During the long summer days little Luke went often to visit the Bob
Lincolns. The more he watched them, the more he grew to love them. Bob
Lincoln himself was the merriest, jolliest fellow of all the little
boy's feathered friends.
Little Luke saw the baby birds as soon as they had broken their shells.
He watched the anxious parents feed them. And how those young Bob
Lincolns could eat! How their busy parents had to work to support the
little family! Back and forth over the meadow the old birds flew hour
after hour, searching for food for their hungry babies. And they were
always hungry! Whenever they heard anyone coming, they would close their
eyes, stretch their long necks, and open wide their yellow mouths.
The young birds grew larger and hungrier every day. And every day Bob
Lincoln became busier and quieter. Little Luke noticed that the jolly
little fellow did not sing so much and that his gay coat was becoming
rusty. One by one his bright feathers fell out and dull brown or yellow
ones took their place, until at last he looked just like his little
wife.
"Well, little boy," said Bob Lincoln one morning, "we must be getting
ready to move. These youngsters can fly pretty well, and it is time for
us to go. I am sorry, for I love our meadow home, and a long and
dangerous journey is before us."
"Tell me about it," said little Luke.
"Well," said Bob Lincoln, "you must know that I was hatched in this very
meadow. There were five of us and I am the only one that is left.
"When we young ones had learned to fly pretty well, we started south.
After a few days we reached a land where there were broad marshes
covered with reeds. There we stopped for a while. But the men of that
country hunted us with their fire-sticks. They called us reed birds arid
liked us to eat. They shot many of our friends, but for a few days our
family all escaped. But one morning we heard a sound like thunder and
our mother fell to the ground and we saw her no more.
"This frightened us and we flew on to the southward for many days. Of
course wherever we found a good place, we stopped to rest and eat. But
we did not stop for long until we came to a land where there were great
fields of rice. There we found great flocks of our kindred, who had
grown fat by feeding upon the rice.
"But here again were men with their fire-sticks and they killed two of
my brothers. All the time we stayed there, we lived in fear. So after
some days we left the rice land and went on toward the south. We crossed
the great, salt sea and at last found the winter home of our kindred.
"In the spring we came back again to this meadow. And here I found Mrs.
Bob Lincoln. I courted her with my sweetest songs, and after a short
time we were married and set up house-keeping.
"That autumn I led a family of my own on the long journey to our
southern home. Three times have I made the journey to and from this
meadow, and each time some of my family have fallen a prey to our many
enemies. But the men with their fire-sticks are the worst of all. Why
are they so cruel to us?"
"Alas," said Bob Lincoln, after a pause, "I dread this journey. Not many
of my friends have escaped so long. I fear I shall never return. But it
cannot be helped, we must go. I think, little boy, we shall start this
morning. So I will say good-bye now."
"Good-bye, Bob Lincoln," said little Luke, "I hope it will not be as you
fear. I shall look for you again next May."
The Bob Lincoln family started on their long southern journey and little
Luke went sadly back to the house. Now that the Bob Lincolns were gone,
the meadow no longer seemed so pleasant to him.