGLES AND RAVENS                                                 70

  THE EAGLES WHO WERE ALWAYS STILL                                  73

  THE BOBOLINKS HAVE A TEA PARTY                                    76

  A HAPPY DAY IN BIRDLAND                                           79

  THE ROBINS' SPRING CONCERT                                        82

  THE CROWS AT THE FAIRIES' BALL                                    85

  THE NAUGHTY LITTLE SICK SNOWBIRDS                                 88

  A SPARROW CALLS ON A HIPPOPOTAMUS                                 91

  THE ROBINS COME TO THE RESCUE                                     94

  MR. AND MRS. OWL'S STOREROOM                                      97

  POLLY WAS THE HEROINE OF THE FIRE                                100

  THE WINTER HOME FOR THE WREN FAMILY                              103

  THE VAIN GOLDFINCH LEARNS A LESSON                               106

  THE BATS HAVE A JOLLIFICATION                                    109

  THE REPENTANCE OF LITTLE JIM CROW                                112

  THE RESCUE OF THE CANARY BIRD                                    115

  SMALL FIRE DEPARTMENT RESCUES BIRDS                              118




LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS


  "Mr. Owl awakened the fairies and told them to
    listen to his book"                                 _Frontispiece_

                                                          FACING PAGE

  "In the afternoons Elizabeth lets him out of his cage"           44

  "'We've been on this chair so long,' said the fourth eagle"      74

  "The mother humming-bird hurried back"                           96




     _These stories first appeared in the American Press Association
     Service and the Western Newspaper Union._

     _Many of the sketches in this volume are the work of Rebecca
     McCann, creator of the "Cheerful Cherub," etc._




OLD MR. OWL WRITES A BOOK


[Illustration: Old Mr. Owl Danced with the Rest.]

"Old Mr. Owl wanted to write a book and he asked the fairies how to set
about doing it," commenced daddy.

"'Well,' said the fairy queen, 'it makes a good deal of difference, old
Mr. Owl, what you want to write about.'

"'What nonsense!' he said. 'It's just that I want to know how to start
off with my book. Just think what a marvelous book it will be--as for as
long as folks can remember I've been called the Wise Bird--the bird
who's awake at night and whose eyes are so very bright!'

"'Before I started saying what a fine book it would be, if I
were you, I'd write it and give other people the chance to say so,'
said the fairy queen.

"Mr. Owl began to write with his pen, made out of one of Mr. Turkey
Gobbler's best feathers, on a large, flat stone, which he put in the
hollow of his tree. Very late in the night, he awakened the fairies who
had been sleeping, and told them to listen to his book. Then he called
all the owls from the neighborhood with a loud hoot-hoot. But before he
began to read, he said:

"'I've not enough light. I will hurt my eyes--my beautiful,
wise, big eyes.'

"You see he had made a special arrangement to have his own lights, and
when he said that he hadn't enough, from all over came countless little
fireflies. They sparkled and gave the most beautiful light all over the
woods, and Mr. Owl put his spectacles on his nose, and said:

"'Now I see to perfection--which means quite all right.' And Mr. Owl
commenced reading his book.

"It told about the parties, balls, and picnics in fairyland, and of the
wild adventures and happenings in the woods. The fairies were absolutely
delighted that a book had been written with so much about them in it.

"And the fairy queen was more than happy, for the last chapter was all
about her.

"'Well,' said Mr. Owl, 'you made me ashamed of myself for boasting about
my book before I had written it, and so the only thing I could do was to
write a wise chapter all about you.'

"And the fairy queen smiled with pleasure and also with amusement--for
Mr. Owl had certainly thought he could write a wise book--though the
next time, perhaps, he wouldn't say so before he had written it.

"The fireflies had been sparkling and flashing lights all this time, and
finally they whispered:

"'Have a dance, all of you; we'll give you the light and dance too. It
is not well to read books all the time--you must dance.'

"So they all ended off with a fine dance, and old Mr. Owl, with his book
under his wing, danced with the rest of the owls and fairies. But before
the evening was over he presented to the fairy queen a copy of his book,
which said on the cover, 'A BOOK, by Wise Mr. Owl.'"




THE WOODPECKERS START A BIRD BAND


The Woodpecker family were around on various trees drumming, drumming on
the bark. Mr. Hairy Woodpecker, Mr. Downy Woodpecker, and Mr. Red-Headed
Woodpecker were hard at work.

"Let's start a band," suggested Mr. Hairy Woodpecker.

"What's that you say?" asked Mr. Red-Headed Woodpecker, who had been so
busy at work that he had not heard what Mr. Hairy Woodpecker had been
suggesting.

"A band," repeated Mr. Hairy Woodpecker.

"What sort of a band?" asked Mr. Red-Headed Woodpecker.

"In the first place," continued Mr. Hairy Woodpecker, "our bills are not
only fine tools for the work we have to do getting the insects from the
trees, and burrowing for our nests, but they would be splendid to use
in beating the drums in a band."

"Where would we get the drums?" asked Mr. Red-Headed Woodpecker.

"The trees, of course, you silly!" said Mr. Hairy Woodpecker.

"Oh yes, yes," agreed Mr. Red-Headed Woodpecker.

And Mr. Downy Woodpecker said, "Of course, of course. The trees will be
our drums."

"We'll get the other birds," said Mr. Hairy Woodpecker, "to help us. We
need something in a band besides the drums. We will ask the goldfinches,
the mocking-birds, the bobolinks, the phoebe and chickadee families, all
of the warbler and vireo families, and the robins of course. Then I
think we'll ask the orioles, the whippoorwills, the thrush family, and
the song sparrows."

"Oh," said Mr. Downy Woodpecker, "that will make a perfect band. We'd
better get started right away." And the woodpeckers began to practise.
They made such a noise that the birds came from far and near to see what
they were doing. Mr. Sapsucker, Mr. Crested Woodpecker, and Mr. Flicker
Woodpecker had all joined in beating the drums too!

"Why are you making so much noise?" asked the birds as they flew around
to the nearby trees to talk to the woodpeckers.

"Oh," said Mr. Hairy Woodpecker, "we were just going to ask you all to
join our band. We will beat the drums."

"And just what do you want us to do?" asked Mr. Robin Redbreast, who was
always eager to help.

"You must all sing."

"But we all sing differently," chirped a song sparrow. "We know
different tunes and different songs."

"Oh," said Mr. Hairy Woodpecker, "I never thought about that. But never
mind, you can have little parts to sing alone, and other choruses where
you will all sing together. I'm sure it will be a very fine band after
we have practised." And they began pounding the drums again.

"Well," said Mr. Robin Redbreast, "if the bird band isn't to be the
finest in the land, at least we'll make a cheerful noise!"




THE CARDINAL BIRD AND THE ROBIN


"The cardinal bird," said daddy, "is a very superior bird and will not
come down to the ground. The lowest he will come is to a bush, but he
never hops along the woods or lawns, no, not he!

"One day Robin Redbreast was walking on a green lawn. He stopped several
times to pick up a worm from the ground, swallow it whole and then walk
along. In a tree nearby he spied the cardinal bird.

"'Hello,' he said cheerily. 'Won't you come and have a worm with me?
There are a number in this lawn, and the good rain we had last night has
made the ground so nice and soft. Do join me,' he ended with a bright
chirp.

"'No, thank you,' said the cardinal bird. 'I wouldn't soil my feet on
that ground. I hate the ground, absolutely hate it.' And the cardinal
bird looked very haughty and proud.

"'Come now,' said Robin Redbreast, 'you won't get your feet dirty. And
if you do,' he whispered knowingly, 'I can lead you to the nicest brook
where you can wash them off with fresh rain water. Do come!'

"'I cannot,' said the cardinal bird. 'I do not like the earth. I want to
be flying in the air, or sitting on the branches of trees. Sometimes I
will perch for a little while on a laurel bush--but come any lower? Dear
me, no, I couldn't.'

"'It's a great shame,' said Robin Redbreast. 'Of course there is no
accounting for taste.'

"'Thank you for inviting me,' added the cardinal bird politely. For he
prided himself on his good manners.

"Pretty soon some people came along. At once they noticed the beautiful
cardinal bird. He wore his best red suit which he wears all the
time--except in the winter, when he adds gray to his wings. His collar
and tie were of black and his feathers stuck up on top of his head so as
to make him look very stylish and fine.

"'Oh, what a wonderful bird!' said the people. Mr. Cardinal Bird knew
they were admiring him, of course--and so did Robin Redbreast. No one
had noticed _him_, but he didn't care, for he knew Mr. Cardinal Bird was
by far the more beautiful, and a robin hasn't a mean disposition.

"Well, when the cardinal bird heard the praise he began to sing--a
glorious high voice he had, and he sounded his clear notes over
and over again. Then suddenly he stopped, cocked his head on one
side, as though to say,

"'And what do you think of me now?'

"From down on the ground Robin Redbreast had been listening. 'Oh, that
was wonderful, wonderful!' he trilled.

"'Listen to that dear little robin,' said one of the people. 'I must get
him some bread crumbs.'

"When the bread crumbs were scattered over the ground, Robin Redbreast
invited the cardinal bird down again thinking they were for him! But the
beautiful, proud bird would not come down, and the people were saying,
'After all there is nothing quite so nice as a dear little robin.'"




THE WINTER WRENS' DEW-DROP BATHS


"The winter wren is really with us during the summer too," said daddy.
"But he is too shy to be near us. We can only hear him sing sometimes.
When winter comes, though, he goes to people for protection and picks up
the crumbs they give him.

"Yesterday he was sitting on a snow-berry bush with a tiny companion.
The snow-berry bushes are full and leafy, and in the spring and summer
are covered with very tiny pink blossoms. In the autumn and winter they
are covered with little berries which look as if they had been made out
of snow.

"'Oh, how I dread the winter!' said the tiny wren. 'Just imagine how
dreadful it would be if no one put any bread crumbs out for us, or no
dog left us some of his dinner on a back porch.'

"'Now,' said Mr. Brown Wren, 'you mustn't think of such sad thoughts.
You always do! Someone will look after us. And maybe we'll find a few
spiders now and then in the cracks, and then well have a regular feast.'

"The next day they were back again on the snow-berry bush, and the day
was much warmer. Now the wrens love to bathe above all things! Even in
the winter they will go through a little sheet of ice and get into the
cold, cold water underneath. For they must get their baths! And in the
spring, when the tiny wrens are brought forth from their mossy nests,
the first lesson they have is of bathing in some nearby brook.

"But this day it was early in the morning, the snow-berry bush was
covered with dew-drops and the wrens were delighted.

"'The sun will drive them away soon. Let's take them while we get the
chance,' whispered Mr. Brown Wren.

"'Yes, yes,' said his small companion. 'We will soon have to bathe when
it is so cold. Let us have a good warm bath first.'

"And then those two little brown wrens took the dew-drops in their
beaks, and dropped each one in turn on their feathers. Then they got
under some leaves full of dew-drops and shook them down over their
little feathered bodies.

"After they were well covered with the dew-drops they began to shake all
over just as every bird does when he takes a bath. And back they went to
take another bath when this one was over. For they seemed to enjoy their
last warm bath so much!

"Finally they had bathed enough, and the sun appeared strong as could
be, and shining very hard. They perched still on the branches of the
snow-berry bush and bathed now in the hot sun. Soon their little
feathers were quite dry and they began to sing.

"And truly I think their song was one of gladness because of their
dew-drop baths!"




THE SEAGULLS MOVE TO BLUEY COVE


[Illustration: Mr. and Mrs. Seagull Flew Off with Bluey.]

"Mr. and Mrs. Seagull didn't really know what to do," said daddy. "They
loved their home, which was in a big harbor, for they enjoyed seeing the
boats pass and hearing the different whistles. All kinds of boats
passed--ferryboats, sailboats, old fishing-boats, great big boats that
went across the ocean, and little tugboats.

"The seagulls would fly overhead, and then they'd land on top of the
water, but they never could stay there long, as the boats would come
along, and they would have to fly off. Of late Mr. and Mrs. Seagull,
although they were still as fond of their home as ever, became rather
worried, for the little seagulls didn't seem to be able to get out of
the way of the boats as quickly as the old seagulls could. Mr. and Mrs.
Seagull were afraid that one of them might get hurt by a boat.

"Of course the little seagulls were quite certain that nothing like that
would ever happen, but one day it did