Chapter 10
Section 10 of Birds in All Nature, Volume 4, Number 2, August, 1898. Recorded for LibriVox.org by Joe Sela. The Mockingbird. Wishing to verify a statement which we had seen in a contemporary, we wrote to Mr. R. F. Bettis of Tampa, Florida, requesting, if it were true, that he would confirm it, although from our acquaintance with the bird we had no doubt of its substantial correctness. In response, Mr. Bettis writes us as follows.
there are about 25 or 30 mockingbirds on my place, and they become very tame. About two years ago, one of the birds took to coming into the house and sitting on the chairs and warbling in a low tone, and my wife and children began to talk to it and put breadcrumbs on the windowsill for it, and it soon began to come for something to eat. It would sit on the trellis in front of the window and sing for hours at a time, and on moonlit nights would sit on the chimney and sing for
half the night. It would recognize a family, and when my wife and daughter would go from home, it would fly along in a light on the fence and give a chirping noise as though it did not want them to go, and on their return would meet them the same way, but the chirping would be in a different tone, as though glad to see them. When they were in the house, it would sing some of the sweetest notes that ever came from a bird's throat. Every morning at about five o'clock,
it would peck on the window pane until we got up and opened up the house. About six months ago, while all the family were away, some Cuban and Negro boys came by my place and shot it, and it seems as if something were missing from the place ever since. But I have three more that will come in on the back porch and eat crumbs. Two are on the back porch now, about fifteen feet from me while I write,
but they are not as gentle as the other one. There has been so much shooting about my place since the soldiers came that it frightens the birds some. The soldiers have a sham battle every day, around my house and sometimes in my yard. Hoping you can cull out of this what you want for your magazine.
I am yours truly, R.F. Bettis. End of section 10. This recording is in the public domain.
