plastered together with mud, was saddled on the branch--in fact, a
Robin's nest.

"Four lovely smooth eggs, not quite blue and not quite green! Please,
can I have them? I saw them first."

"Think a minute, Dodo," said the Doctor. "A bird will come from each of
those eggs. Suppose you take the eggs away from the poor Robins, you
will be killing four young birds, besides hurting the feelings of their
parents and making them leave the orchard, very likely. You must not
take any eggs in the nesting season--not even one. I will tell you what
happened once in a field where there were some birds' nests in the
bushes.

"The man who owned the field was fond of birds and wished to protect
them, but he was so good-natured that when his little boy came to him
and said, 'I wish so much to have some birds' eggs--all the boys collect
them--_please_ let me take a few, father--only on our own land,' he did
not wish to say 'No.' Sometimes, to be good-natured is as bad as to be
cruel. This man said, 'You may take one egg from each nest, but only
_one_, remember.' So the boy went out and took a few eggs, but then he
carried them to school, showed them to the other boys, and told them
where they came from. Then each boy said to himself, 'It will be all
right if I take only one egg from each nest.' But when four or five boys
had each taken one, all the nests were quite empty. So the poor birds
left that man's field, where the bugs and worms grew and throve, till
they ate up his hay and all the rest of his crops.

"When the nesting season is over eggs that have not hatched are often
left in the various nests, that you can take without doing any harm. Of