Chapter 5

All the birds were grave and silent for a few moments, and then, as they took an affectionate leave of each other before parting, the Rook said, "There was a pretty little poem once written about the Robin. I will repeat it to you before we separate:

"Unheard in Summer's flaring ray, Pour forth thy notes, sweet singer, Wooing the stillness of the autumn day: Bid it a moment linger, Nor fly Too soon from Winter's scowling eye.

"The Blackbird's song at eventide, And hers, who gay ascends, Filling the heavens far and wide, Are sweet. But none so blends, As thine With calm decay, and peace divine."

Each day now the sun rose later and went to bed earlier. Willie and Alice still ran about the garden, stamping their little feet among the dry, crisp leaves, and picking up the beech-nuts which strewed the ground.

However, as time went on, they came less out of doors, for cold and wet days followed each other, when all that the Blackbird saw of his little friends were the two small faces pressed against the dining-room window-pane, looking wistfully out as the clouds drove past, and the rain pattered against the glass.

At last a night arrived when it was very cold indeed. Through the bare boughs, and on to the hedgerows and ivy, stole down the pure, soft snow. The Blackbird put his head out of the ivy-bush to see what sort of night it might be, and lo! under the pale light of the moon, all the landscape lay white and dazzling before him.

One little flake dropt upon his head--one cold, soft flake; but as he drew back into the shelter of the ivy, to return once more to rest, it was with very different thoughts and feelings than those gloomy ones which had troubled him the year before. He now knew what the beautiful snow meant. It was the beginning of a hard winter, it was the herald of cold, dark days. But he had also been taught a lesson of faith; he knew of the winter berries which would be provided for him by One who remembered even the despised Sparrows; he knew of a certain bay window where two eager little faces would be watching for him, through all the cold, dark days; and as he closed his eyes, on this the first night of winter, he remembered that little Willie and Alice, and he himself, and all created things, were under the protection of Him Who "casteth forth His ice like morsels," but Who, in His own good time, would again bring about the "time of the singing of birds," when, once more, as of old, "the voice of the turtle" would be "heard in the land."

THE END.

LONDON: R. CLAY, SONS, AND TAYLOR, BREAD STREET HILL, E.C.

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Transcriber's Notes

Typographical problems have been changed and are listed below.

Hyphenation standardized and are also listed below.

Archaic and variable spelling is preserved, including pic-nic.

Author's punctuation style is preserved.

Illustrations moved close to their relevant pages, and page numbers references removed.

Passages in italics indicated by _underscores_.

Passages in bold indicated by =equal signs=.

Transcriber Changes

In addition to standardizing hyphenation, the following changes were made to the original text:

Page 3: Was =where-ever= hyphenated across two lines (the little cold droppings seemed to pursue him =wherever= he went)

Page 7: =Ivy berries= standardized to =Ivy-berries= (=Ivy-berries= will be poorish eating day after day.")

Page 15: Added end quote after us. (We do not 'sow, nor do we gather into barns,' but still 'God feeds =us.'=)

Page 15: =lime trees= standardized to =lime-trees= (swiftly passed over one or two snow-covered fields, and then by a long avenue of =lime-trees=.)

Page 32: =laurel bushes= standardized to =laurel-bushes= (he flew off to the =laurel-bushes= by the bay window and sang a song)

Page 36: Removed comma from "Nanny," (he was afraid that "=Nanny=" might find out what they were doing.)

Page 41: Removed begin quote before "When ("Oh," replied the Rook, "the swallows are most curious and interesting creatures. =When= October comes they assemble)

Page 52: =newly mown= standardized to =newly-mown= (The =newly-mown= hay was falling on all sides)

Page 54: =even-tide= standardized to =eventide= (This was a secret corner to which the birds repaired at =eventide=)

Page 60: "twofold shout" changed to single quotes (His ='twofold shout'= of _cuckoo_ is a welcome sound to every one)

Page 84: spring?" changed to double quote ("Don't you remember what I told you in the =spring?"=)

Page 87: =bay-window= standardized to =bay window= (he knew of a certain =bay window= where two eager little faces would be watching for him)

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