[1] See reasons for doubting this conclusion in Professor Rennie's
DOMESTIC HABITS OF BIRDS, Chap. xvii.--TRANSLATOR.
[2] This previous recording, as it is termed, is not uniform. Mr. Blyth
informs as that he had, in the year 1833, a blackcap which struck up all
at once into a loud song.--TRANSLATOR.
[3] Phil. Trans. vol. lxiii. 1773.
[4] Besides, we cannot say that there is a want of variety in this
music. I may again quote Mr. Barington (Phil. Trans.): "The death of the
male parent, just at the time his instructions were required, will
occasion some variety in the song of the young ones, who will thus have
their attention directed to other birds, which they will imitate or
modify according to the conformation of their larynx; and they will thus
create new variations, which will afterwards be imitated by their young
ones, and become hereditary, until a circumstance of a similar nature
may introduce greater variations. If care was taken there need not be
two birds that sung exactly alike: however, these varieties are confined
within certain limits."--TRANSLATOR.
[5] If pine and fir branches cannot be obtained, oak, elm, or
beech will do, cut in winter; though not green, yet there will be
leaves.--TRANSLATOR.
[6] This perhaps depends on the peculiar forms of the bills more than on
inclination, for the fauvette and blackcap often attempt to clean their
feet without success.--TRANSLATOR.
[7] See Rennie's "FACULTIES OF BIRDS," Chap. V., for experiments on the
subject.--TRANSLATOR.
[8] The reason of this union of vegetable and animal food may be easily
seen; the bread supplies the seed for the birds of the first class, and
the milk the insects for those of the second, while the third and fourth
here find their mixed food; and thus it ought to agree with all.
Besides, the birds of the first class do not confine themselves
exclusively to seeds; in their wild state they eat many insects, and
some even feed their young entirely with them; this proves that animal
food is sometimes useful and beneficial to them.--TRANSLATOR.
[9] If a rather large, flat, and not very deep vessel be used, in which
the birds can bathe at their ease, it will make them more healthy and
clean.--TRANSLATOR.
[10] White's Selborne, 8vo. edit. 1833.
[11] See Rennie's "HABITS OF BIRDS," p. 13.--TRANSL.
[12] This, though the common opinion, seems incorrect. See Rennie's
"HABITS OF BIRDS," p. 4.--TRANSLATOR.
[13] There are varieties in this species: that with the head grey is
rare, but when quite white is still more so.--TRANSLATOR.
[14] It is rare in Britain.--TRANSLATOR.
[15] It is not a native of Britain.--TRANSLATOR.
[16] Perhaps from not having been given now and then feathers,
the fur and skin of animals, or even beetles, to cleanse the
stomach.--TRANSLATOR.
[17] It is doubtful as a native of Britain.--TRANSLATOR.
[18] The rook, (_Corvus frugilegus_, Linnæus,) seems here to be
confounded with the carrion crow. I say nothing about this species, as I
have never heard of one being tamed or instructed. It is about the size
of the carrion crow, and chiefly differs from it in the base of the beak
being naked, and having a rough scabrous skin.--TRANSLATOR.
[19] It appears that in its course from Sweden to Algiers it does not
range beyond a degree in longitude, and is rarely found in Britain. Few
birds of this group, as far as has hitherto been observed, wander to the
right or left during their migration. The roller frequents shady and
solitary woods, and its character is well adapted to them.--TRANSLATOR.
[20] I once saw one of these birds drink, after swallowing dry ants'
eggs; it then eat greedily of lettuce and endive. Another, which I kept,
liked the outside of lettuces and spinach after having eaten insects,
especially beetles, which are very heating. To judge from what I have
observed, the roller is by nature wild and solitary; it seldom changes
its situation, except to seek its food or to hide itself from strangers.
It is a good thing, whether kept in a cage or let range, always to have
a box in its way, in which it may take refuge when frightened; it will
not fail to hide itself there, and by this means will not be tempted to
beat itself violently, which it does when it cannot fly from the object
of its fright. It knows its mistress very well, lets her take it up,
comes near her, and sits without any fear on her knees for whole hours
without stirring. This is as far as it goes even when tamed. It is
neither caressing nor familiar; when frightened it utters harsh cries,
softer ones when its food is brought, but "_crag, crag, craag_," at the
same time raising its head, is the expression of its joy or
triumph.--TRANSLATOR.
[21] It is rarely found in Britain.--TRANSLATOR.
[22] These young birds like to wash; but it is dangerous for them to
have the water too cold, or to let them remain too long in it, as cramp
in the feet may be the consequence. In one which we possessed, the
accident was more vexatious as the bird was otherwise in good health,
having followed the above mentioned diet.--TRANSLATOR.
[23] The natural song is very like the awkward attempts of a country boy
with a bad musical ear to whistle the notes of the missel
thrush.--TRANSLATOR.
[24] It is not common in Britain.--TRANSLATOR.
[25] It may be added that it also walks very gracefully.--TRANSLATOR.
[26] It appears that the _Psittacus Ludovicianus_, LINNÆUS, _Perruche à
tête aurore_, BUFFON, is the same species.
[27] I have, however, seen a woodpecker of this species which was reared
by a lady, to whom it seemed very much attached. It had learnt of itself
to go and return, knocking hard at the window if it was shut out. It was
very amusing to see it climbing nimbly over its mistress till it had
reached her mouth; it then asked her by light strokes of its beak for
the food which she was accustomed to give it; this was generally a
little meat. It disappeared one day, without any one's knowing what
accident had befallen it.--TRANSLATOR.
[28] A bird of this species, which had been accidentally winged by a
sportsman, was kept in a small cage of plain oak wood and wire. During a
night and a day that his confinement lasted, his tapping labour was
incessant; and after occupying his prison for that short space, he left
the wood-work pierced and worn like worm-eaten timber. His impatience at
his situation was excessive; his efforts to escape were unremitted, and
displayed much intelligence and cunning. He was fierce, fearlessly
familiar, and voracious of the food placed before him. At the close of
the second day he sunk under the combined effects of his vexation,
assiduity, and voracity. His hammering was peculiarly laborious, for he
did not peck as other birds do, but grasping hold with his immense feet,
he turned upon them as a pivot, and struck with the whole weight of his
body, thus assuming the appearance, with his entire form, of the head of
a hammer, or, as birds may sometimes be seen to do on mechanical clocks,
made to strike the hour by swinging on a wheel. The Rev. W. T. Bree, of
Allesley, says, that having caught a nuthatch in the common brick trap
used by boys, he was struck with the singular appearance of its bill, so
unlike that of any bird he had ever seen. It was blunt at the end, and
presented the appearance of having been truncated in an oblique
direction, as if the natural beak had been cut off. He naturally
inferred that it had been fairly ground down to about two-thirds of its
original length, by the bird's pecking at the bricks, in its efforts to
escape from the trap.--TRANSLATOR.
[29] The parrot crossbill is a very different species, but is
rare.--TRANSLATOR.
[30] The too great heat has doubtless also something to do with
it.--TRANSLATOR.
[31] However difficult this pairing may be, it sometimes succeeds very
well. A bullfinch and female canary once produced five young ones, which
died on a journey which they could not bear. Their large beak, and the
blackish down with which they were covered, showed that they were more
like their father than mother.--TRANSLATOR.
[32] I do not recommend the employment of bird organs for instructing
birds, because they are rarely accurate, and their notes are harsh and
discordant; for bullfinches repeat the sounds exactly as they hear them,
whether harsh or false, according to the instrument used. The good and
pure whistling of a man of taste is far preferable; the bird repeats it
in a soft, flute-like tone. When one cannot whistle well it is better to
use a flageolet.--TRANSLATOR.
[33] Mr. Thiem, son of the Mr. Thiem in the text, arrives annually in
London in April or May, with birds for sale.--TRANSLATOR.
[34] It is not found in Britain.--TRANSLATOR.
[35] Those occasionally caught in the South of England may be purchased
in London at about 7_s._--TRANSLATOR.
[36] See "Architecture of Birds," page 265.
[37] The want of a bathing place in the narrow cages where these unhappy
prisoners are kept is the true cause of this disease.
[38] A good deal of imagination may be supposed to be put forth in the
translation of the song of these birds. An Englishman, a Frenchman, or
an Italian would discover in it words in their own language which might
express very different sounds. We shall not see with less pleasure here
details that are entirely omitted in other works on birds. Some will
admire, however far it may go, an ear exercised in discovering the
shades, niceties, and, in fact, the beauties that delight it, whilst
another would be scarcely struck with any difference. Strangers will no
longer be surprised at the excessive passion these birds excite where
they are studied with so much care. In England they are very little
prized, and but seldom kept.--_Translator._
[39] Literally, "to go to the wine;" pronounced _vine-gay_.--TRANSLATOR.
[40] Ruhl is a large manufacturing village in Thuringia, the inhabitants
of which, mostly cutlers, have such a passion for chaffinches that some
have gone ninety miles from home to take with bird-lime one of these
birds distinguished by its song, and have given one of their cows for a
fine songster; from which has arisen their common expression, _such a
chaffinch is worth a cow_. A common workman will give a _louis d'or_
(sixteen shillings) for a chaffinch he admires, and willingly live on
bread and water to gain the money. An amateur cannot hear one that sings
in a superior style _the double trill of the Hartz_ without being in an
ecstasy. I have heard them say that one which sings this melody
perfectly certainly can converse, from its pronouncing the syllables so
distinctly.--AUTHOR.
[41] Längsfeld, where this song was first discovered, is a large town in
the district of Fulda, situated a short distance from the Werra, which
at Munden takes the name of Weser, after its junction with the
Fulda.--AUTHOR.
[42] It is only eight years since this song was accidentally produced. A
shoemaker of Iambach had given a chaffinch that sung the double trill
five young scholars, one of which struck out for itself this peculiar
warbling. From this others were taught, so that amateurs may have the
pleasure of hearing at home a song that is now in fashion, and pleases
many amateurs.
[43] The notes of the wild chaffinches in this country are finer than
any cage ones I have heard in Germany.--TRANSLATOR.
[44] The destruction of the sparrows has been so great an evil in the
countries where the government had ordered it, that it has been found
necessary to rescind the order. The injury they do to the corn is
something certainly, but it may be exaggerated, besides, ought not these
useful creatures to be paid?--TRANSLATOR.
[45] It is known from experience that winter rape seed, which is not
hurtful to them in a wild state, will soon kill them if they are fed on
it in the house.--AUTHOR.
[46] We read in Buffon, that the Goldfinch feeds its young with
caterpillars; this is not natural to the species, since we find farther
on, that the parent birds disgorge the food into the crop of their
little ones, and do not merely place it in the beak as those birds do
that feed their young on caterpillars and other insects.--TRANSLATOR.
[47] This is a mistake. See Architecture of Birds, p. 268.
[48] After having shown the skill and docility of the goldfinch, we
cannot end our praise of the bird better than by giving an instance of
his attachment. Mad. ---- had one that never saw her go out without
making every effort in his power to quit his cage and follow her, and
welcomed her return with every mark of extreme delight; as soon as she
approached, a thousand little actions showed his pleasure and
satisfaction: if she presented her finger, he caressed it a long time,
uttering a low joyous murmur. This attachment was so exclusive that if
his mistress, to prove it, substituted another person's finger for her
own, he would peck it sharply, whilst one of his mistress's, placed
between two of this person's, would be immediately distinguished, and
caressed accordingly.--TRANSLATOR.
[49] It only comes to England during winter.--TRANSLATOR.
[50] It is not so often of epilepsy, and fat, that male birds die, as
for the want of pairing. Perhaps this may be increased, thoughtlessly,
by too heating and too succulent food. However this may be, if a male
that has died thus in spring be dissected, its reproductive organs will
be found exceedingly swelled. It can only be preserved by giving at the
time refreshing and moderate food. Boiled bread and milk is very
useful.--TRANSLATOR.
[51] They are not natives of Britain.--TRANSLATOR.
[52] They are not natives of Britain.--TRANSLATOR.
[53] I have observed, says Adanson, that the canary which becomes white
in France is, at Teneriffe, of a grey, almost as dark as that of the
linnet.--AUTHOR.
[54] It is a mistaken idea that the difference of colour in canaries
depends on the difference of food. The wild birds vary much more than
the domestic, yet their food is more uniform. The being domesticated,
the want of exercise and natural food united, may occasion an alteration
in the colours of the plumage. My birds have only very simple food, and
yet they are not the less of various colours.--AUTHOR.
[55] This practice is not according to nature, which we can rarely
oppose without inconvenience. "This plan causes the mother a greater
loss of heat, and burdens her at once with five or six little ones,
which coming together, disturb rather than please her; whilst in seeing
them hatched successively one after the other, her pleasure is increased
and supports her strength and courage. Very intelligent bird-fanciers
assure us, that by not removing the eggs from the female, and leaving
them to be hatched in succession, they have always succeeded better than
when substituting ivory eggs." _Buffon._--TRANSLATOR.
[56] It sometimes happens in very dry seasons that the feathers of the
young birds cannot develop naturally; a bath of tepid water employed on
such an occasion by Madame * * * was so successful that I cannot do
better than recommend it. The same lady succeeded equally well in
similar circumstances in hatching late eggs; she plunged them for some
minutes in water heated to the degree of incubation, and immediately
replaced them under the mother; in a short time she enjoyed the pleasure
of seeing the little ones make their appearance. This interesting
experiment may be applied to all sorts of birds, and may be particularly
useful in regard to those of the poultry yard.--TRANSLATOR.
[57] Green birds, bullfinches, and even chaffinches, yellowhammers, and
the like, have been tried; but the difficulty augments with the
difference of species and food: for example, I have never seen a male
canary very fond of a female yellowhammer, nor a male of the latter
kind of a female canary, though the plumage may be selected so as to
offer a striking resemblance. An ardent bullfinch will sometimes yield
to the allurements of a very ardent hen canary. I have myself witnessed
it; but with every care, it is seldom that the eggs prove fruitful, and
produce young. Dr. Jassy, however, writes me from Frankfort, that he has
obtained mules of a bullfinch and canary, by making other canaries sit
on the eggs and bring up the young; and that this plan is pursued in
Bohemia. A tufted or crested female should never be chosen, because this
ornament is very unbecoming to the large head of a mule. "My bullfinch,"
he adds, "is so attached to the female canary that he mourns all the
time they are separated, and cannot bear any other bird."
I possess a nightingale which, having been for a long time shut up with
a female canary, lives very sociably with her, and sings as usual;
indeed, he was so ardent in the spring, that he paired with her in my
presence, but the eggs were unproductive. I shall try next spring, if
the same thing happens, to give the eggs to another sitter.--AUTHOR.
[58] Some do this naturally, others are taught it in their youth, by
covering the cage and keeping them in the dark during the day, long
enough for them to be hungry; they are thus forced to eat by
candle-light. Gradually they become accustomed to this, and at last
sing.--AUTHOR.
[59] Nothing is more delightful than to hear them imitate the song of
the nightingale; I prefer those which have this talent, and I never fail
to possess one.--AUTHOR.
[60] In Britain it is partly migratory and partly
stationary.--TRANSLATOR.
[61] If it is difficult to induce larks to sit, it appears to be very
easy to make them take care of a young brood.
"The instinct," says Buffon, "which induces hen larks to bring up and
watch over a brood appears sometimes very early, even before that which
disposes them to become mothers, and which, in the order of nature,
ought, it would seem, to precede it.
"In the month of May, a young lark was brought to me which could not
feed itself; I fed it, and it could hardly peck up, when a brood of four
young ones of the same species was brought to me from another place. She
exhibited a singular affection for these new comers, which were not much
younger than herself; she nursed them day and night, warmed them under
her wings, and pushed the food into their mouths with her beak; nothing
could distract her from these interesting duties. If she was removed
from the young ones, she flew back to them as soon as she was free,
without ever thinking of escaping, as she might have done a hundred
times. Her affection increased so much that she literally forgot to eat
and drink; and she lived only on the food which was given to her as well
as to her adopted young, and she died at length, consumed by this sort
of maternal passion. None of the young survived her, they died one after
the other, so necessary had her maternal cares become to them; so
entirely were these cares produced by affection, and reciprocated."
This, it appears, is more than could be said of the persons who had the
care of these unfortunate little birds.--TRANSLATOR.
[62] They are not natives of Britain.--TRANSLATOR.
[63] I possessed a fine one which died from lice.--TRANSLATOR.
[64] I saw a colony of starlings established on this plan at an inn at
Leyden.--TRANSLATOR.
[65] In England it continues throughout the year.--TRANSLATOR.
[66] Bathing may prevent the first; boiled bread and milk administered
seasonably relieves, and even entirely cures, the other.--TRANSLATOR.
[67] In Britain they remain all the year.--TRANSLATOR.
[68] I have seen the nest in Scotland.--TRANSLATOR.
[69] It occurs on the Rhine at Ehrenbreitzen, and I have seen it on the
Siebengebirge.--TRANSLATOR.
[70] I purchased two at Coblentz, which lived some time in England.
Individuals have been sold in London for seven pounds.--TRANSLATOR.
[71] It is not found in Britain.--TRANSLATOR.
[72] The food of the caged nightingale is probably not sufficiently
nutritious for the reed thrush; no doubt, also, it injures the stomach;
perhaps the number of meal-worms with which it is supplied should be
increased; and small beetles should be offered to it, whose wing-cases
and claws, not being digested by the insectivorous bird, serve to purge
the stomach; its food, in short, should resemble as much as possible
that of its natural condition.--TRANSLATOR.
[73] There are some countries which appear not adapted for nightingales,
and in which they never stop, as in France, in Le Bugey, as high as
Nantua, a part of Holland, North Wales, the north of England, excepting
the county of York, and all Scotland and Ireland.
[74] In Italy they arrive in March, and depart in the beginning of
November. In England they arrive in April and May, and depart in the
month of September.
[75] The means of always having a plentiful supply of meal worms is to
fill a large earthenware or brown stone jar with wheat bran, barley or
oatmeal, and put into it some pieces of sugar paper or old shoe leather.
Into each of these jars, of about two quarts in size, half a pint of
meal worms is thrown (these may be bought at any baker's or miller's),
and by leaving them quiet for three months, covered with a bit of
woollen cloth soaked in beer, or merely in water, they will change into
beetles (_Tenebrio Molitor_, Linnæus). These insects soon propagate by
eggs, which renew and increase the number of maggots so much that one
such jar will maintain a nightingale.--AUTHOR.
[76] Many persons who are not in a situation to buy ants' eggs
(improperly so called, since they are the pupæ in their cocoons), will
doubtless be glad to know the method used for getting them out of the
ant-hill. A fine sunny day in summer is chosen, and, provided with a
shovel we begin by gently uncovering a nest of the large wood ants
(_Formica rufa_, Linnæus), till we arrive at the eggs; these are then
taken away, and placed in the sun, in the middle of a cloth whose
corners are turned up over little branches well covered with leaves. The
ants, in order to protect the eggs from the heat of the sun, quickly
remove them under the shelter which is prepared for them. In this manner
they are easily obtained freed from dirt, and from the ants also. In the
absence of a cloth a smooth place is chosen, around which some small
furrows are cut, over which the branches are laid, which leads to the
same result.--AUTHOR.
[77] English bird-catchers also express the phrases of the nightingale
by words, or particular names, _sweet_, _jug_, _sweet_, _pipe rattle_,
_swetswat_, _swaty_, _water bubble_, _skeg_, _skeg_, _whitlow_,
_whitlow_, and the like.
[78] I possess a nightingale which repeats these drawling melancholy
notes often thirty or even fifty times. Many pronounce _gu, guy, gui_,
and others _qu, quy, qui_.--AUTHOR.
[79] These syllables are pronounced in a sharper clearer manner than the
preceding _lu, lu_, &c.
[80] However difficult, or even impossible, it may be to express this
song upon an instrument (excepting, however, the jay call, made of tin,
on which is placed a piece of birch cut in a cross, and which is held
between the tongue and the palate), yet it is very true that the
accompaniment of a good piano produces the most agreeable
effect.--AUTHOR.
[81] We must not confound _true nocturnal_ nightingales with those which
are called _mopers_. A true nocturnal sings from night to morning
without stopping, while a moper sings only at intervals, unconnectedly,
and always makes pauses of some minutes between each strain. All
nightingales become mopers when they reach five or six years of age;
whence arises the mistake of many persons, who think they possess a
nocturnal when they have really only a moper. The reverse happens
sometimes, also; for a true nocturnal bird, caught such, often loses his
power after one or two years of captivity, and is then a mere
moper.--AUTHOR.
[82] It must, however, be owned, that of twenty young nightingales bred
from the nest scarcely one succeeds in all respects. They seldom possess
their natural song in its purity; they almost invariably introduce, in
spite of all their instruction, foreign and disagreeable tones. The
young which are caught in the month of August, before their departure,
are the best; they have already learnt their father's song, and they
perfect it the following spring, if they are placed beside a good
singer.--AUTHOR.
[83] "A nightingale which I had given away," says M. Le Manie, "no
longer seeing his mistress, left off eating, and was soon reduced to the
last gasp; he could not support himself on his perch! but being restored
to his mistress, he revived, ate, drank, perched, and had recovered in
twenty-four hours. It is said that some have been known, when set at
liberty in the woods, to return to their masters." It is quite certain
that they recognise the voice of their masters and mistresses, and
approach at their call.
[84] According to the Greeks, Progné was metamorphosed into a
nightingale, and Philomel, her sister, into a swallow. The Latins have
changed and confused this story, which the moderns have, in their turn,
copied without examination.
[85] It is not a native of Britain.--TRANSLATOR.
[86] To prepare this tincture, take of water four parts, of black oxide
of iron one part; boil the oxide with the water, and then pass a current
of chlorine gas through the mixture till it will absorb no more; filter
the liquor and evaporate over a slow fire to the consistence of an
extract; when this is cold, pour upon it of hydrochloric ether three
parts; let it macerate without heat for several days; then add of
alcoholised hydrochloric acid nine parts; macerate again, filter the
liquor, and expose it to the sun.--TRANSLATOR.
[87] This is a mistake; it is as fond of berries as of
insects.--TRANSLATOR.
[88] This bird also has the art of pleasing by his pretty tricks. He
shows a striking affection for his mistress; utters a particular sound,
a more tender note to welcome her; at her approach he darts against the
wires of his cage, and, by a continued fluttering, accompanied with
little cries, he seems to express his eagerness and gratitude.
A young male which I had put in the hothouse for the winter, was
accustomed to receive from my hand, every time I entered, a meal-worm;
this took place so regularly, that immediately on my arrival he placed
himself near the little jar where I kept the meal-worms. If I pretended
not to notice this signal he would take flight, and, passing close under
my nose, immediately resume his post; and this he repeated, sometimes
even striking me with his wing, till I satisfied his wishes and
impatience.
[89] No doubt his great voracity weakens his stomach, and by loading the
intestines with glutinous matter the vessels cannot take up sufficient
nourishment; it is therefore not conveyed sufficiently to the skin and
feathers, whence proceed the fall of the latter and the enfeeblement of
the body.
[90] This bird is not known in Britain.--TRANSLATOR.
[91] It is however, by no means easily tamed, but remains fearful and
distant.--TRANSLATOR.
[92] In Britain they remain all the year.--TRANSLATOR.
[93] I have seen some in cages which were entirely fed on white bread
which was soaked in hot milk left to get cold, and they were very
healthy. If, however, we would feed them well, they require nearly the
same diet as the nightingale.--TRANSLATOR.
[94] It is rarely seen in Britain.--TRANSLATOR.
[95] I have made the same observation on the redstart.
[96] It remains all winter in Britain.--TRANSLATOR.
[97] This is a mistake, as it likes to frequent high elms.--TRANSLATOR.
[98] It is rare in England.--TRANSLATOR.
[99] It is a remarkable fact, that this bird, now so common in
Thuringia, was a rarity there twenty years ago. This change cannot be
attributed to climate or food. What is the occasion of it then?--AUTHOR.
[100] In sitting on house eaves, and singing in the autumn, it performs
a similar part in Germany to the red-breast in Britain. No red-breast on
the Continent becomes familiar about the house like ours; they keep
always in the woods.--TRANSLATOR.
[101] At a very advanced age the female acquires all the colours of the
male, yet less bright, as I have observed of several birds. Such females
do not breed afterwards, and in summer fly from place to place. This
peculiarity is also observed in hen-pheasants.--AUTHOR.
[102] It is not found in Britain.--TRANSLATOR.
[103] This I doubt.--TRANSLATOR.
[104] Most certainly a mistake.--TRANSLATOR.
[105] Sweet's British Warblers.
[106] One of these pretty birds, which I had in my room one winter, ate
with pleasure, and appeared to thrive upon, a very simple paste, made of
the crumb of white bread dried in an oven and powdered: a teaspoonful of
this was put in a cup, and three teaspoonfuls of milk, as hot as it
could be made without boiling, poured over it.--AUTHOR.
[107] It is rare in Britain.--TRANSLATOR.
[108] It is difficult to decide to what genus this species belongs; it
has the characteristics of several. Its size, habit, food, mixed insects
and seeds, even its pace, for when on the ground it rarely hops like the
warblers, but runs quickly head forwards, like the quails, scarcely ever
resting on trees; in all this it bears a relation to the larks. Now as
there are larks that appear to form the link between that genus and the
warblers, the Alpine warbler may be said to form one also between the
warblers and the larks.--TRANSLATOR.
[109] It is called Joe Bent by the London bird-catchers.--TRANSLATOR.
[110] This cylinder oftens occasions their death. It is only by great
address and quickness that they can pass through the hole of
communication; each time they run the risk of being crushed, especially
on coming out, from the prolonged motion of the machine.--TRANSLATOR.
[111] It is not uncommon in Britain, such as near London,
&c.--TRANSLATOR.
[112] They are fond of picking bones.--TRANSLATOR.
[113] They are not uncommon in Britain, such as about London,
&c.--TRANSLATOR.
[114] It is found, but rarely, in the fir woods in the north of
Scotland.--TRANSLATOR.
[115] I have, however, seen one old crested tit that was tamed as easily
as any other bird. After passing the winter in a cage it refused its
liberty in the spring. It was then placed in the garden near the house,
where it remained till evening, having hopped about all day, uttering
restless anxious cries. Its mistress, fearing some accident befalling it
during the night, held the cage towards it, into which it instantly
jumped with pleasure. Since then it has been allowed to range three
adjoining rooms. It is always lively, coming when its mistress calls,
and perching on her finger, and seeking in her half-closed hand the
flies she may have there. It made a nest in a window-curtain, into which
it would glide secretly in the evening, but would never go whilst any
eyes were turned on that side, and seized a favourable moment so
quickly, that for some time no one knew where it retired; when it was
discovered, the curtains were never touched.--TRANSLATOR.
[116] This is not quite correct, the female having small moustaches of a
light colour.--TRANSLATOR.
[117] They abound in the fens of Lincolnshire, on the Thames below
Greenwich, &c.--TRANSLATOR.
[118] Great numbers are brought from Holland to London, and sell for
about five shillings a pair.--TRANSLATOR.
[119] This is a mistake: the food given to the young is a sort of thick
milky secretion from the stomach of the parent birds, both male and
female.--TRANSLATOR.
[120] In England they are not uncommon in the woods.--TRANSLATOR.
[121] The close and mephitic air of these rooms, which are kept
warmer whilst a person is ill, may well produce this apparent
sympathy.--TRANSLATOR.
[122] An erroneous opinion, which displays more egotism than humanity;
yet do people generally act with more equity and disinterestedness?
[123] Here is another instance, in which man, seeking his own pleasure
at the expense of the well being of other creatures, deceives himself
respecting the motives. The poor prisoner does not sing to amuse
himself, or from contentment; its repeated cries call unceasingly for
the mate from which it is separated; and though they have been vain
throughout the day, he renews them on the morrow, no doubt, like man,
supported by hope,--a hope, alas! which is never realised!--AUTHOR.
[124] It is now uncommon in Britain.--TRANSLATOR.
[125] A great many mallards are half domesticated on the water in St.
James' Park, London, and other similar places in England.--TRANSLATOR.