One day in spring four men were riding on horseback along a country road. These men were lawyers, and
they were going to the next town to attend court
There had been a rain, and the ground was very soft Water was dripping from the trees, and the grass was
wet. The four lawyers rode along, one behind another, for the pathway was narrow, and the mud on each
side of it was deep. They rode slowly, and talked and laughed and were very jolly. As they were passing
through a grove of small trees, they heard a great fluttering over their heads and a feeble chirping in the
grass by the roadside.
"Stith! Stith! stith!" came from the leafy branches above them. "Cheep cheepl cheep!" came from the wet
grass. "What is the matter here?" asked the first lawyer, whose name was Speed. "Oh, it's only some old
robins!" said the second lawyer, whose name was Hardin. "The storm has blown two of the little ones out of
the nest. They are too young to fly, and the mother bird is making a great fuss about it."
"What a pity! They'll die down there in the grass," said the third lawyer, whose name I forget
"Oh, well! They're nothing but birds," said Mr. Hardin. "Why should we bother?"
"Yes, why should we?" said Mr. Speed.
What is the time period of this text? How do you know? Use evidence from the text to support your answer. Your answer
should be 3 to 4 sentences.