But even in America the British sparrow has made a few friends, as the
following extract from _Forest and Stream_ will prove:--
"A Good Word for the Sparrows.--I send you by this mail a lot of
leaves of the maple growing in front of my office, which when gathered
were literally covered with insects. What attracted my attention to
them was the busy action of some two dozen English sparrows, hopping
here and there in the tree, peering under the leaves, and savagely
feeding on something. An inspection revealed the cause of their
eagerness, and the cause of the early shedding of the leaves. Examine
these vermin and tell us what they are. The sparrows were so busy
they would scarcely keep out of the reach of my hand. I called the
attention of several gentlemen, who watched them for some time. This
proves (to me) the insectivorous habits of the English sparrow."
Sparrows are treated with systematic cruelty by many in this country;
they are trapped and shot wholesale and at all seasons, and not only are
their nests torn down with the eggs in them, but even when filled with
young, and these are allowed to expire--mere little naked things--on the
ground.
Sparrow matches are a disgrace to our country, and to those who engage
in them. Every reader will surely admit this much. As for members of
sparrow clubs, I never saw one, and Heaven forbid I ever may.