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| committer | Roger Frank <rfrank@pglaf.org> | 2025-10-15 05:29:30 -0700 |
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diff --git a/7353-h/7353-h.htm b/7353-h/7353-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..2caa085 --- /dev/null +++ b/7353-h/7353-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,9656 @@ +<?xml version="1.0" encoding="iso-8859-1"?> + +<!DOCTYPE html + PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" + "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd" > + +<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"> + <head> + <title> + Birds in Town and Village, by Hudson + </title> + <style type="text/css" xml:space="preserve"> + + body { margin:5%; text-align:justify} + P { text-indent: 1em; margin-top: .25em; margin-bottom: .25em; } + H1,H2,H3,H4,H5,H6 { text-align: center; margin-left: 15%; margin-right: 15%; } + hr { width: 50%; text-align: center;} + .foot { margin-left: 20%; margin-right: 20%; text-align: justify; text-indent: -3em; font-size: 90%; } + blockquote {font-size: 97%; font-style: italic; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%;} + .mynote {background-color: #DDE; color: #000; padding: .5em; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; font-family: sans-serif; font-size: 95%;} + .toc { margin-left: 10%; margin-bottom: .75em;} + .toc2 { margin-left: 20%;} + div.fig { display:block; margin:0 auto; text-align:center; } + .figleft {float: left; margin-left: 0%; margin-right: 1%;} + .figright {float: right; margin-right: 0%; margin-left: 1%;} + .pagenum {display:inline; font-size: 70%; font-style:normal; + margin: 0; padding: 0; position: absolute; right: 1%; + text-align: right;} + pre { font-style: italic; font-size: 90%; margin-left: 10%;} + +</style> + </head> + <body> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + +The Project Gutenberg EBook of Birds in Town and Village, by W. H. Hudson + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: Birds in Town and Village + +Author: W. H. Hudson + +Release Date: January, 2005 [EBook #7353] +Last Updated: November 17, 2012 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE *** + + + + +Produced by Eric Eldred and David Widger + + + + + +</pre> + <p> + <a name="linkgold" id="linkgold"></a> <img src="images/hudson-birds-1.jpg" + alt="hudson-birds-1.jpg" width="472" height="744" /> + </p> + <p> + GOLDFINCH AND BLUE TIT. + </p> + <p> + "The desire for the companionship of birds." + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <h1> + BIRDS IN TOWN & VILLAGE + </h1> + <h3> + BY + </h3> + <h2> + W. H. HUDSON, + </h2> + <h4> + F.Z.S. + </h4> + <blockquote> + <p> + AUTHOR OF "THE PURPLE LAND," "IDLE DAYS IN PATAGONIA," "FAR AWAY AND + LONG AGO," ETC. + </p> + </blockquote> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-2.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-2.jpg" width="126" + height="105" /> + </p> + <blockquote> + <p> + WITH PICTURES IN COLOUR + </p> + <p> + BY + </p> + <p> + E. J. DETMOLD + </p> + <p> + NEW YORK + </p> + <p> + E. P. DUTTON & COMPANY + </p> + <p> + COPYRIGHT, 1920 By E. P. DUTTON & COMPANY + </p> + </blockquote> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <h3> + PREFACE + </h3> + <p> + THIS book is more than a mere reprint of <i>Birds in a Village</i> first + published in 1893. That was my first book about bird life, with some + impressions of rural scenes, in England; and, as is often the case with a + first book, its author has continued to cherish a certain affection for + it. On this account it pleased me when its turn came to be reissued, since + this gave me the opportunity of mending some faults in the portions + retained and of throwing out a good deal of matter which appeared to me + not worth keeping. + </p> + <p> + The first portion, "Birds in a Village," has been mostly rewritten with + some fresh matter added, mainly later observations and incidents + introduced in illustration of the various subjects discussed. For the + concluding portion of the old book, which has been discarded, I have + substituted entirely new matter-the part entitled "Birds in a Cornish + Village." + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + vi P R E F A C E + </p> + <p> + Between these two long parts there are five shorter essays which I have + retained with little alteration, and these in one or two instances are + consequently out of date, especially in what was said with bitterness in + the essay on "Exotic Birds for Britain" anent the feather-wearing fashion + and of the London trade in dead birds and the refusal of women at that + time to help us in trying to save the beautiful wild bird life of this + country and of the world generally from extermination. Happily, the last + twenty years of the life and work of the Royal Society for the Protection + of Birds have changed all that, and it would not now be too much to say + that all right-thinking persons in this country, men and women, are + anxious to see the end of this iniquitous traffic. + </p> + <p> + W. H. H. + </p> + <p> + September, 1919. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <h3> + CONTENTS + </h3> + <p> + <b>BIRDS IN A VILLAGE: PAGE</b> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#linkI">I. .......... 1</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#linkII">II. .......... 6</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#linkIII">III. .......... 18</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#linkIV">IV. .......... 36</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#linkV">V. .......... 50</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#linkVI">VI. .......... 73</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#linkVII">VII. .......... 86</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#linkVIII">VIII. .......... 107</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#linkIX">IX.. .......... 121</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#linkX">X. .......... 148</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#linkXI">XI. .......... 153</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link161">EXOTIC BIRDS FOR BRITAIN ...... 161</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link192">MOOR-HENS IN HYDE PARK . . . . . .192</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link206">THE EAGLE AND THE CANARY ..... 206</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link222">CHANTICLEER . . . . . . . . .222</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link243">IN AN OLD GARDEN ........ 243</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#linkcornish">BIRDS IN A CORNISH VILLAGE:</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link265">I. TAKING STOCK OF THE BIRDS . . . 265</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link275">II. DO STARLINGS PAIR FOR LIFE? . . 275</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link287">III. VILLAGE BIRDS IN WINTER . . . 287</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link295">IV. INCREASING BIRDS IN BRITAIN . . 295</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link305">V. THE DAW SENTIMENT ..... 305</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link316">VI. STORY OF A JACKDAW ..... 316</a> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + <b>LIST OF COLORED ILLUSTRATIONS</b> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#linkgold">Goldfinch and Blue Tit . . . Frontispiece</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link10">Nightingale ..........10</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link24">Jay ............ 24.</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link40">Wren ........... 40</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link60">Song Thrush and Long-Tailed Tit . . . . .60</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link138">Skylark ........... 138</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link174">Heron ........... 174</a> + </p> + <p> + <a href="#link196">Moorhen ........... 196</a> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <h2> + BIRDS IN TOWN & VILLAGE + </h2> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="linkI" id="linkI"></a> <img src="images/hudson-birds-3.jpg" + alt="hudson-birds-3.jpg" width="399" height="170" /> + </p> + <h3> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE I + </h3> + <p> + ABOUT the middle of last May, after a rough and cold period, there came a + spell of brilliant weather, reviving in me the old spring feeling, the + passion for wild nature, the desire for the companionship of birds; and I + betook myself to St. James's Park for the sake of such satisfaction as may + be had from watching and feeding the fowls, wild and semi-wild, found + gathered at that favored spot. + </p> + <p> + I was glad to observe a couple of those new colonists of the ornamental + water, the dabchicks, and to renew my acquaintance with the familiar, + long-established moorhens. One of them was engaged in building its nest in + an elm-tree grow- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 2 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + ing at the water's edge. I saw it make two journeys with large wisps of + dry grass in its beak, running up the rough, slanting trunk to a height of + sixteen to seventeen feet, and disappearing within the "brushwood sheaf" + that springs from the bole at that distance from the roots. The + wood-pigeons were much more numerous, also more eager to be fed. They + seemed to understand very quickly that my bread and grain was for them and + not the sparrows; but although they stationed themselves close to me, the + little robbers we were jointly trying to outwit managed to get some pieces + of bread by flying up and catching them before they touched the sward. + This little comedy over, I visited the water-fowl, ducks of many kinds, + sheldrakes, geese from many lands, swans black, and swans white. To see + birds in prison during the spring mood of which I have spoken is not only + no satisfaction but a positive pain; here--albeit without that large + liberty that nature gives, they are free in a measure; and swimming and + diving or dozing in the sunshine, with the blue sky above them, they are + perhaps unconscious of any restraint. Walking along the margin I noticed + three children some yards ahead + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 3 + </p> + <p> + of me; two were quite small, but the third, in whose charge the others + were, was a robust-looking girl, aged about ten or eleven years. From + their dress and appearance I took them to be the children of a respectable + artisan or small tradesman; but what chiefly attracted my attention was + the very great pleasure the elder girl appeared to take in the birds. She + had come well provided with stale bread to feed them, and after giving + moderately of her store to the wood-pigeons and sparrows, she went on to + the others, native and exotic, that were disporting themselves in the + water, or sunning themselves on the green bank. She did not cast her bread + on the water in the manner usual with visitors, but was anxious to feed + all the different species, or as many as she could attract to her, and + appeared satisfied when any one individual of a particular kind got a + fragment of her bread. Meanwhile she talked eagerly to the little ones, + calling their attention to the different birds. Drawing near, I also + became an interested listener; and then, in answer to my questions, she + began telling me what all these strange fowls were. "This," she said, glad + to give information, "is the Canadian goose, and + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 4 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + there is the Egyptian goose; and here is the king-duck coming towards us; + and do you see that large, beautiful bird standing by itself, that will + not come to be fed? That is the golden duck. But that is not its real + name; I don't know them all, and so I name some for myself. I call that + one the golden duck because in the sun its feathers sometimes shine like + gold." It was a rare pleasure to listen to her, and seeing what sort of a + girl she was, and how much in love with her subject, I in my turn told her + a great deal about the birds before us, also of other birds she had never + seen nor heard of, in other and distant lands that have a nobler bird life + than ours; and after she had listened eagerly for some minutes, and had + then been silent a little while, she all at once pressed her two hands + together, and exclaimed rapturously, "Oh, I do so love the birds!" + </p> + <p> + I replied that that was not strange, since it is impossible for us not to + love whatever is lovely, and of all living things birds were made most + beautiful. + </p> + <p> + Then I walked away, but could not forget the words she had exclaimed, her + whole appearance, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 5 + </p> + <p> + the face flushed with color, the eloquent brown eyes sparkling, the + pressed palms, the sudden spontaneous passion of delight and desire in her + tone. The picture was in my mind all that day, and lived through the next, + and so wrought on me that I could not longer keep away from the birds, + which I, too, loved; for now all at once it seemed to me that life was not + life without them; that I was grown sick, and all my senses dim; that only + the wished sight of wild birds could medicine my vision; that only by + drenching it in their wild melody could my tired brain recover its lost + vigour. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-4.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-4.jpg" width="90" + height="99" /> <a name="linkII" id="linkII"></a> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <h3> + II + </h3> + <p> + AFTER wandering somewhat aimlessly about the country for a couple of days, + I stumbled by chance on just such a spot as I had been wishing to find--a + rustic village not too far away. It was not more than twenty-five minutes' + walk from a small station, less than one hour by rail from London. + </p> + <p> + The way to the village was through cornfields, bordered by hedges and rows + of majestic elms. Beyond it, but quite near, there was a wood, principally + of beech, over a mile in length, with a public path running through it. On + the right hand, ten minutes' walk from the village, there was a long green + hill, the ascent to which was gentle; but on the further side it sloped + abruptly down to the Thames. + </p> + <p> + On the left hand there was another hill, with cottages and orchards, with + small fields interspersed on the slope and summit, so that the + </p> + <p> + 6 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 7 + </p> + <p> + middle part, where I lodged, was in a pretty deep hollow. There was no + sound of traffic there, and few farmers' carts came that way, as it was + well away from the roads, and the deep, narrow, winding lanes were + exceedingly rough, like the stony beds of dried-up streams. + </p> + <p> + In the deepest part of the coombe, in the middle of the village, there was + a well where the cottagers drew their water; and in the summer evenings + the youths and maidens came there, with or without jugs and buckets, to + indulge in conversation, which was mostly of the rustic, bantering kind, + mixed with a good deal of loud laughter. Close by was the inn, where the + men sat on benches in the tap-room in grave discourse over their pipes and + beer. + </p> + <p> + Wishing to make their acquaintance, I went in and sat down among them, and + found them a little shy--not to say stand-offish, at first. Rustics are + often suspicious of the stranger within their gates; but after paying for + beer all round, the frost melted and we were soon deep in talk about the + wild life of the place; always a safe and pleasant subject in a village. + One rough-looking, brown-faced man, with iron-grey hair, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 8 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + became a sort of spokesman for the company, and replied to most of my + questions. + </p> + <p> + "And what about badgers?" I asked. "In such a rough-looking spot with + woods and all, it strikes me as just the sort of place where one would + find that animal." + </p> + <p> + A long dead silence followed. I caught the eye of the man nearest me and + repeated the question, "Are there no badgers here?" His eyes fell, then he + exchanged glances with some of the others, all very serious; and at length + my man, addressing the person who had acted as spokesman before, said, + "Perhaps you'll tell the gentleman if there are any badgers here." + </p> + <p> + At that the rough man looked at me very sharply, and answered stiffly, + "Not as I know of." + </p> + <p> + A few weeks later, at a small town in the neighbourhood, I got into + conversation with a hotel keeper, an intelligent man, who gave me a good + deal of information about the country. He asked me where I was staying, + and, on my telling him, said "Ah, I know it well--that village in a hole; + and a very nasty hole to get in, too--at any rate it was so, formerly. + They are getting a bit civilized now, but I remember the, time + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 9 + </p> + <p> + when a stranger couldn't show himself in the place without being jeered at + and insulted. Yes, they were a rough lot down in that hole--the Badgers, + they were called, and that's what they are called still." + </p> + <p> + The pity of it was that I didn't know this before I went among them! But + it was not remembered against me that I had wounded their + susceptibilities; they soon found that I was nothing but a harmless field + naturalist, and I had friendly relations with many of them. + </p> + <p> + At the extremity of the straggling village was the beginning of an + extensive common, where it was always possible to spend an hour or two + without seeing a human creature. A few sheep grazed and browsed there, + roaming about in twos and threes and half-dozens, tearing their fleeces + for the benefit of nest-building birds, in the great tangled masses of + mingled furze and bramble and briar. Birds were abundant there--all those + kinds that love the common's openness, and the rough, thorny vegetation + that flourishes on it. But the village--or rather, the large open space + occupied by it, formed the headquarters and centre of a paradise of birds + (as I soon began to think + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 10 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + it), for the cottages and houses were widely separated, the meanest having + a garden and some trees, and in most cases there was an old orchard of + apple, cherry, and walnut trees to each habitation, and out of this mass + of greenery, which hid the houses and made the place look more like a wood + than a village, towered the great elms in rows, and in groups. + </p> + <p> + On first approaching the place I heard, mingled with many other voices, + that of the nightingale; and as it was for the medicine of its pure, fresh + melody that I particularly craved, I was glad to find a lodging in one of + the cottages, and to remain there for several weeks. + </p> + <p> + The small care which the nightingale took to live up to his reputation in + this place surprised me a little. Here he could always be heard in the + daytime--not one bird, but a dozen--in different parts of the village; but + he sang not at night. This I set down to the fact that the nights were + dark and the weather unsettled. But later, when the weather grew warmer, + and there were brilliant moonlight nights, he was still a silent bird + except by day. + </p> + <p> + I was also a little surprised at his tameness. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="link10" id="link10"></a> <img + src="images/hudson-birds-5.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-5.jpg" width="407" + height="671" /> + </p> + <p> + NIGHTINGALE. + </p> + <p> + "the medicine of its pure, fresh melody" + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 11 + </p> + <p> + On first coming to the village, when I ran after every nightingale I + heard, to get as near him as possible, I was occasionally led by the sound + to a cottage, and in some instances I found the singer perched within + three or four yards of an open window or door. At my own cottage, when the + woman who waited on me shook the breakfast cloth at the front door, the + bird that came to pick up the crumbs was the nightingale--not the robin. + When by chance he met a sparrow there, he attacked and chased it away. It + was a feast of nightingales. An elderly woman of the village explained to + me that the nightingales and other small birds were common and tame in the + village, because no person disturbed them. I smile now when recording the + good old dame's words. + </p> + <p> + On my second day at the village it happened to be raining--a warm, + mizzling rain without wind--ind the nightingales were as vocal as in fine + bright weather. I heard one in a narrow lane, and went towards it, + treading softly, in order not to scare it away, until I got within eight + or ten yards of it, as it sat on a dead projecting twig. This was a twig + of a low thorn + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 12 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + tree growing up from the hedge, projecting through the foliage, and the + bird, perched near its end, sat only about five feet above the bare ground + of the lane. Now, I owe my best thanks to this individual nightingale, for + sharply calling to my mind a common pestilent delusion, which I have + always hated, but had never yet raised my voice against--namely, that all + wild creatures exist in constant fear of an attack from the numberless + subtle or powerful enemies that are always waiting and watching for an + opportunity to spring upon and destroy them. The truth is, that although + their enemies be legion, and that every day, and even several times on + each day, they may be threatened with destruction, they are absolutely + free from apprehension, except when in the immediate presence of danger. + Suspicious they may be at times, and the suspicion may cause them to + remove themselves to a greater distance from the object that excites it; + but the emotion is so slight, the action so almost automatic, that the + singing bird will fly to another bush a dozen yards away, and at once + resume his interrupted song. Again, a bird will see the deadliest enemy of + its kind, and unless it be so + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 13 + </p> + <p> + close as to actually threaten his life, he will regard it with the + greatest indifference or will only be moved to anger at its presence. Here + was this nightingale singing in the rain, seeing but not heeding me; while + beneath the hedge, almost directly under the twig it sat on, a black cat + was watching it with luminous yellow eyes. I did not see the cat at first, + but have no doubt that the nightingale had seen and knew that it was + there. High up on the tops of the thorn, a couple of sparrows were + silently perched. Perhaps, like myself, they had come there to listen. + After I had been standing motionless, drinking in that dulcet music for at + least five minutes, one of the two sparrows dropped from the perch + straight down, and alighting on the bare wet ground directly under the + nightingale, began busily pecking at something eatable it had discovered. + No sooner had he begun pecking than out leaped the concealed cat on to + him. The sparrow fluttered wildly up from beneath or between the claws, + and escaped, as if by a miracle. The cat raised itself up, glared round, + and, catching sight of me close by, sprang back into the hedge and was + gone. But all this time + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 14 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + the exposed nightingale, perched only five feet above the spot where the + attack had been made and the sparrow had so nearly lost his life, had + continued singing; and he sang on for some minutes after. I suppose that + he had seen the cat before, and knew instinctively that he was beyond its + reach; that it was a terrestrial, not an aerial enemy, and so feared it + not at all; and he would, perhaps, have continued singing if the sparrow + had been caught and instantly killed. + </p> + <p> + Quite early in June I began to feel just a little cross with the + nightingales, for they almost ceased singing; and considering that the + spring had been a backward one, it seemed to me that their silence was + coming too soon. I was not sufficiently regardful of the fact that their + lays are solitary, as the poet has said; that they ask for no witness of + their song, nor thirst for human praise. They were all nesting now. But if + I heard them less, I saw much more of them, especially of one individual, + the male bird of a couple that had made their nest in a hedge a stone's + throw from the cottage. A favourite morning perch of this bird was on a + small wooden gate four or five yards away from my window. It was an open, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 15 + </p> + <p> + sunny spot, where his restless, bright eyes could sweep the lane, up and + down; and he could there also give vent to his superfluous energy by + lording it over a few sparrows and other small birds that visited the + spot. I greatly admired the fine, alert figure of the pugnacious little + creature, as he perched there so close to me, and so fearless. His + striking resemblance to the robin in form, size, and in his motions, made + his extreme familiarity seem only natural. The robin is greatly + distinguished in a sober-plumaged company by the vivid tint on his breast. + He is like the autumn leaf that catches a ray of sunlight on its surface, + and shines conspicuously among russet leaves. But the clear brown of the + nightingale is beautiful, too. + </p> + <p> + This same nightingale was keeping a little surprise in store for me. + Although he took no notice of me sitting at the open window, whenever I + went thirty or forty yards from the gate along the narrow lane that faced + it, my presence troubled him and his mate only too much. They would flit + round my head, emitting the two strongly contrasted sounds with which they + express solicitude--the clear, thin, plaintive, or + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 16 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + wailing note, and the low, jarring sound--an alternate lamenting and + girding. One day when I approached the nest, they displayed more anxiety + than usual, fluttering close to me, wailing and croaking more vehemently + than ever, when all at once the male, at the height of his excitement, + burst into singing. Half a dozen notes were uttered rapidly, with great + strength, then a small complaining cry again, and at intervals, a fresh + burst of melody. I have remarked the same thing in other singing birds, + species in which the harsh grating or piercing sounds that properly + express violent emotions of a painful kind, have been nearly or quite + lost. In the nightingale, this part of the bird's language has lost its + original character, and has dwindled to something very small. Solicitude, + fear, anger, are expressed with sounds that are mere lispings compared + with those emitted by the bird when singing. It is worthy of remark that + some of the most highly developed melodists--and I am now thinking of the + mocking-birds--never, in -moments of extreme agitation, fall into this + confusion and use singing notes that express agreeable emotions, to + express such as are painful. But in the + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 17 + </p> + <p> + mocking-bird the primitive harsh and grating cries have not been lost nor + softened to sounds hardly to be distinguished from those that are emitted + by way of song. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-6.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-6.jpg" width="143" + height="102" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="linkIII" id="linkIII"></a> + </p> + <h3> + III + </h3> + <p> + BY this time all the birds were breeding, some already breeding a second + time. And now I began to suspect that they were not quite so undisturbed + as the old dame had led me to believe; that they had not found a paradise + in the village after all. One morning, as I moved softly along the hedge + in my nightingale's lane, all at once I heard, in the old grassy orchard, + to which it formed a boundary, swishing sounds of scuttling feet and + half-suppressed exclamations of alarm; then a crushing through the hedge, + and out, almost at my feet, rushed and leaped and tumbled half-a-dozen + urchins, who had suddenly been frightened from a bird-nesting raid. + Clothes torn, hands and faces scratched with thorns, hat-less, their + tow-coloured hair all disordered or standing up like a white crest above + their brown faces, rounded eyes staring--what an extraordinarily wild + appearance they had! I was back + </p> + <p> + 18 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 19 + </p> + <p> + in very old times, in the Britain of a thousand years before the coming of + the Romans, and these were her young barbarians, learning their life's + business in little things. + </p> + <p> + No, the birds of the village were not undisturbed while breeding; but + happily the young savages never found my nightingale's nest. One day the + bird came to the gate as usual, and was more alert and pugnacious than + ever; and no wonder, for his mate came too, and with them four young + birds. For a week they were about the cottage every day, when they + dispersed, and one beautiful bright morning the male bird, in his old + place near my window, attempted to sing, beginning with that rich, + melodious throbbing, which is usually called "<i>jugging</i>," and + following with half-a-dozen beautiful notes. That was all. It was July, + and I heard no more music from him or from any other of his kind. + </p> + <p> + * * * + </p> + <p> + I have perhaps written at too great length of this bird. The nightingale + was after all only one of the fifty-nine species I succeeded in identify- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 20 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + ing during my sojourn at the village. There were more. I heard the calls + and cries of others in the wood and various places, but refused, except in + the case of the too elusive crake, to set down any in my list that I did + not see. It was not my ambition to make a long list. My greatest desire + was to see well those that interested me most. But those who go forth, as + I did, to look for birds that are a sight for sore eyes, must meet with + many a disappointment. In all those fruit and shade trees that covered the + village with a cloud of verdure, and in the neighbouring woods, not once + did I catch a glimpse of the green woodpecker, a beautiful conspicuous + bird, supposed to be increasing in many places in England. Its absence + from so promising a locality seemed strange. Another species, also said to + be increasing in the country--the turtledove, was extremely abundant. In + the tall beech woods its low, monotonous crooning note was heard all day + long from all sides. In shady places, where the loud, shrill bird-voices + are few, one prefers this sound to the set song of the woodpigeon, being + more continuous and soothing, and of the nature of a lullaby. It sometimes + reminded me of the low monotone I + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 21 + </p> + <p> + have heard from a Patagonian mother when singing her "swart papoose" to + sleep. Still, I would gladly have spared many of these woodland crooners + for the sake of one magpie--that bird of fine feathers and a bright mind, + which I had not looked on for a whole year, and now hoped to see again. + But he was not there; and after I had looked for myself, some of the + natives assured me that no magpie had been seen for years in that wood. + </p> + <p> + For a time I feared that I was to be just as unlucky with regard to the + jay, seeing that the owner of the extensive beech woods adjoining the + village permitted his keeper to kill the most interesting birds in + it--kestrels and sparrowhawks, owls, jays, and magpies. He was a new man, + comparatively, in the place, and wanted to increase his preserves, but to + do this it was necessary first to exclude the villagers--the Badgers, who + were no doubt partial to pheasants' eggs. Now, to close an ancient + right-of-way is a ticklish business, and this was an important one, seeing + that the village women did their Saturday marketing in the town beyond the + wood and river, and with the path closed they would have two miles + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 22 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + further to walk. The new lord wisely took this into consideration, and set + himself to win the goodwill of the people before attempting any strong + measures. He walked in the lanes and was affable to the cottage women and + nice to the children, and by and bye he exclaimed, "What! No institute! no + hall, or any place where you can meet and spend the long winter evenings? + Well, I'll soon see to that." And soon, to their delight, they had a nice + building reared on a piece of land which he bought for the purpose, + furnished with tables, chairs, bagatelle boards, and all accessories; and + he also supplied them with newspapers and magazines. He was immensely + popular, but appeared to think little of what he had done. When they + expressed their gratitude to him he would move his hand, and answer, "Oh, + I'm going to do a great deal more than that for you!" + </p> + <p> + A few months went by, then he caused a notice to be put up about the + neighbourhood that the path through the wood was going to be closed "by + order." No one took any notice, and a few weeks later his workmen appeared + on the scene and erected a huge oakwood barrier across the + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 23 + </p> + <p> + path; also a notice on a board that the wood was strictly private and + trespassers would be prosecuted. The villagers met in force at the + institute and the inn that evening, and after discussing the matter over + their ale, they armed themselves with axes and went in a body and + demolished the barrier. + </p> + <p> + The owner was disgusted, but took no action. "This," he said, "is their + gratitude"; and from that day he ceased to subscribe to the local + charities or take his walks in the village. He had given the institute, + and so could not pull it down nor prevent them from using it. + </p> + <p> + It was refreshing to hear that the Badgers had shown a proper spirit in + the matter, and I was grateful to them for having kept the right-of-way, + as on most days I spent several hours in the beautiful woods. + </p> + <p> + To return to the jay. In spite of the keeper's persecution, I knew that he + was there; every morning when I got up to look out of the window between + four and five o'clock, I heard from some quarter of the village that + curious subdued, but far-reaching, scolding note he is accustomed to utter + when his suspicions have been aroused. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 24 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + That was the jay's custom--to come from the woods before even the earliest + risers were up, and forage in the village. By and bye I discovered that, + by lying motionless for an hour or so on the dry moss in the wood, he + would at length grow so bold as to allow himself to be seen, but high up + among the topmost branches. Then, by means of my binocular, I had the wild + thing on my thumb, so to speak, exhibiting himself to me, inquisitive, + perplexed, suspicious, enraged by turns, as he flirted wings and tail, + lifted and lowered his crest, glancing down with bright, wild eyes. What a + beautiful hypocrisy and delightful power this is which enables us, sitting + or lying motionless, feigning sleep perhaps, thus to fool this wild, + elusive creature, and bring all its cunning to naught! He is so much + smaller and keener-sighted, able to fly, to perch far up above me, to + shift his position every minute or two, masking his small figure with this + or that tuft of leaves, while still keeping his eyes on me--in spite of it + all to have him so close, and without moving or taking any trouble, to see + him so much better than he can see me! But this is a legitimate trickery + of science, so innocent that we + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="link24" id="link24"></a> <img + src="images/hudson-birds-7.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-7.jpg" width="421" + height="679" /> + </p> + <p> + JAY. + </p> + <p> + . inquisitive, perplexed, suspicious, enraged by turns." + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 25 + </p> + <p> + can laugh at our dupe when we practise it; nor do we afterwards despise + our superior cunning and feel ashamed, as when we slaughter wild birds + with far-reaching shot, which they cannot escape. + </p> + <p> + * * * + </p> + <p> + All these corvine birds, which the gamekeeper pursues so relentlessly, + albeit they were before him, killing when they killed to better purpose; + and, let us hope, will exist after him--all these must greatly surpass + other kinds in sagacity to have escaped extermination. In the present + condition of things, the jay is perhaps the best off, on account of his + smaller size and less conspicuous colouring; but whether more cunning than + the crow or magpie or not, in perpetual alertness and restless energy or + intensity of life, he is without an equal among British birds. And this + quality forms his chief attraction; it is more to the mind than his lifted + crest and bright eyes, his fine vinaceous brown and the patch of sky-blue + on his wings. One would miss him greatly from the woods; some of the + melody may well + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 26 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + be spared for the sake of the sudden, brain-piercing, rasping, rending + scream with which he startles us in our solitary forest walks. + </p> + <p> + It is this extreme liveliness of the jay which makes it more distressing + to the mind to see it pent in a cage than other birds of its family, such + as the magpie; just as it is more distressing to see a skylark than a + finch in prison, because the lark has an irresistible impulse to rise when + his singing fit is on. Sing he must, in or out of prison, yet there can be + little joy in the performance when the bird is incessantly teased with the + unsatisfied desire to mount and pour out his music at heaven's gate. + </p> + <p> + Out of the cages, jays make charming and beautiful pets, and some who have + kept them have assured me that they are not mischievous birds. The late + Mark Melford one time when I visited him, had two jays, handsome birds, in + bright, glossy plumage, always free to roam where they liked, indoors or + out. We were sitting talking in his garden when one of the jays came + flying to us and perched on a wooden ledge a few feet from and above our + heads, and after sitting quietly for a little while he suddenly made a + dash + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 27 + </p> + <p> + at my head, just brushing it with his wings, then returned to his perch. + At intervals of a few moments he repeated this action, and when I remarked + that he probably resented the presence of a stranger, Melford exclaimed, + "Oh, no, he wants to play with you--that's all." + </p> + <p> + His manner of playing was rather startling. So long as I kept my eyes on + him he remained motionless, but the instant my attention wandered, or when + in speaking I looked at my companion, the sudden violent dash at my head + would be made. + </p> + <p> + I was assured by Melford that his birds never carried off and concealed + bright objects, a habit which it has been said the jay, as well as the + magpie, possesses. + </p> + <p> + "What would he do with this shilling if I tossed it to him?" I asked. + </p> + <p> + "Catch it," he returned. "It would simply be play to him, but he wouldn't + carry it off." + </p> + <p> + I tossed up the shilling, and the bird had perhaps expected me to do so, + as he deftly caught it just as a dog catches a biscuit when you toss one + to him. After keeping it a few moments in his beak, he put it down at his + side. I took out four + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 28 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + more shilling pieces and tossed them quickly one by one, and he caught + them without a miss and placed them one by one with the other, not + scattered about, but in a neat pile. Then, seeing that I had no more + shillings he flew off. + </p> + <p> + After these few playful passages with one of his birds, I could understand + Melford's feeling about his free pet jays, magpies and jackdaws; they were + not merely birds to him, but rather like so many delightful little + children in the beautiful shape of birds. + </p> + <p> + * * * + </p> + <p> + There was no rookery in or near the village, but a large flock of rooks + were always to be seen feeding and sunning themselves in some level + meadows near the river. It struck me one day as a very fine sight, when an + old bird, who looked larger and blacker and greyer-faced than the others, + and might have been the father and leader of them all, got up on a low + post, and with wide-open beak poured forth a long series of most + impressive caws. One always wonders at the meaning of such displays. Is + the old bird ad- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 29 + </p> + <p> + dressing the others in the rook language on some matter of great moment; + or is he only expressing some feeling in the only language he has--those + long, hoarse, uninflected sounds; and if so, what feeling? Probably a very + common one. The rooks appeared happy and prosperous, feeding in the meadow + grass in that June weather, with the hot sun shining on their glossy + coats. Their days of want were long past and forgotten; the anxious + breeding period was over; the tempest in the tall trees; the annual + slaughter of the young birds--all past and forgotten. The old rook was + simply expressing the old truth, that life was worth living. + </p> + <p> + These rooks were usually accompanied by two or three or more crows--a bird + of so ill-repute that the most out-and-out enthusiast for protection must + find it hard to say a word in its favour. At any rate, the rooks must + think, if they think at all, that this frequent visitor and attendant of + theirs is more kin than kind. I have related in a former work that I once + saw a peregrine strike down and kill an owl--a sight that made me gasp + with astonishment. But I am inclined to think of this act as only a slip, + a slight aberration, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 30 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + on the part of the falcon, so universal is the sense of relationship among + the kinds that have the rapacious habit; or, at the worst, it was merely + an isolated act of deviltry and daring of the sharp-winged pirate of the + sky, a sudden assertion of over-mastering energy and power, and a very + slight offence compared with that of the crow when he carries off and + devours his callow little cousins of the rookery. + </p> + <p> + * * * + </p> + <p> + One of the first birds I went out to seek--perhaps the most medicinal of + all birds to see--was the kingfisher; but he was not anywhere on the river + margin, although suitable places were plentiful enough, and myriads of + small fishes were visible in the shallow water, seen at rest like + dim-pointed stripes beneath the surface, and darting away and scattering + outwards, like a flight of arrows, at any person's approach. Walking along + the river bank one day, when the place was still new to me, I discovered a + stream, and following it up arrived at a spot where a clump of trees + overhung the water, casting on it a deep shade. On the other side of the + stream butter- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 31 + </p> + <p> + cups grew so thickly that the glazed petals of the flowers were touching; + the meadow was one broad expanse of brilliant yellow. I had not been + standing half a minute in the shade before the bird I had been seeking + darted out from the margin, almost beneath my feet, and then, instead of + flying up or down stream, sped like an arrow across the field of + buttercups. It was a very bright day, and the bird going from me with the + sunshine full on it, appeared entirely of a shining, splendid green. Never + had I seen the kingfisher in such favourable circumstances; flying so low + above the flowery level that the swiftly vibrating wings must have touched + the yellow petals; he was like a waif from some far tropical land. The + bird was tropical, but I doubt if there exists within the tropics anything + to compare with a field of buttercups--such large and unbroken surfaces of + the most brilliant colour in nature. The first bird's mate appeared a + minute later, flying in the same direction, and producing the same + splendid effect, and also green. These two alone were seen, and only on + this occasion, although I often revisited the spot, hoping to find them + again. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 32 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + Now, the kingfisher is blue, and I am puzzled to know why, on this one + occasion, it appeared green. I have, in a former work, <i>Argentine + Ornithology</i>, described a contrary effect in a small and beautiful + tyrant-bird, <i>Cyanotis azarae</i>, variously called, in the vernacular, + "All-colored or Many-colored Kinglet." It has a little blue on its head, + but its entire back, from the nape to the tail, is deep green. It lives in + beds of bulrushes, and when seen flying from the spectator in a very + strong light, at a distance of twenty or thirty yards, its colour in + appearance is bright cerulean blue. It is a sunlight effect, but how + produced is a mystery to me. In the case of the two green kingfishers, I + am inclined to think that the yellow of that shining field of buttercups + in some way produced the illusion. + </p> + <p> + Why are these exquisite birds so rare, even in situations so favourable to + them as the one I have described? Are they killed by severe frosts? An + ornithological friend from Oxfordshire assures me that it will take + several favourable seasons to make good the losses of the late terrible + winter of 1891-92. But this, as every ornithologist knows, is only a part + of the truth. The large + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 33 + </p> + <p> + number of stuffed kingfishers under glass shades that one sees in houses + of all descriptions, in town and country, but most frequently in the + parlours of country cottages and inns, tell a melancholy story. Some time + ago a young man showed me three stuffed kingfishers in a case, and + informed me that he had shot them at a place (which he named) quite close + to London. He said that these three birds were the last of their kind ever + seen there; that he had gone, week after week and watched and waited, + until one by one, at long intervals, he had secured them all; and that two + years had passed since the last one was killed, and no other kingfisher + had been seen at the place. He added that the waterside which these birds + had frequented was resorted to by crowds of London working people on + Saturday afternoons, Sundays and other holidays; the fact that hundreds, + perhaps thousands, of pairs of tired eyes would have been freshened and + gladdened by the sight of their rare gem-like beauty only made him prouder + of his achievement. This young man was a cockney of the small shop-keeping + class--a Philistine of the Philistines--hence there was no call to feel + surprise at his self-glori- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 34 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + fication over such a matter. But what shall we say of that writer whose + masterly works on English rural life are familiar to everyone, who is + regarded as first among "lovers of nature," when he relates that he + invariably carried a gun when out of doors, mainly with the object of + shooting any kingfisher he might chance to see, as the dead bird always + formed an acceptable present to the cottager's wife, who would get it + stuffed and keep it as an ornament on her parlour mantelshelf! + </p> + <p> + Happily for the kingfisher, and for human beings who love nature, the old + idea that beautiful birds were meant to be destroyed for fun by anyone and + everyone, from the small-brained, detestable cockney sportsman I have + mentioned, to the gentlemen who write books about the beauties of nature, + is now gradually giving place to this new one--that it would be better to + preserve the beautiful things we possess. Half a century before the author + of "Wild Life in a Southern Country" amused himself by carrying a gun to + shoot kingfishers, the inhabitants of that same county of Wiltshire were + bathed in tears--so I read in an old Salisbury newspaper--at the tragic + death of a young gentleman of great distinction, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + 35 + </p> + <p> + great social charm, great promise. He was out shooting swallows with a + friend who, firing at a passing swallow, had the misfortune to shoot and + kill <i>him.</i> + </p> + <p> + At the present time when gentlemen practise a little at flying birds, to + get their hand in before the first of September, they shoot sparrows as a + rule, or if they shoot swallows, which afford them better practice, they + do not say anything about it. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-8.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-8.jpg" width="132" + height="82" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="linkIV" id="linkIV"></a> + </p> + <p> + IV + </p> + <p> + WHERE the stream broadened and mixed with the river, there existed a dense + and extensive rush-bed--an island of rushes separated by a deep channel, + some twelve or fourteen yards in width from the bank. This was a favourite + nesting-place of the sedge-warblers; occasionally as many as a dozen birds + could be heard singing at the same time, although in no sense together, + and the effect was indeed curious. This is not a song that spurts and + gushes up fountain-like in the manner of the robin's, and of some other + kinds, sprinkling the listener, so to speak, with a sparkling vocal spray; + but it keeps low down, a song that flows along the surface gurgling and + prattling like musical running water, in its shallow pebbly channel. + Listening again, the similitude that seemed appropriate at first was cast + aside for another, and then another still. The hidden + </p> + <p> + 36 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 37 + </p> + <p> + singers scattered all about their rushy island were small, fantastic, + human minstrels, performing on a variety of instruments, some unknown, + others recognizable--bones and castanets, tiny hurdy-gurdies, piccolos, + banjos, tabours, and Pandean pipes--a strange medley! + </p> + <p> + Interesting as this concert was, it held me less than the solitary singing + of a sedge-warbler that lived by himself, or with only his mate, higher up + where the stream was narrow, so that I could get near him; for he not only + tickled my ears with his rapid, reedy music, but amused my mind as well + with a pretty little problem in bird psychology. I could sit within a few + yards of his tangled haunt without hearing a note; but if I jumped up and + made a noise, or struck the branches with my stick, he would incontinently + burst into song. It is a very well-known habit of the bird, and on account + of it and of the very peculiar character of the sounds emitted, his song + is frequently described by ornithologists as "mocking, defiant, scolding, + angry," etc. It seems clear that at different times the bird sings from + different exciting causes. When, undisturbed by a strange presence, he + bursts spontaneously into singing, the + </p> + <p> + N + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 38 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + music, as in other species, is simply an expression of overflowing + gladness; at other times, the bird expressed such feelings as alarm, + suspicion, solicitude, perhaps anger, by singing the same song. How does + this come about? + </p> + <p> + I have stated, when speaking of the nightingale, that birds in which the + singing faculty is highly developed, sometimes make the mistake of + bursting into song when anxious or distressed or in pain, but that this is + not the case with the mocking-birds. Some species of these brilliant + songsters of the New World, in their passion for variety (to put it that + way), import every harsh and grating cry and sound they know into their + song; but, on the other hand, when anxious for the safety of their young, + or otherwise distressed, they emit only the harsh and grating + sounds--never a musical note. In the sedge-warbler, the harsh, scolding + sounds that express alarm, solicitude, and other painful emotions, have + also been made a part of the musical performance; but this differs from + the songs of most species, the mocking birds included, in the + extraordinary rapidity with which it is enunciated; once the song begins + it goes on swiftly to the finish, harsh and + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 39 + </p> + <p> + melodious notes seeming to overlap and mingle, the sound forming, to speak + in metaphor, a close intricate pattern of strongly-contrasted colours. Now + the song invariably begins with the harsh notes--the sounds which, at + other times, express alarm and other more or less painful emotions--and it + strikes me as a probable explanation that when the bird in the singing + season has been startled into uttering these harsh and grating sounds, as + when a stone is flung into the rushes, he is incapable of uttering them + only, but the singing notes they suggest and which he is in the habit of + uttering, follow automatically. + </p> + <p> + The spot where I observed this wee feathered fantasy, the tantalizing + sprite of the rushes, and where I soon ceased to see, hear, or think about + him, calls for a fuller description. On one side the wooded hill sloped + downward to the stream; on the other side spread the meadows where the + rooks came every day to feed, or to sit and stand about motionless, + looking like birds cut out of jet, scattered over about half an acre of + the grassy, level ground. Stout old pollard willows grew here and there + along the banks and were pleasant to see, this being the one man-mutilated + thing in + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 40 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + nature which, to my mind, not infrequently gains in beauty by the + mutilation, so admirably does it fit into and harmonize with the + landscape. At one point there was a deep, nearly stagnant pool, separated + from the stream by a strip of wet, rushy ground, its still dark surface + covered with water-lilies, not yet in bloom. They were just beginning to + show their polished buds, shaped like snake's heads, above the broad, oily + leaves floating like islands on the surface. The stream itself was, on my + side, fringed with bulrushes and other aquatic plants; on the opposite + bank there were some large alders lifting their branches above great + masses of bramble and rose-briar, all together forming as rich and + beautiful a tangle as one could find even in the most luxuriant of the + wild, unkept hedges round the village. The briars especially flourished + wonderfully at this spot, climbing high and dropping their long, slim + branches quite down to the surface of the water, and in some places + forming an arch above the stream. A short distance from this tangle, so + abundantly sprinkled with its pale delicate roses, the water was spanned + by a small wooden bridge, which no person appeared to use, but which had + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="link40" id="link40"></a> <img + src="images/hudson-birds-9.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-9.jpg" width="416" + height="773" /> + </p> + <p> + WREN. + </p> + <p> + "... mysterious talk in the leaves," + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 41 + </p> + <p> + a use. It formed the one dry clear spot in the midst of all that moist + vegetation, and the birds that came from the wood to drink and search for + worms and small caterpillars first alighted on the bridge. There they + would rest a few moments, take a look round, then fly to some favourite + spot where succulent morsels had been picked up on previous visits. + Thrushes, blackbirds, sparrows, reed-buntings, chaffinches, tits, wrens, + with many other species, succeeded each other all day long; for now they + mostly had young to provide for, and it was their busiest time. + </p> + <p> + The unsullied beauty and solitariness of this spot made me wish at first + that I was a boy once more, to climb and to swim, to revel in the sunshine + and flowers, to be nearer in spirit to the birds and dragon flies and + water-rats; then, that I could build a cabin and live there all the summer + long, forgetful of the world and its affairs, with no human creature to + keep me company, and no book to read, or with only one slim volume, some + Spanish poet, let me say Melendez, for preference--only a small selection + from his too voluminous writings; for he, albeit an eighteenth-century + singer, was perhaps + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 42 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + the last of that long, illustrious line of poets who sang as no others + have sung of the pure delight-fulness of a life with nature. Something of + this charm is undoubtedly due to the beauty of the language they wrote in + and to the free, airy grace of assonants. What a hard, artificial sound + the rhyme too often has: the clink that falls at regular intervals as of a + stone-breaker's hammer! In the freer kinds of Spanish poetry there are + numberless verses that make the smoothest lines and lyrics of our sweetest + and most facile singers, from Herrick to Swinburne, seem hard and + mechanical by comparison. But there is something more. I doubt, for one + thing, if we are justified in the boast we sometimes make that the feeling + for Nature is stronger in our poets than in those of other countries. The + most scientific critic may be unable to pick a hole in Tennyson's botany + and zoology; but the passion for, and feeling of oneness with Nature may + exist without this modern minute accuracy. Be this as it may, it was not + Tennyson, nor any other of our poets, that I would have taken to my + dreamed-of solitary cabin for companionship: Melendez came first to my + mind. I think of his lines to a butterfly: + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 43 + </p> + <p> + De donde alegre vienes Tan suelta y tan festiva, Las valles alegrando + Veloz mariposilla?* + </p> + <p> + and can imagine him--the poet himself--coming to see me through the woods + and down the hill with the careless ease and lightness of heart of his own + purple-winged child of earth and air--<i>tan suelta y tan festiva</i>. + Here in these four or five words one may read the whole secret of his + charm--the exquisite delicacy and seeming artlessness in the form, and the + spirit that is in him--the old, simple, healthy, natural gladness in + nature, and feeling of kinship with all the children of life. But I do not + wish to disturb anyone in his prepossessions. It would greatly trouble me + to think that my reader should, for the space of a page, or even of a + single line, find himself in opposition to and not with me; and I am free + </p> + <p> + * May be roughly rendered thus: + </p> + <p> + Whence, blithe one, comest thou With that airy, happy flight--To make the + valleys glad, O swift-winged butterfly? + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 44 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + to admit that with regard to poetry one's preferences change according to + the mood one happens to be in and to the conditions generally. At home in + murky London on most days I should probably seek pleasure and + forgetfulness in Browning; but in such surroundings as I have been + describing the lighter-hearted, elf-like Melendez accords best with my + spirit, one whose finest songs are without human interest; who is + irresponsible as the wind, and as unstained with earthly care as the + limpid running water he delights in: who is brother to bird and bee and + butterfly, and worships only liberty and sunshine, and is in love with + nothing but a flower. + </p> + <p> + Nearly midway between the useful little bridge and the rose-blossoming + tangle I have spoken of there were three elm-trees growing in the open + grassy space near the brook; they were not lofty, but had very + wide-spreading horizontal branches, which made them look like oaks. This + was an ideal spot in which to spend the sultry hours, and I had no sooner + cast myself on the short grass in the shade than I noticed that the end of + a projecting branch above my head, and about twenty feet from the ground, + was a favourite perch of + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 45 + </p> + <p> + a tree-pipit. He sang in the air and, circling gracefully down, would + alight on the branch, where, sitting near me and plainly visible, he would + finish his song and renew it at intervals; then, leaving the loved perch, + he would drop, singing, to the ground, just a few yards beyond the tree's + shadow; thence, singing again, he would mount up and up above the tree, + only to slide down once more with set, unfluttering wings, with a + beautiful swaying motion to the same old resting-place on the branch, + there to sing and sing and sing. + </p> + <p> + If Melendez himself had come to me with flushed face and laughing eyes, + and sat down on the grass at my side to recite one of his most enchanting + poems, I should, with finger on lip, have enjoined silence; for in the + mood I was then in at that sequestered spot, with the landscape outside my + shady green pavilion bathed and quivering in the brilliant sunshine, this + small bird had suddenly become to me more than any other singer, feathered + or human. And yet the tree-pipit is not very highly regarded among British + melodists, on account of the little variety there is in its song. + Nevertheless, it is most sweet--perhaps the + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 46 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + sweetest of all. It is true that there are thousands, nay, millions of + things--sights and sounds and perfumes--which are or may be described as + sweet, so common is the metaphor, and this too common use has perhaps + somewhat degraded it; but in this case there is no other word so well + suited to describe the sensation produced. + </p> + <p> + The tree-pipit has a comparatively short song, repeated, with some + variation in the number and length of the notes, at brief intervals. The + opening notes are thick and throaty, and similar in character to the + throat-notes of many other species in this group, a softer sound than the + throat-notes of the skylark and woodlark, which they somewhat resemble. + The canary-like trills and thin piping notes, long drawn out, which follow + vary greatly in different individuals, and in many cases the trills are + omitted. But the concluding notes of the song I am considering--which is + only one note repeated again and again--are clear and beautifully + inflected, and have that quality of sweetness, of lusciousness, I have + mentioned. The note is uttered with a downward fall, more slowly and + expressively at each repetition, as if the singer felt overcome at the + sweet- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 47 + </p> + <p> + ness of life and of his own expression, and languished somewhat at the + close; its effect is like that of the perfume of the honeysuckle, + infecting the mind with a soft, delicious languor, a wish to lie perfectly + still and drink of the same sweetness again and again in larger measure. + </p> + <p> + To some who are familiar with this by no means uncommon little bird, it + may seem that I am overstating the charm of its melody. I can only say + that the mood I was then in made me very keenly appreciative; also that I + have never heard any other individual of this species able to produce + precisely the same effect. We know that there are quite remarkable + differences in the songs of birds of the same species, that among several + that appear to be perfect and to sing alike one will possess a charm above + the other. The truth is they are not alike; they affect us differently, + but the sense is not fine enough or not sufficiently trained to detect the + cause. The poet's words may be used of this natural melody as well as of + the works of art: + </p> + <p> + "O the little more and how much it is!" + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 48 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + TEere were about the village, within a few minutes' walk of the cottage, + not fewer than half-a-dozen tree-pipits, each inhabiting a favourite spot + where I could always count on finding and hearing him at almost any hour + of the day from sunrise to sunset. Yet I cared not for these. To the one + chosen bird I returned daily to spend the hot hours, lying in the shade + and listening to his strain. Finally, I allowed two or three days to slip + by, and when I revisited the old spot the secret charm had vanished. The + bird was there, and rose and fell as formerly, pouring out his melody; but + it was not the same: something was missing from those last sweet, + languishing notes. Perhaps in the interval there had been some disturbing + accident in his little wild life, though I could hardly believe it, since + his mate was still sitting about thirty yards from the tree on the five + little mottled eggs in her nest. Or perhaps his midsummer's music had + reached its highest point, and was now in its declension. And perhaps the + fault was in me. The virtue that draws and holds us does not hold us + always, nor very long; it departs from all things, and we wonder why. The + loss is in ourselves, although + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 49 + </p> + <p> + we do not know it. Nature, the chosen mistress of our heart, does not + change towards us, yet she is now, even to-day-- + </p> + <p> + "Less full of purple colour and hid spice," + </p> + <p> + and smiles and sparkles in vain to allure us, and when she touches us with + her warm, caressing touch, there is, compared with yesterday, only a faint + response. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-10.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-10.jpg" width="117" + height="64" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="linkV" id="linkV"></a> + </p> + <p> + V + </p> + <p> + COMING back from the waterside through the wood, after the hottest hours + of the day were over, the crooning of the turtle-doves would be heard + again on every side--that summer beech-wood lullaby that seemed never to + end. The other bird voices were of the willow-wren, the wood-wren, the + coal-tit, and the now somewhat tiresome chiffchaff; from the distance + would come the prolonged rich strain of the blackbird, and occasionally + the lyric of the chaffinch. The song of this bird gains greatly when heard + from a tall tree in the woodland silence; it has then a resonance and + wildness which it appears to lack in the garden and orchard. In the + village I had been glad to find that the chaffinch was not too common, + that in the tangle of minstrelsy one could enjoy there his vigorous voice + was not predominant. + </p> + <p> + so + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 51 + </p> + <p> + Of all these woodland songsters the wood-wren impressed me the most. He + could always be heard, no matter where I entered the wood, since all this + world of tall beeches was a favoured haunt of the wood-wren, each pair + keeping to its own territory of half-an-acre of trees or so, and somewhere + among those trees the male was always singing, far up, invisible to eyes + beneath, in the topmost sunlit foliage of the tall trees. On entering the + wood I would, stand still for a few minutes to listen to the various + sounds until that one fascinating sound would come to my ears from some + distance away, and to that spot I would go to find a bed of last year's + leaves to sit upon and listen. It was an enchanting experience to be there + in that woodland twilight with the green cloud of leaves so far above me; + to listen to the silence, to the faint whisper of the wind-touched leaves, + then to little prelusive drops of musical sound, growing louder and + falling faster until they ran into one prolonged trill. And there I would + sit listening for half-an-hour or a whole hour; but the end would not + come; the bird is indefatigable and with his mysterious talk in the leaves + would tire the sun himself and send + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 52 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + him down the sky: for not until the sun has set and the wood has grown + dark does the singing cease. + </p> + <p> + On emerging from the deep shade of the beeches into the wide grassy road + that separated the wood from the orchards and plantations of fruit trees, + and pausing for a minute to look down on the more than half-hidden + village, invariably the first loud sounds that reached my ear were those + of the cuckoo, thrush, and blackbird. At all hours in the village, from + early morning to evening twilight, these three voices sounded far and near + above the others. I considered myself fortunate that no large tree near + the cottage had been made choice of by a song-thrush as a singing-stand + during the early hours. The nearest tree so favoured was on the further + side of a field, so that when I woke at half-past three or four o'clock, + the shrill indefatigable voice came in at the open window, softened by + distance and washed by the dewy atmosphere to greater purity. Throstle and + skylark to be admired must be heard at a distance. But at that early hour + when I sat by the open window, the cuckoo's call was the commonest sound; + the birds were everywhere, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 53 + </p> + <p> + bird answering bird far and near, so persistently repeating their double + note that this sound, which is in character unlike any other sound in + nature, which one so listens and longs to hear in spring, lost its old + mystery and charm, and became of no more account than the cackle of the + poultry-yard. It was the cuckoo's village; sometimes three or four birds + in hot pursuit of each other would dash through the trees that lined the + further side of the lane and alight on that small tree at the gate which + the nightingale was accustomed to visit later in the day. + </p> + <p> + Other birds that kept themselves very much out of sight during most of the + time also came to the same small tree at that early hour. It was regularly + visited, and its thin bole industriously examined, by the nuthatch and the + quaint little mouse-like creeper. Doubtless they imagined that five + o'clock was too early for heavy human creatures to be awake, and were + either ignorant of my presence or thought proper to ignore it. + </p> + <p> + But where, during the days when the vociferous cuckoo, with hoarse chuckle + and dissyllabic call and wild bubbling cry was so much with us--where, in + this period of many pleasant noises was + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 54 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + the cuckoo's mate, or maid, or messenger, the quaint and beautiful + wryneck? There are few British birds, perhaps not one--not even the crafty + black and white magpie, or mysterious moth-like goatsucker, or tropical + kingfisher--more interesting to watch. At twilight I had lingered at the + woodside, also in other likely places, and the goatsucker had failed to + appear, gliding and zig-zagging hither and thither on his dusky-mottled + noiseless wings, and now this still heavier disappointment was mine. I + could not find the wryneck. Those quiet grassy orchards, shut in by + straggling hedges, should have had him as a favoured summer guest. Creeper + and nuthatch, and starling and gem-like blue tit, found holes enough in + the old trunks to breed in. And yet I knew that, albeit not common, he was + there; I could not exactly say where, but somewhere on the other side of + the next hedge or field or orchard; for I heard his unmistakable cry, now + on this hand, now on that. Day after day I followed the voice, sometimes + in my eagerness forcing my way through a brambly hedge to emerge with + scratched hands and clothes torn, like one that had been set upon and + mauled by some + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 55 + </p> + <p> + savage animal of the cat kind; and still the quaint figure eluded my + vision. + </p> + <p> + At last I began to have doubts about the creature that emitted that + strange, penetrating call. First heard as a bird-call, and nothing more, + by degrees it grew more and more laugh-like--a long, far-reaching, ringing + laugh; not the laugh I should like to hear from any person I take an + interest in, but a laugh with all the gladness, unction, and humanity gone + out of it--a dry mechanical sound, as if a soulless, lifeless, + wind-instrument had laughed. It was very curious. Listening to it day by + day, something of the strange history of the being once but no longer + human, that uttered it grew up and took shape in my mind; for we all have + in us something of this mysterious faculty. It was no bird, no wryneck, + but a being that once, long, long, long ago, in that same beautiful place, + had been a village boy--a free, careless, glad-hearted boy, like many + another. But to this boy life was more than to others, since nature + appeared immeasurably more vivid on account of his brighter senses; + therefore his love of life and happiness in life greatly surpassed theirs. + Annually the trees shed their + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 56 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + leaves, the flowers perished, the birds flew away to some distant country + beyond the horizon, and the sun grew pale and cold in the sky; but the + bright impression all things made on him gave him a joy that was + perennial. The briony, woodbine, and honeysuckle he had looked on withered + in the hedges, but their presentments flourished untouched by frost, as if + his warmth sustained and gave them perpetual life; in that inner magical + world of memory the birds still twittered and warbled, each after its + kind, and the sun shone everlastingly. But he was living in a fool's + paradise, as he discovered by-and-by, when a boy who had been his playmate + began to grow thin and pale, and at last fell sick and died. He crept near + and watched his dead companion lying motionless, unbreathing, with a face + that was like white clay; and then, more horrible still, he saw him taken + out and put into a grave, and the heavy, cold soil cast over him. + </p> + <p> + What did this strange and terrible thing mean? Now for the first time he + was told that life is ours only for a season; that we also, like the + leaves and flowers, flourish for a while then fade and perish, and mingle + with the dust. The sad + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 57, + </p> + <p> + knowledge had come too suddenly and in too vivid and dreadful a manner. He + could not endure it. Only for a season!--only for a season! The earth + would be green, and the sky blue, and the sun shine bright for ever, and + he would not see, not know it! Struck with anguish at the thought, he + stole away out of sight of the others to hide himself in woods and + thickets, to brood alone on such a hateful destiny, and torture himself + with vain longings, until he, too, grew pale and thin and large-eyed, like + the boy that had died, and those who saw him shook their heads and + whispered to one another that he was not long for this world. He knew what + they were saying, and it only served to increase his misery and fear, and + made him hate them because they were insensible to the awful fact that + death awaited them, or so little concerned that they had never taken the + trouble to inform him of it. To eat and drink and sleep was all they cared + for, and they regarded death with indifference, because their dull sight + did not recognize the beauty and glory of the earth, nor their dull hearts + respond to Nature's everlasting gladness. The sight of the villagers, with + their solemn head- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 58 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + shakings and whisperings, even of his nearest kindred, grew insupportable, + and he at length disappeared from among them, and was seen no more with + his white, terror-stricken face. From that time he hid himself in the + close thickets, supporting his miserable existence on wild fruits and + leaves, and spending many hours each day lying in some sheltered spot, + gazing up into that blue sunny sky, which was his to gaze on only for a + season, while the large tears gathered in his eyes and rolled unheeded + down his wasted cheeks. + </p> + <p> + At length during this period there occurred an event which is the + obscurest part of his history; for I know not who or what it was--my mind + being in a mist about it--that came to or accidentally found him lying on + a bed of grass and dried leaves in his thorny hiding-place. It may have + been a gipsy or a witch--there were witches in those days--who, suddenly + looking on his upturned face and seeing the hunger in his unfathomable + eyes, loved him, in spite of her malignant nature; or a spirit out of the + earth; or only a very wise man, an ancient, white-haired solitary, whose + life had been spent in finding out the secrets of nature. This being, + becoming ac- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 59 + </p> + <p> + quainted with the cause of the boy's grief and of his solitary, miserable + condition, began to comfort him by telling him that no grief was + incurable, no desire that heart could conceive unattainable. He discoursed + of the hidden potent properties of nature, unknown only to those who seek + not to know them; of the splendid virtue inherent in all things, like the + green and violet flames in the clear colourless raindrops which are seen + only on rare occasions. Of life and death, he said that life was of the + spirit which never dies, that death meant only a passage, a change of + abode of the spirit, and the left body crumbled to dust when the spirit + went out of it to continue its existence elsewhere, but that those who + hated the thought of such change could, by taking thought, prolong life + and live for a thousand years, like the adder and tortoise or for ever. + But no, he would not leave the poor boy to grope alone and blindly after + that hidden knowledge he was burning to possess. He pitied him too much. + The means were simple and near to hand, the earth teemed with the virtue + that would save him from the dissolution which so appalled him. He would + be startled to hear in + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 60 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + how small a thing and in how insignificant a creature resided the + principle that could make his body, like his spirit, immortal. But + exceeding great power often existed in small compass: witness the adder's + tooth, which was to our sight no more than the point of the smallest + thorn. Now, in the small ant there exists a principle of a greater potency + than any other in nature; so strong and penetrating was it that even the + dull and brutish kind of men who enquire not into hidden things know + something of its power. But the greatest of all the many qualities of this + acid was unknown to them. The ants were a small people, but exceedingly + wise and powerful. If a little human child had the strength of an ant he + would surpass in power the mightiest giant that ever lived. In the same + way ants surpassed men in wisdom; and this strength and wisdom was the + result of that acid principle in them. Now, if any person should be able + to overcome his repugnance to so strange a food as to sustain himself on + ants and nothing else, the effect of the acid on him would be to change + and harden his flesh and make it impervious to decay or change of any + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="link60" id="link60"></a> <img + src="images/hudson-birds-11.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-11.jpg" width="419" + height="670" /> + </p> + <p> + SONG THRUSH AND LONG-TAILED TIT. + </p> + <p> + " . . . a tree made choice of by a song-thrush as a singing-sland" + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 61 + </p> + <p> + kind. He would, so long as he confined himself to this kind of food, be + immortal. + </p> + <p> + Not a moment did the wretched boy hesitate to make use of this new and + wonderful knowledge. When he had found and broken open an ant-hill, so + eager was he that, shutting his eyes, he snatched up the maddened insects + by handfuls and swallowed them, dust and ants together, and was then + tortured for hours, feeling and thinking that they were still alive within + him, running about in search of an outlet and frantically biting. The + strange food sickened him, so that he grew thinner and paler, until at + last he could barely crawl on hands and feet, and was like a skeleton + except for the great sad eyes that could still see the green earth and + blue sky, and still reflected in their depths one fear and one desire. And + slowly, day by day, as his system accustomed itself to the new diet, his + strength returned, and he was able once more to walk erect and run, and to + climb a tree, where he could sit concealed among the thick foliage and + survey the village where he had first seen the light and had passed the + careless, happy years of boyhood. But he cherished no tender memories and + regrets; his sole thought + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 62 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + was of the ants, and where to find a sufficiency of them to stay the + cravings of hunger; for, after the first sensations of disgust had been + overcome, he had begun to grow fond of this kind of food, and now consumed + it with avidity. And as his strength increased so did his dexterity in + catching the small, active insect prey. He no longer gathered the ants up + in his palm and swallowed them along with dust and grit, but picked them + up deftly, and conveyed them one by one to his mouth with lightning + rapidity. Meanwhile that "acid principle," about which he had heard such + wonderful things, was having its effect on his system. His skin changed + its colour; he grew shrunken and small, until at length, after very many + years, he dwindled to the grey little manikin of the present time. His + mind, too, changed; he has no thought nor remembrance of his former life + and condition and of his long-dead relations; but he still haunts the + village where he knows so well where to find the small ants, to pick them + from off the ant-hill and from the trunks of trees with his quick little + claw-like hands. Language and song are likewise forgotten with all human + things, all except his laugh; for + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 63 + </p> + <p> + when hunger is satisfied, and the sun shines pleasantly as he reposes on + the dry leaves on the ground or sits aloft on a branch, at times a sudden + feeling of gladness possesses him, and he expresses it in that one + way--the long, wild, ringing peal of laughter. Listening to that strange + sound, although I could not see I could yet picture him, as, aware of my + cautious approach, he moved shyly behind the mossy trunk of some tree and + waited silently for me to pass. A lean, grey little man, clad in a + quaintly barred and mottled mantle, woven by his own hands from some soft + silky material, and a close-fitting brown peaked cap on his head with one + barred feather in it for ornament, and a small wizened grey face with a + thin sharp nose, puckered lips, and a pair of round, brilliant, startled + eyes. + </p> + <p> + So distinct was this image to my mind's eye that it became unnecessary for + me to see the creature, and I ceased to look for him; then all at once + came disillusion, when one day, hearing the familiar high-pitched laugh + with its penetrating and somewhat nasal tone, I looked and beheld the + thing that had laughed just leaving its perch on a branch near the ground + and winging + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 64 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + its way across the field. It was only a bird after all--only the wryneck; + and that mysterious faculty I spoke of, saying that we all of us possessed + something of it (meaning only some of us) was nothing after all but the + old common faculty of imagination. + </p> + <p> + Later on I saw it again on half-a-dozen occasions, but never succeeded in + getting what I call a satisfying sight of it, perched woodpecker-wise on a + mossy trunk, busy at its old fascinating occupation of deftly picking off + the running ants. + </p> + <p> + It is melancholy to think that this quaint and beautiful bird of a unique + type has been growing less and less common in our country during the last + half a century, or for a longer period. In the last fifteen or twenty + years the falling-off has been very marked. The declension is not + attributable to persecution in this case, since the bird is not on the + gamekeeper's black list, nor has it yet become so rare as to cause the + amateur collectors of dead birds throughout the country systematically to + set about its extermination. Doubtless that will come later on when it + will be in the same category with the golden oriole, hoopoe, furze-wren, + and other species that are regarded as + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 65 + </p> + <p> + always worth killing; that is to say, it will come--the scramble for the + wryneck's carcass--if nothing is done in the meantime to restrain the + enthusiasm of those who value a bird only when the spirit of life that + gave it flight and grace and beauty has been crushed out of it--when it is + no longer a bird. The cause of its decline up till now cannot be known to + us; we can only say in our ignorance that this type, like innumerable + others that have ceased to exist, has probably run its course and is dying + out. Or it might be imagined that its system is undergoing some slow + change, which tells on the migratory instinct, that it is becoming more a + resident species in its winter home in Africa. But all conjectures are + idle in such a case. It is melancholy, at all events for the + ornithologist, to think of an England without a wryneck; but before that + still distant day arrives let us hope that the love of birds will have + become a common feeling in the mass of the population, and that the + variety of our bird life will have been increased by the addition of some + chance colonists and of many new species introduced from distant regions. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 66 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + I have lingered long over the wryneck, but have still a story to relate of + this bird--not a fairy tale this time, but true. + </p> + <p> + On the border of the village adjoining the wood--the side where birds were + more abundant, and which consequently had the greatest attraction for + me--there stands an old picturesque cottage nearly concealed from sight by + the hedge in front and closely planted trees clustering round it. On one + side was a grass field, on the other an orchard of old cherry, apple, and + plum trees, all the property of the old man living in the cottage, who was + a character in his way; at all events, he had not been fashioned in quite + the same mould as the majority of the cottagers about him. They mostly, + when past middle life, wore a heavy, dull and somewhat depressed look. + This man had a twinkle in his dark-grey eyes, an expression of intelligent + curiosity and fellowship; and his full face, bronzed with sixty or + sixty-five years' exposure to the weather, was genial, as if the sunshine + that had so long beaten on it had not been all used up in painting his + skin that rich old-furniture colour, but had, some of it, filtered through + the epidermis into the heart to make his + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 67 + </p> + <p> + existence pleasant and sweet. But it was a very rough-cast face, with + shapeless nose and thick lips. He was short and broad-shouldered, always + in the warm weather in his shirt-sleeves, a shirt of some very coarse + material and of an earthen colour, his brown thick arms bare to the + elbows. Waistcoat and trousers looked as if he had worn them for half his + life, and had a marbled or mottled appearance as if they had taken the + various tints of all the objects and materials he had handled or rubbed + against in his life's work--wood, mossy trees, grass, clay, bricks, stone, + rusty iron, and dozens more. He wore the field-labourer's thick boots; his + ancient rusty felt hat had long lost its original shape; and finally, to + complete the portrait, a short black clay pipe was never out of his + lips--never, at all events, when I saw him, which was often; for every day + as I strolled past his domain he would be on the outside of his hedge, or + just coming out of his gate, invariably with something in his hand--a + spade, a fork, or stick of wood, or an old empty fruit-basket. Although + thus having the appearance of being very much occupied, he would always + stop for a few minutes' talk with me; and by-and-by + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 68 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + I began to suspect that he was a very social sort of person, and that it + pleased him to have a little chat, but that he liked to have me think that + he met me by accident while going about his work. + </p> + <p> + One sunny morning as I came past his field he came out bearing a huge + bundle of green grass on his head. "What!" he exclaimed, coming to a + stand, "you here to-day? I thought you'd be away to the regatta." + </p> + <p> + I said that I knew little about regattas and cared less, that a day spent + in watching and listening to the birds gave me more pleasure than all the + regattas in the country. "I suppose you can't understand that?" I added. + </p> + <p> + He took the big green bundle from his head and set it down, pulled off his + old hat to flap the dust out of it, then sucked at his short clay. "Well," + he said at length, "some fancies one thing and some another, but we most + of us like a regatta." + </p> + <p> + During the talk that followed I asked him if he knew the wryneck, and if + it ever nested in his orchard. He did not know the bird; had never heard + its name nor the other names of snake-bird and cuckoo's mate; and when I + had min- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 69 + </p> + <p> + utely described its appearance, he said that no such bird was known in the + village. + </p> + <p> + I assured him that he was mistaken, that I had heard the cry of the bird + many times, and had even heard it once at a distance since our + conversation began. Hearing that distant cry had caused me to ask the + question. + </p> + <p> + All at once he remembered that he knew, or had known formerly, the wryneck + very well, but he had never learnt its name. About twenty or + five-and-twenty years ago, he said, he saw the bird I had just described + in his orchard, and as it appeared day after day and had a strange + appearance as it moved up the tree trunks, he began to be interested in + it. One day he saw it fly into a hole close to the ground in an old apple + tree. "Now I've got you!" he exclaimed, and running to the spot thrust his + hand in as far as he could, but was unable to reach the bird. Then he + conceived the idea of starving it out, and stopped up the hole with clay. + The following day at the same hour he again put in his hand, and this time + succeeded in taking the bird. So strange was it to him that after showing + it to his own family he took it round to exhibit it to his neighbours, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 70 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + and although some of them were old men, not one among them had ever seen + its like before. They concluded that it was a kind of nuthatch, but unlike + the common nuthatch which they knew. After they had all seen and handled + it and had finished the discussions about it, he released it and saw it + fly away; but, to his astonishment, it was back in his orchard a few hours + later. In a few weeks it brought out its five or six young from the hole + he had caught it in, and for several years it returned each season to + breed in the same hole until the tree was blown down, after which the bird + was seen no more. + </p> + <p> + What an experience the poor bird had suffered! First plastered up and left + to starve or suffocate in its hollow tree; then captured and passed round + from rough, horny hand to hand, while the villagers were discussing it in + their slow, ponderous fashion--how wildly its little wild heart must have + palpitated!--and, finally, after being released, to go back at once to its + eggs in that dangerous tree. I do not know which surprised me most, the + bird's action in returning to its nest after such inhospitable treatment, + or the ignorance of the villagers concerning it. The incident + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 71 + </p> + <p> + seemed to show that the wryneck had been scarce at this place for a very + long period. + </p> + <p> + The villager, as a rule, is not a good observer, which is not strange, + since no person is, or ever can be, a good observer of the things in which + he is not specially interested; consequently the countryman only knows the + most common and the most conspicuous species. He plods through life with + downcast eyes and a vision somewhat dimmed by indifference; forgetting, as + he progresses, the small scraps of knowledge he acquired by looking + sharply during the period of boyhood, when every living creature excited + his attention. In Italy, notwithstanding the paucity of bird life, I + believe that the peasants know their birds better. The reason of this is + not far to seek; every bird, not excepting even the "temple-haunting + martlet" and nightingale and minute golden-crested wren, is regarded only + as a possible morsel to give a savour to a dish of polenta, if the shy, + little flitting thing can only be enticed within touching distance of the + limed twigs. Thus they take a very strong interest in, and, in a sense, + "love" birds. It is their passion for this kind of flavouring which has + drained rural Italy + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 72 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + of its songsters, and will in time have the same effect on Argentina, the + country in which the withering stream of Italian emigration empties + itself. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-12.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-12.jpg" width="130" + height="97" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="linkVI" id="linkVI"></a> + </p> + <p> + VI + </p> + <p> + FROM the date of my arrival at the village in May, until I left it early + in July, the great annual business of pairing, nest-building, and rearing + the young was going on uninterruptedly. The young of some of the earliest + breeders were already strong on the wing when I took my first walks along + the hedgerows, still in their early, vivid green, frequently observing my + bird through a white and rose-tinted cloud of apple-blossoms; and when I + left some species that breed more than once in the season were rearing + second broods or engaged in making new nests. On my very first day I + discovered a nest full of fully fledged blue tits in a hole in an apple + tree; this struck me as a dangerous place for the young birds; as the tree + leaned over towards the lane, and the hole could almost be reached by a + person standing on the ground. On the next day I went to look at them, and + approaching noiselessly + </p> + <p> + 73 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 74 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + along the lane, spied two small boys with bright clean faces--it was on a + Sunday--standing within three or four yards of the tree, watching the tits + with intense interest. The parent birds were darting up and down, careless + of their presence, finding food so quickly in the gooseberry bushes + growing near the roots of the tree that they visited the hole every few + moments; while the young birds, ever screaming for more, were gathered in + a dense little cluster at the entrance, their yellow breasts showing very + brightly against the rain-wet wood and the dark interior of the hole. The + instant the two little watchers caught sight of me the excited look + vanished from their faces, and they began to move off, gazing straight + ahead in a somewhat vacant manner. This instantaneous and instinctive + display of hypocrisy was highly entertaining, and would have made me laugh + if it had not been for the serious purpose I had in my mind. "Now, look + here," I said, "I know what you are after, so it's no use pretending that + you are walking about and seeing nothing in particular. You've been + watching the young tits. Well, I've been watching them, too, and waiting + to see them fly. I dare say they will + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 75 + </p> + <p> + be out by to-morrow or the next day, and I hope you little fellows won't + try to drag them out before then." + </p> + <p> + They at once protested that they had no such intention. They said that + they never robbed birds' nests; that there were several nests at home in + the garden and orchard, one of a nightingale with three eggs in it, but + that they never took an egg. But some of the boys they knew, they said, + took all the eggs they found; and there was one boy who got into every + orchard and garden in the place, who was so sharp that few nests escaped + him, and every nest he found he destroyed, breaking the eggs if there were + any, and if there were young birds killing them. + </p> + <p> + Not, perhaps, without first mutilating them, I thought; for I know + something of this kind of young "human devil," to use the phrase which + Canon Wilberforce has made so famous in another connexion. Later on I + heard much more about the exploits of this champion bird-destroyer of the + village from (strange to say) a bird-catcher by trade, a man of a rather + low type of countenance, and who lived, when at home, in a London slum. On + the common where he spread his nets + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 76 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + he had found, he told me, about thirty nests containing eggs or + fledglings; but this boy had gone over the ground after him, and not many + of the nests had escaped his sharp eyes. + </p> + <p> + I was satisfied that the young tits were quite safe, so far as these + youngsters were concerned, and only regretted that they were such small + Boys, and that the great nest-destroyer, whose evil deeds they spoke of + with an angry colour in their cheeks, was a very strong boy, otherwise I + should have advised them to "go" for him. + </p> + <p> + Oddly enough I heard of another boy who exercised the same kind of cruelty + and destructiveness over another common a few miles distant. Walking + across it I spied two boys among the furze bushes, and at the same moment + they saw me, whereupon one ran away and the other remained standing. A + nice little fellow of about eight, he looked as if he had been crying. I + asked him what it was all about, and he then told me that the bigger boy + who had just run away was always on the common searching for nests, just + to destroy them and kill the young birds; that he, my informant, had come + there + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 77 + </p> + <p> + where he came every day just to have a peep at a linnet's nest with four + eggs in it on which the bird was sitting; that the other boy, concealed + among the bushes had watched him go to the nest and had then rushed up and + pulled the nest out of the bush. + </p> + <p> + "Why didn't you knock him down?" I asked. + </p> + <p> + "That's what I tried to do before he pulled the nest out," he said; and + then he added sorrowfully: "He knocked me down." + </p> + <p> + I am reminded here of a tale of ancient Greece about a boy of this + description--the boy to be found in pretty well every parish in the land. + This was a shepherd boy who followed or led his sheep to a distance from + the village and amused his idle hours by snaring small birds to put their + eyes out with a sharp thorn, then to toss them up just to see how, and how + far, they would fly in the dark. He was seen doing it and the matter + reported to the heads or fathers of the village, and he was brought before + them and, after due consideration of the case, condemned to death. Such a + decision must seem shocking to us and worthy of a semi-barbarous people. + But if cruelty is the worst of all offences--and + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 78 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + this was cruelty in its most horrid form--the offence which puts men down + on a level with the worst of the mythical demons, it was surely a + righteous deed to blot such an existence out lest other young minds should + be contaminated, or even that it should be known that such a crime was + possible. + </p> + <p> + * * * + </p> + <p> + All those birds that had finished rearing their young by the sixteenth of + June were fortunate, for on the morning of that day a great and continuous + shouting, with gun-firing, banging on old brass and iron utensils, with + various other loud, unusual noises, were heard at one extremity of the + village, and continued with occasional quiet intervals until evening. This + tempest of rude sounds spread from day to day, until the entire area of + the village and the surrounding orchards was involved, and the poor birds + that were tied to the spots where their treasures were, must have existed + in a state of constant trepidation. For now the cherries were fast + ripening, and the fruit-eating birds, especially the thrushes and + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 79 + </p> + <p> + black-birds, were inflamed at the gleam of crimson colour among the + leaves. In the very large orchards men and boys were stationed all day + long yelling and firing off guns to frighten the marauders. In the smaller + orchards the trees were decorated with whirligigs of coloured paper; + ancient hats, among which were some of the quaintly-shaped chimney-pots of + a past generation; old coats and waistcoats and trousers, and rags of all + colours to flutter in the wind; and these objects were usually considered + a sufficient protection. Some of the birds, wiser than their fellows, were + not to be kept back by such simple means; but so long as they came not in + battalions, but singly, they could have their fill, and no notice was + taken of them. + </p> + <p> + I was surprised to hear that on the large plantations the men employed + were not allowed to use shot, the aim of the fruit grower being only to + scare the birds away. I had a talk with my old friend of the wryneck on + the subject, and told him that I had seen one of the bird-scarers going + home to his cottage very early in the morning, carrying a bunch of about a + dozen blackbirds and thrushes he had just shot. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 8o BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + Yes, he replied, some of the men would buy shot and use it early in the + morning before their master was about; but if the man I had seen had been + detected in the act, he would have been discharged on the spot. It was not + only because the trees would be injured by shot, but this fruitgrower was + friendly to birds. + </p> + <p> + Most fruit-growers, I said, were dead against the birds, and anxious only + to kill as many of them as possible. + </p> + <p> + It might be so in some places, he answered, but not in the village. He + himself and most of the villagers depended, in a great measure, on the + fruit they produced for a living, and their belief was that, taking one + bird with another all the year round, the birds did them more good than + harm. + </p> + <p> + I then imparted to him the views on this bird subject of a well-known + fruit-grower in the north of England, Mr. Joseph Witherspoon, of + Chester-le-Street. He began by persecuting the birds, as he had been + taught to do by his father, a market-gardener; but after years of careful + observation he completely changed his views, and is now so convinced of + the advantage that birds are + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 81 + </p> + <p> + to the fruit-grower, that he does all in his power to attract them, and to + tempt them to breed in his grounds. His main idea is that birds that are + fed on the premises, that live and feed among the trees, search for and + attack the gardeners' enemies at every stage of their existence. At the + same time he believes that it is very bad to grow fruit near woods, as in + such a case the birds that live in the woods and are of no advantage to + the garden, swarm into it as the fruit ripens, and that it is only by + liberal use of nets that any reasonable portion of the fruit can be saved. + </p> + <p> + He answered that with regard to the last point he did not quite agree with + Mr. Witherspoon. All the gardens and orchards in the village were raided + by the birds from the wood, yet he reckoned they got as much fruit from + their trees as others who had no woods near them. Then there was the big + cherry plantation, one of the biggest in England, so that people came from + all parts in the blossoming time just to look at it, and a wonderful sight + it was. For a quarter of a mile this particular orchard ran parallel with + the wood; with nothing but the green road between, and when the first + fruit was ripening you could see + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 82 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + all the big trees on the edge of the wood swarming with birds--jays, + thrushes, blackbirds, doves, and all sorts of tits and little birds, just + waiting for a chance to pounce down and devour the cherries. The noise + kept them off, but many would dodge in, and even if a gun was fired close + to them the blackbirds would snatch a cherry and carry it off to the wood. + That didn't matter--a few cherries here and there didn't count. The + starlings were the worst robbers: if you didn't scare them they would + strip a tree and even an orchard in a few hours. But they were the easiest + birds to deal with: they went in flocks, and a shout or rattle or report + of a gun sent the lot of them away together. His way of looking at it was + this. In the fruit season, which lasts only a few weeks, you are bound to + suffer from the attacks of birds, whether they are your own birds only or + your own combined with others from outside, unless you keep them off; that + those who do not keep them off are foolish or indolent, and deserve to + suffer. The fruit season was, he said, always an anxious time. + </p> + <p> + In conclusion, I remarked that the means used for protecting the fruit, + whether they served their + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 83 + </p> + <p> + purpose well or not, struck me as being very unworthy of the times we + lived in, and seemed to show that the British fruit-growers, who were + ahead of the world in all other matters connected with their vocation, had + quite neglected this one point. A thousand years ago cultivators of the + soil were scaring the birds from their crops just as we are doing, with + methods no better and no worse, putting up scarecrows and old ragged + garments and fluttering rags, hanging a dead crow to a stick to warn the + others off, shouting and yelling and throwing stones. There appeared to be + an opening here for experiment and invention. Mere noise was not + terrifying to birds, and they soon discovered that an old hat on a stick + had no injurious brains in or under it. But certain sounds and colours and + odours had a strong effect on some animals. Sounds made to stimulate the + screams of some hawks would perhaps prove very terrifying to thrushes and + other small birds, and the effect of scarlet in large masses or long + strips might be tried. It would also be worth while to try the effect of + artificial sparrow-hawks and other birds of prey, perched conspicuously, + moving and perking their tails at intervals by + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 84 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + clockwork. In fact, a hundred things might be tried until something + valuable was found, and when it lost its value, for the birds would in + time discover the deception, some new plan adopted. + </p> + <p> + To this dissertation on what might be done, he answered that if any one + could find out or invent any new effective means to keep the birds from + the fruit, the fruit-growers would be very thankful for it; but that no + such invention could be looked for from those who are engaged on the soil; + that it must come from those who do not dig and sweat, but sit still and + work with their brains at new ideas. + </p> + <p> + This ended our conversation, and I left him more than satisfied at the + information he had given me, and with a higher opinion than ever of his + geniality and good practical sense. + </p> + <p> + It was a relief when the noisy, bird-scaring business was done with, and + the last market baskets of ripe cherries were carried away to the station. + Very splendid they looked in such large masses of crimson, as the baskets + were brought out and set down in the grassy road; but I could not help + thinking a little sadly that the thrushes and blackbirds which had been + surreptitiously + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 85 + </p> + <p> + shot, when fallen and fluttering in the wet grass in the early morning, + had shed life-drops of that same beautiful colour. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-13.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-13.jpg" width="123" + height="72" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> +<p> + <br /> <a name="linkVII" id="linkVII"></a> + </p> + <h3> + VII + </h3> + <p> + AFTER the middle of June the common began to attract me more and more. It + was so extensive that, standing on its border, just beyond the last + straggling cottages and orchards, the further side was seen only as a line + of blue trees, indistinct in the distance. As I grew to know it better, + adding each day to my list from its varied bird life, the woods and + waterside were visited less and less frequently, and after the + bird-scaring noises began in the village, its wildness and quiet became + increasingly grateful. The silence of nature was broken only by bird + sounds, and the most frequent sound was that of the yellow bunting, as, + perched motionless on the summit of a gorse bush, his yellow head + conspicuous at a considerable distance, he emitted his thin monotonous + chant at regular intervals, like a painted toy-bird that sings by + machinery. There, too, sedentary as an owl in the daytime, the corn + bunting was + </p> + <p> + 86 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 87 + </p> + <p> + common, discharging his brief song at intervals--a sound as of shattering + glass. The whinchat was rarely seen, but I constantly met the small, + prettily coloured stonechat flitting from bush to bush, following me, and + never ceasing his low, querulous tacking chirp, anxious for the safety of + his nest. Nightingales, blackcaps and white-throats also nested there, and + were louder and more emphatic in their protests when approached. There + were several grasshopper-warblers on the common, all, very curiously as it + seemed to me, clustered at one spot, so that one could ramble over miles + of ground without hearing their singular note; but on approaching the + place they inhabited one gradually became conscious of a mysterious + trilling buzz or whirr, low at first and growing louder and more + stridulous, until the hidden singers were left behind, when by degrees it + sank lower and lower again, and ceased to be audible at a distance of + about one hundred yards from the points where it had sounded loudest. The + birds hid in clumps of furze and bramble so near together that the area + covered by the buzzing sound measured about two hundred yards across. This + most singular sound (for a warbler + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 88 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + to make) is certainly not ventriloquial, although if one comes to it with + the sense of hearing disorganized by town noises or unpractised, one is at + a loss to determine the exact spot it comes from, or even to know from + which side it comes. While emitting its prolonged sound the bird is so + absorbed in its own performance that it is not easily alarmed, and will + sometimes continue singing with a human listener standing within four or + five yards of it. When one is near the bird, and listens, standing + motionless, the effect on the nerves of hearing is very remarkable, + considering the smallness of the sound, which, without being unpleasant, + is somewhat similar to that produced by the vibration of the brake of a + train; it is not powerful enough to jar the nerves, but appears to pervade + the entire system. Lying still, with eyes closed, and three or four of + these birds singing near, so that their strains overlap and leave no + silent intervals, the listener can imagine that the sound originates + within himself; that the numberless fine cords of his nervous network + tremble responsively to it. + </p> + <p> + There are a number of natural sounds that resemble more or less closely + the most unbird- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 89 + </p> + <p> + like note of this warbler--cicada, rattlesnake, and some batrachians. Some + grasshoppers perhaps come nearest to it; but the most sustained current of + sound emitted by the insect is short compared to the warbler's strain, + also the vibrations are very much more rapid, and not heard as vibrations, + and the same effect is not produced. + </p> + <p> + The grasshopper warblers gave me so much pleasure that I was often at the + spot where they had their little colony of about half-a-dozen pairs, and + where I discovered they bred every year. At first I used to go to any bush + where I had caught sight of a bird and sit down within a few yards of it + and wait until the little hideling's shyness wore off, and he would come + out and start reeling. Afterwards I always went straight to the same bush, + because I thought the bird that used it as his singing-place appeared less + shy than the others. One day I spent a long time listening to this + favourite; delightedly watching him, perched on a low twig on a level with + my sight, and not more than five yards from me; his body perfectly + motionless, but the head and wide-open beak jerked from side to side in a + measured, mechanical way. I had a side view of the bird, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 90 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + but every three seconds the head would be jerked towards me, showing the + bright yellow colour of the open mouth. The reeling would last about three + minutes, then the bird would unbend or unstiffen and take a few hops about + the bush, then stiffen and begin again. While thus gazing and listening I, + by chance, met with an experience of that rare kind which invariably + strikes the observer of birds as strange and almost incredible--an example + of the most perfect mimicry in a species which has its own distinctive + song and is not a mimic except once in a while, and as it were by chance. + The marsh warbler is our perfect mocking-bird, our one professional mimic; + while the starling in comparison is but an amateur. We all know the + starling's ever varying performance in which he attempts a hundred things + and occasionally succeeds; but even the starling sometimes affects us with + a mild astonishment, and I will here give one instance. + </p> + <p> + I was staying at a village in the Wiltshire downs, and at intervals, while + sitting at work in my room on the ground floor, I heard the cackling of a + fowl at the cottage opposite. I heard, but paid no attention to that + familiar sound; but + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 91 + </p> + <p> + after three days it all at once struck me that no fowl could lay an egg + about every ten or twelve minutes, and go on at this rate day after day, + and, getting up, I went out to look for the cackler. A few hens were + moving quietly about the open ground surrounding the cottage where the + sound came from, but I heard nothing. By and by, when I was back in my + room, the cackling sounded again, but when I got out the sound had ceased + and the fowls, as before, appeared quite unexcited. The only way to solve + the mystery was to stand there, out of doors, for ten minutes, and before + that time was over a starling with a white grub in his beak, flew down and + perched on the low garden wall of the cottage, then, with some difficulty, + squeezed himself through a small opening into a cavity under a strip of + zinc which covered the bricks of the wall. It was a queer place for a + starling's nest, on a wall three feet high and within two yards of the + cottage door which stood open all day. Having delivered the grub, the + starling came out again and, hopping on to the zinc, opened his beak and + cackled like a hen, then flew away for more grubs. + </p> + <p> + I observed the starling a good deal after this, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 92 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + and found that invariably on leaving the nest, he uttered his imitation of + a fowl cackling, and no other note or sound of any kind. It was as if he + was not merely imitating a sound, but had seen a fowl leaving the nest and + then cackling, and mimicked the whole proceeding, and had kept up the + habit after the young were hatched. + </p> + <p> + To return to my experience on the common. About fifty yards from the spot + where I was there was a dense thicket of furze and thorn, with a huge + mound in the middle composed of a tangle of whitethorn and bramble bushes + mixed with ivy and clematis. From this spot, at intervals of half a minute + or so, there issued the call of a duck--the prolonged, hoarse call of a + drake, two or three times repeated, evidently emitted in distress. I + conjectured that it came from one of a small flock of ducks belonging to a + cottage near the edge of the common on that side. The flock, as I had + seen, was accustomed to go some distance from home, and I supposed that + one of them, a drake, had got into that brambly thicket and could not make + his way out. For half an hour I heard the calls without paying much + attention, absorbed in watching the quaint little + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 93 + </p> + <p> + songster close to me and his curious gestures when emitting his sustained + reeling sounds. In the end the persistent distressed calling of the drake + lost in a brambly labyrinth got a little on my nerves, and I felt it as a + relief when it finally ceased. Then, after a short silence, another sound + came from the same spot--a blackbird sound, known to everyone, but + curiously interesting when uttered in the way I now heard it. It was the + familiar loud chuckle, not emitted in alarm and soon ended, but the + chuckle uttered occasionally by the bird when he is not disturbed, or + when, after uttering it once for some real cause, he continues repeating + it for no reason at all, producing the idea that he has just made the + discovery that it is quite a musical sound and that he is repeating it, as + if singing, just for pleasure. At such times the long series of notes do + not come forth with a rush; he begins deliberately with a series of + musical chirps uttered in a measured manner, like those of a wood wren, + the prelude to its song, the notes coming faster and faster and swelling + and running into the loud chuckling performance. This performance, like + the lost drake's call, was repeated in the same deliberate + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 94 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + or leisurely manner at intervals again and again, until my curiosity was + aroused and I went to the spot to get a look at the bird who had turned + his alarm sound into a song and appeared to be very much taken with it. + But there was no blackbird at the spot, and no lost drake, and no bird, + except a throstle sitting motionless on the bush mound. This was the bird + I had been listening to, uttering not his own thrush melody, which he + perhaps did not know at all, but the sounds he had borrowed from two + species so wide apart in their character and language. + </p> + <p> + The astonishing thing in this case was that the bird never uttered a note + of his own original and exceedingly copious song; and I could only suppose + that he had never learned the thrush melody; that he had, perhaps, been + picked up as a fledgling and put in a cage, where he had imitated the + sounds he heard and liked best, and made them his song, and that he had + finally escaped or had been liberated. + </p> + <p> + The wild thrush, we know, does introduce certain imitations into his own + song, but the borrowed notes, or even phrases, are, as a rule, few, and + not always to be distinguished from his own. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 95 + </p> + <p> + Sometimes one can pick them out; thus, on the borders of a marsh where + redshanks bred, I have heard the call of that bird distinctly given by the + thrush. And again, where the ring-ouzel is common, the thrush will get its + brief song exactly. When thrushes taken from the nest are reared in towns, + where they never hear the thrush or any other bird sing, they are often + exceedingly vocal, and utter a medley of sounds which are sometimes + distressing to the ear. I have heard many caged thrushes of this kind in + London, but the most remarkable instance I have met with was at the little + seaside town of Seaford. Here, in the main shopping street, a caged thrush + lived for years in a butcher's shop, and poured out its song continuously, + the most distressing throstle performance I ever heard, composed of a + medley of loud, shrill and harsh sounds--imitations of screams and shouts, + boy whistlers, saw filing, knives sharpened on steels, and numerous other + unclassifiable noises; but all, more or less, painful. The whole street + was filled with the noise, and the owner used to boast that his caged + thrush was the most persistent as well as the loudest singer that had ever + been heard. He had no + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 96 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + nerves, and was proud of it! On a recent visit to Seaford I failed to hear + the bird when walking about the town, and after two or three days went + into the shop to enquire about it. They told me it was dead--that it had + been dead over a year; also that many visitors to Seaford had missed its + song and had called at the shop to ask about the bird. The strangest thing + about its end, they said, was its suddenness. The bird was singing its + loudest one morning, and had been at it for some time, filling the whole + place with its noise, when suddenly, in the middle of its song, it dropped + down dead from its perch. + </p> + <p> + To drop dead while singing is not an unheard of, nor a very rare + occurrence in caged birds, and it probably happens, too, in birds living + their natural life. Listening to a nightingale, pouring out its powerful + music continuously, as the lark sings, one sometimes wonders that + something does not give way to end the vocalist's performance and life at + the same instant. Some such incident was probably the origin of the old + legend of the minstrel and the nightingale on which Strada based his + famous poem, known in many languages. In England Crawshaw's version was by + far + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 97 + </p> + <p> + the best, and is perhaps the finest bird poem in our literature. + </p> + <p> + The blackbird, like the thrush, sometimes borrows a note or a phrase, and, + like the thrush again, if reared by hand he may become a nuisance by + mimicking some disagreeable sound, and using it by way of song. I heard of + such a case a short time ago at Sidmouth. The ground floor of the house + where I lodged was occupied by a gentleman who had a fondness for bird + music, and being an invalid confined to his rooms, he kept a number of + birds in cages. He had, besides canaries, the thrush, chaffinch, linnet, + goldfinch and cirl bunting. I remarked that he did not have the best + singer of all--the blackbird. He said that he had procured one, or that + some friend had sent him one, a very beautiful ouel cock in the blackest + plumage and with the orange-tawniest bill, and he had anticipated great + pleasure from hearing its fluting melody. But alas! no blackbird song did + this unnatural blackbird sing. He had learnt to bark like a dog, and + whenever the singing spirit took him he would bark once or twice or three + times, and then, after an interval of silence of the proper length, about + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 98 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + fifteen seconds, he would bark again, and so on until he had had his fill + of music for the time. The barking got on the invalid's nerves, and he + sent the bird away. "It was either that," he said, "or losing my senses + altogether." + </p> + <p> + * * * + </p> + <p> + As all or most singing birds learn their songs from the adults of the same + species, it is not strange that there should be a good deal of what we + call mimicry in their performances: we may say, in fact, that pretty well + all the true singers are mimics, but that some mimic more than others. + Thus, the starling is more ready to borrow other birds' notes than the + thrush, while the marsh-warbler borrows so much that his singing is mainly + composed of borrowings. The nightingale is, perhaps, an exception. His + voice excels in power and purity of sound, and what we may call his + artistry is exceptionally perfect; this may account for the fact that he + does not borrow from other birds' songs. I should say, from my own + observation, that all songsters are interested in the singing of other + species, or at all events, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 99 + </p> + <p> + in certain notes, especially the most striking in power, beauty, and + strangeness. Thus, when the cuckoo starts calling, you will see other + small birds fly straight to the tree and perch near him, apparently to + listen. And among the listeners you will find the sparrow and tits of + various species--birds which are never victimized by the cuckoo, and do + not take him for a hawk since they take no notice of him until the calling + begins. The reason that the double fluting call of the cuckoo is not + mimicked by other birds is that they can't; because that peculiar sound is + not in their register. The bubbling cry is reproduced by both the marsh + warbler and the starling. Again, it is my experience that when a + nightingale starts singing, the small birds near immediately become + attentive, often suspending their own songs and some flying to perch near + him, and listen, just as they listen to the cuckoo. Birds imitate the note + or phrase that strikes them most, and is easiest to imitate, as when the + thrush copies the piping and trilling of the redshank and the easy song of + the ring-ouzel, which, when incorporated into his own music, harmonizes + with it perfectly. But he cannot flute, and so never mimics the black- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 100 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + bird's song, although he can and does, as we have seen, imitate its + chuckling cry. + </p> + <p> + There is another thing to be considered. I believe that the bird, like + creatures in other classes, has his receptive period, his time to learn, + and that, like some mammals, he learns everything he needs to know in his + first year or two; and that, having acquired his proper song, he adds + little or nothing to it thereafter, although the song may increase in + power and brilliance when the bird comes to full maturity. This, I think, + holds true of all birds, like the nightingale, which have a singing period + of two or three months and are songless for the rest of the year. That + long, silent period cannot, so far as sounds go, be a receptive one; the + song early in life has become crystallized in the form it will keep + through life, and is like an intuitive act. This is not the case with + birds like the starling, that sing all the year round--birds that are + naturally loquacious and sing instead of screaming and chirping like + others. They are always borrowing new sounds and always forgetting. + </p> + <p> + The most curious example of mimicry I have yet met with is that of a true + mocking-bird, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 101 + </p> + <p> + Mimus patachonicus, a common resident species in northern Patagonia, on + the Atlantic side, very abundant in places. He is a true mocking-bird + because he belongs to the genus Mimus, a branch of the thrush family, and + not because he mocks or mimics the songs of other species, like others of + his kindred. He does not, in fact, mimic the set songs of others, although + he often introduces notes and phrases borrowed from other species into his + own performance. He sings in a sketchy way all the year round, but in + spring has a fuller unbroken song, emitted with more power and passion. + For the rest of the time he sings to amuse himself, as it seems, in a + peculiarly leisurely, and one may say, indolent manner, perched on a bush, + from time to time emitting a note or two, then a phrase which, if it + pleases him, he will repeat two or three, or half a dozen times. Then, + after a pause, other notes and phrases, and so on, pretty well all day + long. This manner of singing is irritating, like the staccato song of our + throstle, to a listener who wants a continuous stream of song; but it + becomes exceedingly interesting when one discovers that the bird is + thinking very much about his own music, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 102 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + if one can use such an expression about a bird; that he is all the time + experimenting, trying to get a new phrase, a new combination of the notes + he knows and new notes. Also, that when sitting on his bush and uttering + these careless chance sounds, he is, at the same time, intently listening + to the others, all engaged in the same way, singing and listening. You + will see them all about the place, each bird sitting motionless, like a + grey and white image of a bird, on the summit of his own bush. For, + although he is not gregarious as a rule, a number of pairs live near each + other, and form a sort of loose community. The bond that unites them is + their music, for not only do they sit within hearing distance, but they + are perpetually mimicking each other. One may say that they are + accomplished mimics but prefer mimicking their own to other species. But + they only imitate the notes that take their fancy, so to speak. Thus, + occasionally, one strikes out a phrase, a new expression, which appears to + please him, and after a few moments he repeats it again, then again, and + so on and on, and if you remain an hour within hearing he will perhaps be + still repeating it at short intervals. Now, if + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 103 + </p> + <p> + by chance there is something in the new phrase which pleases the listeners + too, you will note that they instantly suspend their own singing, and for + some little time they do nothing but listen. By and by the new note or + phrase will be exactly reproduced from a bird on another bush; and he, + too, will begin repeating it at short intervals. Then a second one will + get it, then a third, and eventually all the birds in that thicket will + have it. The constant repeating of the new note may then go on for hours, + and it may last longer. You may return to the spot on the second day and + sit for an hour or longer, listening, and still hear that same note + constantly repeated until you are sick and tired of it, or it may even get + on your nerves. I remember that on one occasion I avoided a certain + thicket, one of my favourite daily haunts for three whole days, not to + hear that one everlasting sound; then I returned and to my great relief + the birds were all at their old game of composing, and not one + uttered--perhaps he didn't dare--the too hackneyed phrase. I was sharply + reminded one day by an incident in the village of this old Patagonian + experience, and of the strange human-like weakness or pas- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 104 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + sion for something new and arresting in music or song, something "tuney" + or "catchy." + </p> + <p> + It chanced that when I left London a new popular song had come out and was + "all the rage," a tune and words invented or first produced in the + music-halls by a woman named Lottie Collins, with a chorus to it--<i>Ta-ra-ra-boom-de-ay</i>, + repeated several times. First caught up in the music-halls it spread to + the streets, and in ever-widening circles over all London, and over all + the land. In London people were getting tired of hearing it, but when I + arrived at my village "in a hole," and settled down among the Badgers, I + heard it on every hand--in cottages, in the streets, in the fields, men, + women and children were singing, whistling, and humming it, and in the + evening at the inn roaring it out with as much zest as if they had been + singing <i>Rule Britannia.</i> + </p> + <p> + This state of things lasted from May to the middle of June; then, one very + hot, still day, about three o'clock, I was sitting at my cottage window + when I caught the sound of a rumbling cart and a man singing. As the noise + grew louder my interest in the approaching man and + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 105 + </p> + <p> + cart was excited to an extraordinary degree; never had I heard such a + noise! And no wonder, since the man was driving a heavy, springless farm + cart in the most reckless manner, urging his two huge horses to a fast + trot, then a gallop, up and down hill along those rough gully-like roads, + he standing up in his cart and roaring out "Auld Lang Syne," at the top of + a voice of tremendous power. He was probably tipsy, but it was not a bad + voice, and the old familiar tune and words had an extraordinary effect in + that still atmosphere. He passed my cottage, standing up, his legs wide + apart, his cap on the back of his head, a big broad-chested young man, + lashing his horses, and then for about two minutes or longer the thunder + of the cart and the roaring song came back fainter, until it faded away in + the distance. At that still hour of the day the children were all at + school on the further side of the village; the men away in the fields; the + women shut up in their cottages, perhaps sleeping. It seemed to me that I + was the only person in the village who had witnessed and heard the passing + of the big-voiced man and cart. But it was not so. At all events, next + day, the whole village, men, women + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 106 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + and children, were singing, humming and whistling "Auld Lang Syne," and + "Auld Lang Syne" lasted for several days, and from that day + "Ta-ra-ra-boom-de-ay" was heard no more. It had lost its charm. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-14.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-14.jpg" width="103" + height="122" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="linkVIII" id="linkVIII"></a> + </p> + <h3> + VIII + </h3> + <p> + JUST out of hearing of the grasshopper warblers, there was a good-sized + pool of water on the common, probably an old gravel-pit, its bottom now + overgrown with rushes. A sedge warbler, the only one on the common, lived + in the masses of bramble and gorse on its banks; and birds of so many + kinds came to it to drink and bathe that the pool became a favourite spot + with me. One evening, just before sunset, as I lingered near it, a pied + wagtail darted out of some low scrub at my feet and fluttered, as if + wounded, over the turf for a space of ten or twelve yards before flying + away. Not many minutes after seeing the wagtail, a reed-bunting--a bird + which I had not previously observed on the common--flew down and alighted + on a bush a few yards from me, holding a white crescent-shaped grub in its + beak. I stood still to watch it, certainly not expecting to see its nest + and young; for, as + </p> + <p> + 107 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 108 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + a rule, a bird with food in its beak will sit quietly until the watcher + loses patience and moves away; but on this occasion I had not been + standing more than ten seconds before the bunting flew down to a small + tuft of furze and was there greeted by the shrill, welcoming cries of its + young. I went up softly to the spot, when out sprang the old bird I had + seen, but only to drop to the ground just as the wagtail had done, to beat + the turf with its wings, then to lie gasping for breath, then to flutter + on a little further, until at last it rose up and flew to a bush. + </p> + <p> + After admiring the reed-bunting's action, I turned to the dwarf bush near + my feet, and saw, perched on a twig in its centre, a solitary young bird, + fully fledged but not yet capable of sustained flight. He did not + recognise an enemy in me; on the contrary, when I approached my hand to + him, he opened his yellow mouth wide, in expectation of being fed, + although his throat was crammed with caterpillars, and the white + crescent-shaped larva I had seen in the parent's bill was still lying in + his mouth unswallowed. The wonder is that when a young bird had been + stuffed with food to such an extent just before sleeping time, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 109 + </p> + <p> + he can still find it in him to open his mouth and call for more. + </p> + <p> + * * * + </p> + <p> + How wonderful it is that this parental instinct, so beautiful in its + perfect simulation of the action of the bird that has lost the power of + flight, should be found in so large a number of species! But when we find + that it is not universal; that in two closely-allied species one will + possess it and the other not; and that it is common in such + widely-separated orders as gallinaceous and passerine birds, in pigeons, + ducks, and waders, it becomes plain that it is not assignable to community + of descent, but has originated independently all over the globe, in a vast + number of species. Something of the beginnings and progressive development + of this instinct may be learnt, I think, by noticing the behaviour of + various passerine birds in the presence of danger, to their nests and + young. Their actions and cries show that they are greatly agitated, and in + a majority of species the parent bird flits and flutters round the + intruder, uttering sounds of dis- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 110 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + tress. Frequently the bird exhibits its agitation, not only by these cries + and restless motions, but by the drooping of the wings and tail--the + action observed in a bird when hurt or sick, or oppressed with heat. These + languishing signs are common to a great many species after the young have + been hatched; the period when the parental solicitude is most intense. In + several species which I have observed in South America, the languishing is + more marked. There are no sorrowful cries and restless movements; the bird + sits with hanging wings and tail, gasping for breath with open bill--in + appearance a greatly suffering bird. In some cases of this description, + the bird, if it moves at all, hops or flutters from a higher to a lower + branch, and, as if sick or wounded, seems about to sink to the ground. In + still others, the bird actually does drop to the ground, then, feebly + flapping its wings, rises again with great effort. From this last form it + is but a step to the more highly developed complex instinct of the bird + that sinks to the earth and flutters painfully away, gasping, and + seemingly incapable of flight. + </p> + <p> + It would be a great mistake to suppose that the bird when fluttering on + the ground to lead an + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 111 + </p> + <p> + enemy from the neighbourhood of its nest is in full possession of all its + faculties, acting consciously, and itself in as little danger of capture + as when on its perch or flying through the air. We have seen that the + action has its root in the bird's passion for its young, and intense + solicitude in the presence of any danger threatening them, which is so + universal in this class of creatures, and which expresses itself so + variously in different kinds. This must be in all cases a painful and + debilitating emotion, and when the bird drops down to the earth its pain + has caused it to fall as surely as if it had received a wound or had been + suddenly attacked by some grievous malady; and when it flutters on the + ground it is for the moment incapable of flight, and its efforts to + recover flight and safety cause it to beat its wings, and tremble, and + gasp with open mouth. The object of the action is to deceive an enemy, or, + to speak more correctly, the result is to deceive, and there is nothing + that will more inflame and carry away any rapacious mammal than the sight + of a fluttering bird. But in thus drawing upon itself the attention of an + enemy threatening the safety of its eggs or young, to what a terrible + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 112 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + danger does the parent expose itself, and how often, in those moments of + agitation and debility, must its own life fall a sacrifice! The sudden + spring and rush of a feline enemy must have proved fatal in myriads of + instances. From its inception to its most perfect stage, in the various + species that possess it, this perilous instinct has been washed in blood + and made bright. + </p> + <p> + What I have just said, that the peculiar instinct and deceptive action we + have been considering is made and kept bright by being bathed in blood, + applies to all instinctive acts that tend to the preservation of life, + both of the individual and species. Necessarily so, seeing that, for one + thing, instincts can only arise and grow to perfection in order to meet + cases which commonly occur in the life of a species. The instinct is not + prophetic and does not meet rare or extraordinary situations. Unless + intelligence or some higher faculty comes in to supplement or to take the + place of instinctive action then the creature must perish on account of + the limitation of instinct. Again, the higher and more complete the + instinct the more perilous it is, seeing that its efficiency depends on + the absolutely perfect health and balance of all + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 113 + </p> + <p> + the faculties and the entire organism. Thus, the higher instinctive + faculty and action of birds for the preservation of the species, that of + migration, is undoubtedly the most dangerous of all. It is so perfect that + by means of this faculty millions and myriads of birds of an immense + variety of species from cranes, swans, and geese down to minute goldcrests + and firecrests and the smallest feeble-winged-leaf warblers, are able to + inhabit and to distribute themselves evenly over all the temperate and + cold regions of the earth, and even nearer the pole: and in all these + regions they rear their young and spend several months each year, where + they would inevitably perish from cold and lack of food if they stayed on + to meet the winter. We can best realize the perfection of this instinct + when we consider that all these migrants, including the young which have + never hitherto strayed beyond the small area of their home where every + tree and bush and spring and rock is familiar to them, rush suddenly away + as if blown by a wind to unknown lands and continents beyond the seas to a + distance of from a thousand to six or seven thousand miles; that after + long months spent in those distant places, which in turn have grown + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 114 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + familiar to them, they return again to their natal place, not in a direct + but ofttimes by a devious route, now north, now north-east, now east or + west, keeping to the least perilous lines and crossing the seas where they + are narrowest. Thus, when the returning multitude recrosses the Channel + into England, coming by way of France and Spain from north or south or + mid-Africa and from Asia, they at once proceed to disperse over the entire + country from Land's End to Thurso and the northernmost islands of + Scotland, until every wood and hill and moor and thicket and stream and + every village and field and hedgerow and farmhouse has its own feathered + people back in their old places. But they do not return in their old + force. They had increased to twice or three times their original numbers + when they left us, and as a result of that great adventure a half or + two-thirds of the vast army has perished. + </p> + <p> + The instinct which in character comes nearest to that of the parent + simulating the action of a wounded and terrified bird struggling to escape + in order to safeguard its young, is that one, very strong in all + ground-breeding species, of sitting close on the nest in the presence of + danger. Here, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 115 + </p> + <p> + too, the instinct is of prime importance to the species, since the bird by + quitting the nest reveals its existence to the prowling, nest-seeking + enemy--dog, cat, fox, stoat, rat, in England; and in the country where I + first observed animals, the skunk, armadillo, opossum, snake, wild cat, + and animals of the weasel family. By leaving its nest a minute or half a + minute too soon the bird sacrifices the eggs or young; by staying a moment + too long it is in imminent danger of being destroyed itself. How often the + bird stays too long on the nest is seen in the corn-crake, a species + continually decreasing in this country owing to the destruction caused by + the mowing-machine. The parent birds that escape may breed again in a + safer place, but in many cases the bird clings too long to its nest and is + decapitated or fatally injured by the cutters. Larks, too, often perish in + the same way. To go back to the ailing or wounded bird simulating action: + this is perhaps most perfect in the gallinaceous birds, all + ground-breeders whose nests are most diligently hunted for by all + egg-eating creatures, beast or bird, and whose tender chicks are a + favourite food for all rapacious animals. In the fowl, pheasants, + partridges, quail, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 116 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + and grouse, the instinct is singularly powerful, the bird making such + violent efforts to escape, with such an outcry, such beating of its wings + and struggles on the ground, that no rapacious beast, however often he may + have been deceived before, can fail to be carried away with the prospect + of an immediate capture. The instinct and action has appeared to me more + highly developed in these birds because, in the first place, the + demonstrations are more violent than in other families, consequently more + effective; and secondly, because the danger once over, the bird's recovery + to its normal quiet, watchful state is quicker. By way of experiment, I + have at various times thrown myself on pheasants, partridges and grouse, + when I have found them with a family of recently-hatched chicks; then on + giving up the chase and turning away from the bird its instantaneous + recovery has seemed like a miracle. It was like a miracle because the + creature did actually suffer from all those violent, debilitating emotions + expressed in its disordered cries and action, and it is the miracle of + Nature's marvellous health. If we, for example, were thrown into these + violent extremes of passion, we should not escape the + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 117 + </p> + <p> + after-effects. Our whole system would suffer, a doctor would perhaps have + to be called in and would discourse wisely on metabolism and the + development of toxins in the muscles, and give us a bottle of medicine. + </p> + <p> + I will conclude this digression and dissertation on a bird's instinct by + relating the action of a hen-pheasant I once witnessed, partly because it + is the most striking one I have met with of that instantaneous recovery of + a bird from an extremity of distress and terror, and partly for another + reason which will appear at the end. + </p> + <p> + The hen-pheasant was a solitary bird, having strayed away from the + pheasant copses near the Itchen and found a nesting-place a mile away, on + the other side of the valley, among the tall grasses and sedges on its + border. I was the bird's only human neighbour, as I was staying in a + fishing-cottage near the spot where the bird had its nest. Eventually, it + brought off eight chicks and remained with them at the same spot on the + edge of the valley, living like a rail among the sedges and tall valley + herbage. I never went near the bird, but from the cottage caught sight of + it from time to time, and sometimes watched it with my + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 118 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + binocular. There was, I thought, a good chance of its being able to rear + its young, unless the damp proved injurious, as there was no dog or cat at + the cottage, and there were no carrion crows or sparrow-hawks at that + spot. One morning about five o'clock on going out I spied a fox-terrier, a + poaching dog from the neighbouring village, rushing about in an excited + state a hundred yards or so below the cottage. He had scented the birds, + and presently up rose the hen from the tall grass with a mighty noise, + then flopping down she began beating her wings and struggling over the + grass, uttering the most agonizing screams, the dog after her, frantically + grabbing at her tail. I feared that he would catch her, and seizing a + stick flew down to the rescue, yelling at the dog, but he was too excited + to obey or even hear me. At length, thanks to the devious course taken by + the bird, I got near enough to get in a good blow on the dog's back. He + winced and went on as furiously as ever, and then I got in another blow so + well delivered that the rascal yelled, and turning fled back to the + village. Hot and panting from my exertions, I stood still, but sooner + still the pheasant had pulled herself up and stood + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 119 + </p> + <p> + there, about three yards from my feet, as if nothing had happened--as if + not a ripple had troubled the quiet surface of her life! The serenity of + the bird, just out of that storm of violence and danger, and her perfect + indifference to my presence, was astonishing to me. For a minute or two I + stood still watching her; then turned to walk back to the cottage, and no + sooner did I start than after me she came at a gentle trot, following me + like a dog. On my way back I came to the very spot where the fox-terrier + had found and attacked the bird, and at once on reaching it she came to a + stop and uttered a call, and instantly from eight different places among + the tall grasses the eight fluffy little chicks popped up and started + running to her. And there she stood, gathering them about her with gentle + chucklings, taking no notice of me, though I was standing still within two + yards of her! + </p> + <p> + Up to the moment when the dog got his smart blow and fled from her she had + been under the domination of a powerful instinct, and could have acted in + no other way; but what guided her so infallibly in her subsequent actions? + Certainly not instinct, and not reason, which hesitates between + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 120 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + different courses and is slow to arrive at a decision. One can only say + that it was, or was like, intuition, which is as much as to say that we + don't know. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-15.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-15.jpg" width="160" + height="122" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="linkIX" id="linkIX"></a> + </p> + <h3> + IX + </h3> + <p> + AMONG the rarer fringilline birds on the common were the cirl bunting, + bullfinch and goldfinch, the last two rarely seen. Linnets, however, were + abundant, now gathered in small flocks composed mainly of young birds in + plain plumage, with here and there an individual showing the + carmine-tinted breast of the adult male. Unhappily, a dreary fate was in + store for many of these blithe twitterers. + </p> + <p> + On June 24, when walking towards the pool, I spied two recumbent human + figures on a stretch of level turf near its banks, and near them a + something dark on the grass--a pair of clap-nets! "Still another serpent + in my birds' paradise!" said I to myself, and, walking on, I skirted the + nets and sat down on the grass beside the men. One was a rough brown-faced + country lad; the other, who held the strings and wore the usual cap and + comforter, was a man of about five-and-twenty, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 122 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + with pale blue eyes and yellowish hair, close-cropped, and the + unmistakable London mark in his chalky complexion. He regarded me with + cold, suspicious looks, and, when I talked and questioned, answered + briefly and somewhat surlily. I treated him to tobacco, and he smoked; but + it wasn't shag, and didn't soften him. On mentioning casually that I had + seen a stoat an hour before, he exhibited a sudden interest. It was as if + one had said "rats!" to a terrier. I succeeded after a while in getting + him to tell me the name of the man to whom he sent his captives, and when + I told him that I knew the man well--a bird-seller in a low part of + London--he thawed visibly. Finally I asked him to look at a red-backed + shrike, perched on a bush about fifteen yards from his nets, through my + field-glasses, and from that moment he became as friendly as possible, and + conversed freely about his mystery. "How near it brings him!" he + exclaimed, with a grin of delight, after looking at the bird. The shrike + had greatly annoyed him; it had been hanging about for some time, he told + me, dashing at the linnets and driving them off when they flew down to the + nets. Two or three times he might + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 123 + </p> + <p> + have caught it, but would not draw the nets and have the trouble of + resetting them for so worthless a bird. "But I'll take him the next time," + he said vindictively. "I didn't know he was such a handsome bird." + Unfortunately, the shrike soon flew away, and passing linnets dropped + down, drawn to the spot by the twitterings of their caged fellows, and + were caught; and so it went on for a couple of hours, we conversing + amicably during the waiting intervals. For now he regarded me as a friend + of the bird-catcher. Linnets only were caught, most of them young birds, + which pleased him; for the young linnet after a month or two of cage life + will sing; but the adult males would be silent until the next spring, + consequently they were not worth so much, although the carmine stain in + their breast made them for the time so much more beautiful. + </p> + <p> + I remarked incidentally that there were some who looked with unfriendly + eyes on his occupation, and that, sooner or later, these people would try + to get an Act of Parliament to make bird-catching in lanes, on commons and + waste lands illegal. "They can't do it!" he exclaimed excitedly. "And if + they can do it, and if they do + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 124 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + do it, it will be the ruination of England. For what would there be, then, + to stop the birds increasing? It stands to reason that the whole country + would be eaten up." + </p> + <p> + Doubtless the man really believed that but for the laborious days that + bird-catchers spend lying on the grass, the human race would be very badly + off. + </p> + <p> + Just after he had finished his protest, three or four linnets flew down + and were caught. Taking them from the nets, he showed them to me, + remarking, with a short laugh, that they were all young males. Then he + thrust them down the stocking-leg which served as an entrance to the + covered box he kept his birds in--the black hole in which their captive + life begins, where they were now all vainly fluttering to get out. Going + back to the previous subject, he said that he knew very well that many + persons disliked a bird-catcher, but there was one thing that nobody could + say against him--he wasn't cruel; he caught, but didn't kill. He only + killed when he caught a great number of female linnets, which were not + worth sending up; he pulled their heads off, and took them home to make a + linnet pie. Then, by + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 125 + </p> + <p> + way of contrast to his own merciful temper, he told me of the young + nest-destroyer I have writ-ten about. It made him mad to see such things! + Something ought to be done, he said, to stop a boy like that; for by + destroying so many nestlings he was taking the bread out of the + bird-catcher's mouth. Passing to other subjects, he said that so far he + had caught nothing but linnets on the common--you couldn't expect to catch + other kinds in June. Later on, in August and September, there would be a + variety. But he had small hopes of catching goldfinches, they were too + scarce now. Greenfinches, yellow-hammers, common buntings, reed + sparrows--all such birds were worth only tuppence apiece. Oh, yes, he + caught them just the same, and sent them up to London, but that was all + they were worth to him. For young male linnets he got eightpence, + sometimes tenpence; for hen birds fourpence, or less. I dare say that + eightpence was what he hoped to get, seeing that young male linnets are + not unfrequently sold by London dealers for sixpence and even fourpence. + Goldfinches ran to eighteenpence, sometimes as much as two shillings. + Starlings he had made a lot out of, but that was all past and over. Why? + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 126 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + Because they were not wanted--because people were such fools that they now + preferred to shoot at pigeons. He hated pigeons! Gentlemen used to shoot + starlings at matches; and if you had the making of a bird to shoot at, you + couldn't get a better than the starling--such a neat bird! He had caught + hundreds--thousands--and had sold them well. But now nothing but pigeons + would they have. Pigeons! Always pigeons! He caught starlings still, but + what was the good of that? The dealers would only take a few, and they + were worth nothing--no more than greenfinches and yellow-hammers. + </p> + <p> + My colloquy with my enemy on the common tempts me to a fresh digression in + this place--to have my say on a question about which much has already been + said during the last three or four decades, especially during the + 'sixties, when the first practical efforts to save our wild-bird life from + destruction were made. + </p> + <p> + There is a feeling in the great mass of people that the pursuit of any + wild animal, whether fit for food or not, for pleasure or gain, is a form + of sport, and that sport ought not to be inter- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 127 + </p> + <p> + fered with. So strong and well-nigh universal is this feeling, which is + like a superstition, that the pursuit is not interfered with, however + unsportsmanlike it may be, and when illegal, and when practised by only a + very few persons in any district, where to others it may be secretly + distasteful or even prejudicial. + </p> + <p> + Even bird-catching on a common is regarded as a form of sport and the + bird-catcher as a sportsman--and a brother. + </p> + <p> + A striking instance of this tameness and stupidly acquiescent spirit in + people generally was witnessed during the intensely severe frosts of the + early part of the late winter (1882-3), when incalculable numbers of + sea-birds were driven by hunger and cold into bays and inland waters. At + this time thousands of gulls made their appearance in the Thames, but no + sooner did they arrive than those who possessed guns and licences to shoot + began to shoot them. The police interfered and some of these sportsmen + were brought before the magistrates and fined for the offence of + discharging guns to the public danger. For upwards of a fortnight after + the shooting had been put a stop to, the gulls continued to frequent the + river + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 128 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + in large numbers, and were perhaps most numerous from London Bridge to + Battersea, and during this time they were watched every day by thousands + of Londoners with keen interest and pleasure. The river here, flowing + through the very centre and heart of the greatest city of the world, forms + at all hours and at all seasons of the year a noble and magnificent sight; + to my eyes it never looked more beautiful and wonderful than during those + intensely cold days of January, when there was nothing that one could call + a mist in a chilly, motionless atmosphere, but only a faint haze, a pallor + as of impalpable frost, which made the heavens seem more white than blue, + and gave a hoariness and cloud-like remoteness to the arches spanning the + water, and the vast buildings on either side, ending with the sublime dome + of the city cathedral; and when out of the pale motionless haze, singly, + in twos and threes, in dozens and scores, floated the mysterious white + bird-figures, first seen like vague shadows in the sky, then quickly + taking shape and whiteness, and floating serenely past, to be succeeded by + others and yet others. + </p> + <p> + It was not merely the ornithologist in me that + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 129 + </p> + <p> + made the sight so fascinating, since it was found that others--all others, + it might almost be said,--experienced the same kind of delight. Crowds of + people came down to the river to watch the birds; workmen when released + from their work at mid-day hurried down to the embankment so as to enjoy + seeing the gulls while eating their dinners, and, strangest thing of all, + to feed them with the fragments! + </p> + <p> + And yet these very men who found so great a pleasure in observing and + feeding their white visitors from the sea, and were exhilarated with the + novel experiences of seeing wild nature face to face at their own + doors--these thousands would have stood by silent and consenting if the + half-a-dozen scoundrels with guns and fish-hooks on lines had been allowed + to have their will and had slaughtered and driven the birds from the + river! And this, in fact, is precisely what happened at a distance from + London, where guns could be discharged without danger to the public, in + numberless bays and rivers in which the birds sought refuge. They were + simply slaughtered wholesale in the most wanton manner; in More-cambe Bay + a hundred and twelve gulls were killed + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 130 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + at one discharge, and no hand and no voice was raised to interfere with + the hideous sport. Not because it was not shocking to the spectators, but + because it was "Sport." + </p> + <p> + Doubtless it will be said that this wholesale wanton destruction of bird + life, however painful it may be to lovers of nature, however reprehensible + from a moral point of view, is sanctioned by law, and cannot therefore be + prevented. This is not quite so. We see that the Wild Birds Protection Act + is continually being broken with impunity, and where public opinion is + unfavourable to it the guardians of the law themselves, the police and the + magistrates, are found encouraging the people to break the law. Again, we + find that where commons are enclosed, and the law says nothing, the people + are accustomed to assemble together unlawfully to tear the fences down, + and are not punished. For, after all, if laws do not express or square + with public will or opinion, they have little force; and if, in any + locality, the people thought proper to do so--if they were not restrained + by that dull, tame spirit I have spoken of--they would, lawfully or + unlawfully, protect their sea-fowl from the cockney + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 131 + </p> + <p> + sportsmen, and sweep the bird-catchers out of their lanes and waste lands. + </p> + <p> + One day I paid a visit to Maidenhead, a pleasant town on the Thames, where + the Thames is most beautiful, set in the midst of a rich and diversified + country which should be a bird's paradise. In my walks in the town, I saw + a great many stuffed kingfishers, and, in the shops of the local + taxidermists, some rare and beautiful birds, with others that are fast + becoming rare. But outside of the town I saw no kingfishers and no rare + species at all, and comparatively few birds of any kind. It might have + been a town of Philistine cockneys who at no very distant period had + emigrated thither from the parish of St. Giles-in-the-Fields. I came home + with the local guide-book in my pocket. It is now before me, and this is + what its writer says of the Thicket, the extensive and beautiful common + two miles from the town, which belongs to Maidenhead, or, in other words, + to its inhabitants: "The Thicket was formerly much infested by robbers and + highwaymen. The only remains of them to be found now are the snarers of + the little feathered songsters, who im- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 132 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + prison them in tiny cages and carry them off in large numbers to brighten + by their sweet, sad sighs for liberty the dwellers in our smoky cities." + </p> + <p> + On this point I consulted a bird-catcher, who had spread his nets on the + common for many years, and he complained bitterly of the increasing + scarcity of its bird life. There was no better place than the Thicket + formerly, he said; but now he could hardly make his bread there. I presume + that a dozen men of his trade would be well able to drain the country in + the neighbourhood of the Thicket of the greater portion of its bird life + each year so as to keep the songsters scarce. Will any person maintain for + a moment that the eight or nine thousand inhabitants of Maidenhead, and + the hundreds or thousands inhabiting the surrounding country could not + protect their songbirds from these few men, most of them out of London + slums, if they wished or had the spirit to do so? + </p> + <p> + It is true that the local authorities in some country towns have made + by-laws to protect the birds in their open spaces. Thus, at Tunbridge + Wells, since 1890, bird-trapping and bird's-nesting have been prohibited + on the large and beau- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 133 + </p> + <p> + tiful common there; but, so far as I know, such measures have only been + taken in boroughs after the birds have been almost exterminated. + </p> + <p> + Doubtless the day will come when, law or no law, the bird-catcher will + find it necessary to go warily, lest the people of any place where he may + be tempted to spread his nets should have formed the custom of treating + those of his calling somewhat roughly. That it will come soon is earnestly + to be wished. Nevertheless, it would be irrational to cherish feelings of + animosity and hatred against the bird-catcher himself, the "man and + brother," ready and anxious as we may be to take the bread out of his + mouth. He certainly does not regard himself as an injurious or + disreputable person; on the contrary he looks on himself as a useful + member of the community, and in some cases even more. If anyone is to be + hated or blamed, it is the person who sends the bird-catcher into the + fields; not the dealer, but he who buys trapped birds and keeps them in + cages to be amused by their twitterings. This is not a question of + morality, nor of sentimentality, as some may imagine; but rather of taste, + of the sense of fitness, of that something vaguely + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 134 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + described as the feeling for nature, which is not universal. Thus, one man + will dine with zest on a pheasant, partridge, or quail, but would be + choked by a lark; while another man will eat pheasant and lark with equal + pleasure. Both may be good, honest, moral men; only one has that something + which the other lacks. In one the soul responds to the skylark's music + "singing at heaven's gate," in the other not; to one the roasted lark is + merely a savoury morsel; the other, be he never so hungry, cannot + dissociate the bird on the dish from that heavenly melody which registered + a sensation in his brain, to be thereafter reproduced at will, together + with the revived emotion. It is a curious question, and is no nearer to a + settlement when one of these two I have described turns round and calls + his neighbour a gross feeder, a worshipper of his belly, a soulless and + brutish man; and when the other answers "pooh-pooh" and goes on + complacently devouring larks with great gusto, until he is himself + devoured of death. + </p> + <p> + To those with whom I am in sympathy in this matter, who love to listen to + and are yearly invigorated by the skylark's music, and whose souls + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 135 + </p> + <p> + are yearly sickened at the slaughter of their loved songsters, I would + humbly suggest that there is a simpler, more practical means of ending + this dispute, which has surely lasted long enough. It goes without saying + that this bird's music is eminently pleasing to most persons, that even as + the sunshine is sweet and pleasant to behold, its silvery aerial sounds + rained down so abundantly from heaven are delightful and exhilarating to + all of us, or at all events, to so large a majority that the minority are + not entitled to consideration. One person in five thousand, or perhaps in + ten thousand, might be found to say that the lark singing in blue heaven + affords him no pleasure. This being so, and ours being a democratic + country in which the will or desire of the many is or may be made the law + of the land, it is surely only right and reasonable that lovers of lark's + flesh should be prevented from gratifying their taste at the cost of the + destruction of so loved a bird, that they should be made to content + themselves with woodcock, and snipe on toast, and golden plover, and + grouse and blackcock, and any other bird of delicate flavor which does + not, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 136 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + living, appeal so strongly to the aesthetic feelings in us and is not so + universal a favourite. + </p> + <p> + This, too, will doubtless come in time. Speaking for myself, and going + back to the former subject, little as I like to see men feeding on larks, + rather would I see larks killed and eaten than thrust into cages. For in + captivity they do not "sweeten" my life, as the Maidenhead guidebook + writer would say, with their shrill, piercing cries for liberty, but they + "sing me mad." Just as in some minds this bird's music--a sound which + above all others typifies the exuberant life and joy of nature to the + soul--cannot be separated from the cooked and dished-up melodist, so that + they turn with horror from such meat, so I cannot separate this bird, nor + any bird, from the bird's wild life of liberty, and the marvellous faculty + of flight which is the bird's attribute. To see so wild and aerial a + creature in a cage jars my whole system, and is a sight hateful and + unnatural, an outrage on our universal mother. + </p> + <p> + This feeling about birds in captivity, which I have attempted to describe, + and which, I repeat, is not sentimentality, as that word is ordinarily + understood, has been so vividly rendered in an + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 137 + </p> + <p> + ode to "The Skylarks" by Sir Rennell Rodd, that the reader will probably + feel grateful to me for quoting a portion of it in this place, especially + as the volume in which it appears--<i>Feda, with Other Poems</i>--is, I + imagine, not very widely known: + </p> + <blockquote> + <p> + "Oh, the sky, the sky, the open sky,<br /> For the home of a song-bird's + heart!<br /> And why, and why, and for ever why,<br /> Do they stifle here + in the mart:<br /> Cages of agony, rows on rows,<br /> Torture that only a + wild thing knows:<br /> Is it nothing to you to see<br /> That head thrust + out through the hopeless wire, <br /> And the tiny life, and the mad + desire<br /> To be free, to be free, to be free?<br /> Oh, the sky, the + sky, the blue, wide sky,<br /> For the beat of a song-bird's wings! + </p> + <p> + * * * + </p> + <p> + Straight and close are the cramping bars<br /> From the dawn of mist to + the chill of stars,<br /> And yet it must sing or die!<br /> + </p> + </blockquote> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 138 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <blockquote> + <p> + Will its marred harsh voice in the city street<br /> Make any heart of + you glad? <br /> It will only beat with its wings and beat,<br /> It will + only sing you mad.<br /> + </p> + <p> + * * * + </p> + <p> + If it does not go to your heart to see<br /> The helpless pity of those + bruised wings,<br /> The tireless effort to which it clings<br /> To the + strain and the will to be free, <br /> I know not how I shall set in + words<br /> The meaning of God in this,<br /> For the loveliest thing in + this world of His<br /> Are the ways and the songs of birds. <br /> But + the sky, the sky, the wide, free sky,<br /> For the home of the + song-bird's heart!"<br /> + </p> + </blockquote> + <p> + + </p> + <p> + How falsely does that man see Nature, how grossly ignorant must he be of + its most elemental truths, who looks upon it as a chamber of torture, a + physiological laboratory on a very vast scale, a scene of endless strife + and trepidation, of hunger and cold, and every form of pain and + misery--and who, holding this doctrine of + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="link138" id="link138"></a> <img + src="images/hudson-birds-16.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-16.jpg" width="416" + height="686" /> + </p> + <p> + SKYLARK. + </p> + <p> + "; Oh, the sky, the sky, the open sky is the home of a song-bird's heart," + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 139 + </p> + <p> + Nature's cruelty, keeps a few captive birds in cages, and is accustomed to + say of them, "These, at any rate, are safe, rescued from subjection to + ruthless conditions, sheltered from the inclement weather and from + enemies, and all their small wants abundantly satisfied;" who once or + twice every day looks at his little captives, presents them with a lump of + sugar, whistles and chuckles to provoke them to sing, then goes about his + business, flattering himself that he is a lover of birds, a being of a + sweet and kindly nature. It is all a delusion--a distortion and inversion + of the truth--so absurd that it would be laughable were it not so sad, and + the cause of so much unconscious cruelty. The truth is, that if birds be + capable of misery, it is only in the unnatural conditions of a caged life + that they experience it; and that if they are capable of happiness in a + cage, such happiness or contentment is but a poor, pale emotion compared + with the wild exuberant gladness they have in freedom, where all their + instincts have full play, and where the perils that surround them do but + brighten their many splendid faculties. The little bird twitters and sings + in its cage, and among ourselves the blind man and the cripple + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 140 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + whistle and sing, too, feeling at times a lower kind of contentment and + cheerfulness. The chaffinch in East London, with its eyeballs seared by + red-hot needles, sings, too, in its prison, when it has grown accustomed + to its darkened existence, and is in health, and the agreeable sensations + that accompany health prompt it at intervals to melody, but no person, not + even the dullest ruffian among the baser sort of bird-fanciers would + maintain for a moment that the happiness of the little sightless captive, + whether vocal or silent, is at all comparable in degree to that of the + chaffinch singing in April "on the orchard bough," vividly seeing the wide + sunlit world, blue above and green below, possessing the will and the + power, when its lyric ends, to transport itself swiftly through the + crystal fields of air to other trees and other woods. + </p> + <p> + I take it that in the lower animals misery can result from two causes + only--restraint and disease; consequently, that animals in a state of + nature are not miserable. They are not hindered nor held back. Whether the + animal is migrating, or burying himself in his hibernating nest or den; or + flying from some rapacious enemy, which he + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 141 + </p> + <p> + may, or may not, be able to escape; or feeding, or sleeping, or fighting, + or courting, or incubating, however many days or weeks this process may + last--in all things he is obeying the impulse that is strongest in him at + the time--he is doing what he wants to do--the one thing that makes him + happy. + </p> + <p> + As to disease, it is so rare in wild animals, or in a large majority of + cases so quickly proves fatal, that, compared with what we call disease in + our own species it is practically non-existent. The "struggle for + existence," in so far as animals in a state of nature are concerned, is a + metaphorical struggle; and the strife, short and sharp, which is so common + in nature, is not misery, although it results in pain, since it is pain + that kills or is soon outlived. Fear there is, just as in fine weather + there are clouds in the sky; and just as the shadow of the cloud passes, + so does fear pass from the wild creature when the object that excited it + has vanished from sight. And when death comes, it comes unexpectedly, and + is not the death that we know, even before we taste of it, thinking of it + with apprehension all our lives long, but a sudden blow that takes away + consciousness--the + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 142 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + touch of something that numbs the nerves--merely the prick of a needle. In + whatever way the animal perishes, whether by violence, or excessive cold, + or decay, his death is a comparatively easy one. So long as he is fighting + with or struggling to escape from an enemy, wounds are not felt as wounds, + and scarcely hurt him--as we know from our own experience; and when + overcome, if death be not practically instantaneous, as in the case of a + small bird seized by a cat, the disabling grip or blow is itself a kind of + anodyne, producing insensibility to pain. This, too, is a matter of human + experience. To say nothing of those who fall in battle, men have often + been struck down and fearfully lacerated by lions, tigers, jaguars, and + other savage beasts; and after having been rescued by their companions, + have recounted this strange thing. Even when there was no loss of + consciousness, when they saw and knew that the animal was rending their + flesh, they seemed not to feel it, and were, at the time, indifferent to + the fate that had overtaken them. + </p> + <p> + It is the same in death from cold. The strong, well-nourished man, + overtaken by a snowstorm on some pathless, uninhabited waste, may expe- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 143 + </p> + <p> + rience some exceedingly bitter moments, or even hours, before he gives up + the struggle. The physical pain is simply nothing: the whole bitterness is + in the thought that he must die. The horror at the thought of + annihilation, the remembrance of all the happiness he is now about to + lose, of dear friends, of those whose lives will be dimmed with grief for + his loss, of all his cherished dreams of the future--the sting of all this + is so sharp that, compared with it, the creeping coldness in his blood is + nothing more than a slight discomfort, and is scarcely felt. By and by he + is overcome by drowsiness, and ceases to struggle; the torturing visions + fade from his mind, and his only thought is to lie down and sleep. And + when he sleeps he passes away; very easily, very painlessly, for the pain + was of the mind, and was over long before death ensued. + </p> + <p> + The bird, however hard the frost may be, flies briskly to its customary + roosting-place, and with beak tucked into its wing, falls asleep. It has + no apprehensions; only the hot blood grows colder and colder, the pulse + feebler as it sleeps, and at midnight, or in the early morning, it drops + from its perch--dead. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 144 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + Yesterday he lived and moved, responsible to a thousand external + influences, reflecting earth and sky in his small brilliant brain as in a + looking-glass; also he had a various language, the inherited knowledge of + his race, and the faculty of flight, by means of which he could shoot, + meteor-like, across the sky, and pass swiftly from place to place, and + with it such perfect control over all his organs, such marvellous + certitude in all his motions, as to be able to drop himself plumb down + from the tallest tree-top or out of the void air, on to a slender spray, + and scarcely cause its leaves to tremble. Now, on this morning, he lies + stiff and motionless; if you were to take him up and drop him from your + hand, he would fall to the ground like a stone or a lump of clay--so easy + and swift is the passage from life to death in wild nature! But he was + never miserable. + </p> + <p> + Those of my readers who have seen much of animals in a state of nature, + will agree that death from decay, or old age, is very rare among them. In + that state the fullest vigour, with brightness of all the faculties, is so + important that probably in ninety-nine cases in a hundred any falling-off + in + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 145 + </p> + <p> + strength, or decay of any sense, results in some fatal accident. Death by + misadventure, as we call it, is Nature's ordinance, the end designed for a + very large majority of her children. Nevertheless, animals do sometimes + live on without accident to the very end of their term, to fade peacefully + away at the last. I have myself witnessed such cases in mammals and birds; + and one such case, which profoundly impressed me, and is vividly + remembered, I will describe. + </p> + <p> + One morning in the late summer, while walking in the fields at my home in + South America, I noticed a few purple martins, large, beautiful swallows + common in that region, engaged, at a considerable height, in the aerial + exercises in which they pass so much of their time each day. By and by, + one of the birds separated itself from the others, and, circling slowly + downward, finally alighted on the ground not far from me. I walked on: but + the action of the bird had struck me as unusual and strange, and before + going far, I turned and walked back to the spot where it continued sitting + on the ground, quite motionless. It made no movement when I approached to + within four yards of it; and after I had stood still + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 146 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + at that distance for a minute or so, attentively regarding it, I saw it + put out one wing and turn over on its side. I at once took it up in my + hand, and found that it was already quite dead. It was a large example of + its species, and its size, together with a something of dimness in the + glossy purple colour of the upper plumage, seemed to show that it was an + old bird. But it was uninjured, and when I dissected it no trace of + disease was discernible. I concluded that it was an old bird that had died + solely from natural failure of the life-energy. + </p> + <p> + But how wonderful, how almost incredible, that the healthy vigour and joy + of life should have continued in this individual bird down to within so + short a period of the end; that it should have been not only strong enough + to find its food, but to rush and wheel about for long intervals in purely + sportive exercises, when the brief twilight of decline and final + extinction were so near! It becomes credible--we can even believe that + most of the individuals that cease to exist only when the vital fire has + burnt itself out, fall on death in this swift, easy manner--when we recall + the fact that even in the life-history of men such a thing + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 147 + </p> + <p> + is not unknown. Probably there is not one among my readers who will not be + able to recall some such incident in his own circle--the case of someone + who lived, perhaps, long past the term usually allotted to man, and who + finally passed away without a struggle, without a pang, so that those who + were with him found it hard to believe that the spirit had indeed gone. In + such cases, the subject has invariably been healthy, although it is hard + to believe that, in the conditions we exist in, any man can have the + perfect health that all wild creatures enjoy. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-17.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-17.jpg" width="117" + height="59" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + <br /> <a name="linkX" id="linkX"></a> + </p> + <h4> + X + </h4> + <p> + AFTER my long talk with the bird-catcher on June 24, and two more talks + equally long on the two following days, I found that something of the + charm the common had had for me was gone. It was not quite the same as + formerly; even the sunshine had a something of conscious sadness in it + which was like a shadow. Those merry little brown twitterers that + frequently shot across the sky, looking small as insects in the wide blue + expanse, and ever and anon dropped swiftly down like showers of aerolites, + to lose themselves in the grass and herbage, or perch singing on the + topmost dead twigs of a bush, now existed in constant imminent danger--not + of that quick merciful destruction which Nature has for her weaklings, and + for all that fail to reach her high standard; but of a worse fate, the + prison life which is not Nature's ordinance, but one of the cunning larger + Ape's abhorred inventions. In- + </p> + <p> + 148 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 149 + </p> + <p> + stead of taking my usual long strolls about the common I loitered once + more in the village lanes and had my reward. + </p> + <p> + On the morning of June 27 I was out sauntering very indolently, thinking + of nothing at all; for it was a surpassingly brilliant day, and the + sunshine produced the effect of a warm, lucent, buoyant fluid, in which I + seemed to float rather than walk--a celestial water, which, like the more + ponderable and common sort, may sometimes be both felt and seen. The + sensation of feeling it is somewhat similar to that experienced by a + bather standing breast-deep in a dear, green, warm tropical sea, so + charged with salt that it lifts him up; but to distinguish it with the + eye, you must look away to a distance of some yards in an open unshaded + place, when it will become visible as fine glinting lines, quivering and + serpentining upwards, fountain-wise, from the surface. All at once I was + startled by hearing the loud importunate hunger-call of a young cuckoo + quite close to me. Moving softly up to the low hedge and peering over, I + saw the bird perched on a long cross-stick, which had been put up in a + cottage garden to hang clothes on; he was not + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 150 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + more than three to four yards from me, a fine young cuckoo in perfect + plumage, his barred under-surface facing me. Although seeing me as plainly + as I saw him, he exhibited no fear, and did not stir. Why should he, since + I had not come there to feed him, and, to his inexperienced avian mind, + was only one of the huge terrestrial creatures of various forms, with + horns and manes on their heads, that move heavily about in roads and + pastures, and are nothing to birds? But his foster parent, a + hedge-sparrow, was suspicious, and kept at some distance with food in her + bill; then excited by his imperative note, she flitted shyly to him, and + deposited a minute caterpillar in his great gaping yellow mouth. It was + like dropping a bun into the monstrous mouth of the hippopotamus of the + Zoological Gardens. But the hedge-sparrow was off and back again with a + second morsel in a very few moments; and again and again she darted away + in quest of food and returned successful, while the lazy, beautiful giant + sat sunning himself on his cross-stick and hungrily cried for more. + </p> + <p> + This is one of those exceptional sights in nature which, however often + seen, never become alto- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 151 + </p> + <p> + gether familiar, never fail to re-excite the old feelings of wonder and + admiration which were experienced on first witnessing them. I can safely + say, I think, that no man has observed so many parasitical young birds + (individuals) being fed by their foster-parents as myself, yet the + interest such a sight inspired in me is just as fresh now as in boyhood. + And probably in no parasitical species does the strangeness of the + spectacle strike the mind so sharply as in this British bird, since the + differences in size and colouring between the foster-parent and its false + offspring are so much greater in its case. Here nature's unnaturalness in + such an instinct--a close union of the beautiful and the monstrous--is + seen in its extreme form. The hawk-like figure and markings of the cuckoo + serve only to accentuate the disparity, which is perhaps greatest when the + parent is the hedge-sparrow--so plainly-coloured a bird, so shy and + secretive in its habits. One never ceases to be amazed at the blindness of + the parental instinct in so intelligent a creature as a bird in a case of + this kind. Some idea of how blind it is may be formed by imagining a case + in widely separated types of our own species, which would be a + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 152 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + parallel to that of the cuckoo and hedge-sparrow. Let us imagine that some + malicious Arabian Night's genius had snatched up the infant male child of + a Scandinavian couple--the largest of their nation; and flying away to + Africa with it, to the heart of the great Aruwhimi forest had laid it on + the breast of a little coffee-coloured, woolly-headed, spindle-shanked, + pot-bellied, pigmy mother, taking away at the same time her own newly-born + babe; that she had tenderly nursed the substituted child, and reared and + protected it, ministering, according to her lights, to all its huge wants, + until he had come to the fullness of his stature, yet never suspected, + that the magnificent, ivory-limbed giant, with flowing yellow locks and + cerulean eyes, was not the child of her own womb. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-18.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-18.jpg" width="133" + height="100" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="linkXI" id="linkXI"></a> + </p> + <h4> + XI + </h4> + <p> + BRIGHT and genial were all the last days of June, when I loitered in the + lanes before the unwished day of my return to London. During this quiet, + pleasant time the greenfinch was perhaps more to me than any other + songster. In the village itself, with the adjacent lanes and orchards, + this pretty, seldom-silent bird was the most common species. The village + was his metropolis, just as London is ours--and the sparrow's; its lanes + were his streets, its hedges and elm trees his cottage rows and tall + stately mansions and public buildings. . We frequently find the + predominance of one species somewhat wearisome. Speaking for myself, there + are songsters that are best appreciated when they are limited in numbers + and keep their distance, but of the familiar, unambitious strains of + swallow, robin, and wren I never tire, nor, during these days, could I + have too much of the greenfinch, low as he ranks among British + </p> + <p> + 153 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 154 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + melodists. Tastes differ; that is a point on which we are all agreed, and + every one of us, even the humblest, is permitted to have his own + preferences. Still, after re-reading Wordsworth's lines to "The Green + Linnet," it is curious, to say the least of it, to turn to some + prosewriter--an authority on birds, perhaps--to find that this species, + whose music so charmed the poet, has for its song a monotonous croak, + which it repeats at short intervals for hours without the slightest + variation--a dismal sound which harmonizes with no other sound in nature, + and suggests nothing but heat and weariness, and is of all natural sounds + the most irritating. To this writer, then--and there are others to keep + him in countenance--the greenfinch as a vocalist ranks lower than the + lowest. One can only wonder (and smile) at such extreme divergences. To my + mind all natural sounds have, in some measure an exhilarating effect, and + I cannot get rid of the notion that so it should be with every one of us; + and when some particular sound, or series of sounds, that has more than + this common character, and is distinctly pleasing, is spoken of as nothing + but disagreeable, irritating, and the rest + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 155 + </p> + <p> + of it, I am inclined to think that there is something wrong with the + person who thus describes it; that he is not exactly as nature would have + had him, but that either during his independent life, or before it at some + period of his prenatal existence, something must have happened to distune + him. All this, I freely confess, may be nothing but fancy. In any case, + the subject need not keep us longer from the greenfinch--that is to say, + <i>my</i> greenfinch not another man's. + </p> + <p> + From morning until evening all around and about the cottage, and out of + doors whithersoever I bent my steps, from the masses of deep green + foliage, sounded the perpetual airy prattle of these delightful birds. One + had the idea that the concealed vocalists were continually meeting each + other at little social gatherings, where they exchanged pretty loving + greetings, and indulged in a leafy gossip, interspersed with occasional + fragments of music, vocal and instrumental; now a long trill--a trilling, + a tinkling, a sweeping of one minute finger-tip over metal strings as fine + as gossamer threads--describe it how you will, you cannot describe it; + then the long, low, inflected scream, like a lark's throat-note drawn out + and + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 156 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + inflected; little chirps and chirruping exclamations and remarks, and a + soft warbled note three or four or more times repeated, and sometimes, the + singer fluttering up out of the foliage and hovering in the air, + displaying his green and yellow plumage while emitting these lovely notes; + and again the trill, trill answering trill in different keys; and again + the music scream, as if some unsubstantial being, fairy or woodnymph had + screamed somewhere in her green hiding-place. In London one frequently + hears, especially in the spring, half-a-dozen sparrows just met together + in a garden tree, or among the ivy or creeper on a wall, burst out + suddenly into a confused rapturous chorus of chirruping sounds, mingled + with others of a finer quality, liquid and ringing. At such times one is + vexed to think that there are writers on birds who invariably speak of the + sparrow as a tuneless creature, a harsh chirper, and nothing more. It + strikes one that such writers either wilfully abuse or are ignorant of the + right meaning of words, so wild and glad in character are these concerts + of town sparrows, and so refreshing to the tired and noise-vexed brain! + But now when I listened to + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 157 + </p> + <p> + the greenfinches in the village elms and hedgerows, if by chance a few + sparrows burst out in loud gratulatory notes, the sounds they emitted + appeared coarse, and I wished the chirrupers away. But with the true and + brilliant songsters it seemed to me that the rippling greenfinch music was + always in harmony, forming as it were a kind of airy, subdued + accompaniment to their loud and ringing tones. + </p> + <p> + I had had my nightingale days, my cuckoo and blackbird and tree-pipit + days, with others too numerous to mention, and now I was having my + greenfinch days; and these were the last. + </p> + <p> + One morning in July I was in my sitting-room, when in the hedge on the + other side of the lane, just opposite my window, a small brown bird + warbled a few rich notes, the prelude to his song. I went and stood by the + open window, intently listening, when it sang again, but only a phrase or + two. But I listened still, confidently expecting more; for although it was + now long past its singing season, that splendid sunshine would compel it + to express its gladness. Then, just when a fresh burst of music came, it + was disturbed by another sound close by--a human voice, also sing- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 158 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + ing. On the other side of the hedge in which the bird sat concealed was a + cottage garden, and there on a swing fastened to a pair of apple trees, a + girl about eleven years old sat lazily swinging herself. Once or twice + after she began singing the nightingale broke out again, and then at last + he became silent altogether, his voice overpowered by hers. Girl and bird + were not five yards apart. It greatly surprised me to hear her singing, + for it was eleven o'clock, when all the village children were away at the + National School, a time of day when, so far as human sounds were + concerned, there reigned an almost unbroken silence. But very soon I + recalled the fact that this was a very lazy child, and concluded that she + had coaxed her mother into sending an excuse for keeping her at home, and + so had kept her liberty on this beautiful morning. About two minutes' walk + from the cottage, at the side of the crooked road running through the + village, there was a group of ancient pollarded elm trees with huge, + hollow trunks, and behind them an open space, a pleasant green slope, + where some of the village children used to go every day to play on the + grass. Here I used to see this girl lying in the sun, her dark + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN A VILLAGE 159 + </p> + <p> + chestnut hair loosed and scattered on the sward, her arms stretched out, + her eyes nearly closed, basking in the sun, as happy as some heat-loving + wild animal. No, it was not strange that she had not gone to school with + the others when her disposition was remembered, but most strange to hear a + voice of such quality in a spot where nature was rich and lovely, and only + man was, if not vile, at all events singularly wanting in the finer human + qualities. + </p> + <p> + Looking out from the open window across the low hedge-top, I could see her + as she alternately rose and fell with slow, indolent motion, now + waist-high above the green dividing wall, then only her brown head visible + resting against the rope just where her hand had grasped it. And as she + swayed herself to and fro she sang that simple melody--probably some + child's hymn which she had been taught at the Sunday-school; but it was a + very long hymn, or else she repeated the same few stanzas many times, and + after each there was a brief pause, and then the voice that seemed to fall + and rise with the motion went on as before. I could have stood there for + an hour--nay, for hours--listening to it, so fresh and + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 160 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + so pure was the clear young voice, which had no earthly trouble in it, and + no passion, and was in this like the melody of the birds of which I had + lately heard so much; and with it all that tenderness and depth which is + not theirs, but is human only and of the soul. + </p> + <p> + It struck me as a singular coincidence--and to a mind of so primitive a + type as the writer's there is more in the fact that the word + implies--that, just as I had quitted London, to seek for just such a spot + as I so speedily found, with the passionately exclaimed words of a young + London girl ringing in my ears, so now I went back with this village + girl's melody sounding and following me no less clearly and insistently. + For it was not merely remembered, as we remember most things, but vividly + and often reproduced, together with the various melodies of the birds I + had listened to; a greater and principal voice in that choir, yet in no + wise lessening their first value, nor ever out of harmony with them. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-19.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-19.jpg" width="143" + height="98" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="link161" id="link161"></a> <img + src="images/hudson-birds-20.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-20.jpg" width="401" + height="174" /> + </p> + <h3> + EXOTIC BIRDS FOR BRITAIN + </h3> + <p> + THERE are countries with a less fertile soil and a worse climate than + ours, yet richer in bird life. Nevertheless, England is not poor; the + species are not few in number, and some are extremely abundant. + Unfortunately many of the finer kinds have been too much sought after; + persecuted first for their beauty, then for their rarity, until now we are + threatened with their total destruction. As these kinds become + unobtainable, those which stand next in the order of beauty and rarity are + persecuted in their turn; and in a country as densely populated as ours, + where birds cannot hide themselves from human eyes, such persecution must + eventually cause their extinction. Meanwhile the bird population does not + decrease. Every place in nature, like every property in + </p> + <p> + 161 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 162 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + Chancery, has more than one claimant to it--sometimes the claimants are + many--and so long as the dispute lasts all live out of the estate. For + there are always two or more species subsisting on the same kind of food, + possessing similar habits, and frequenting the same localities. It is + consequently impossible for man to exterminate any one species without + indirectly benefiting some other species, which attracts him in a less + degree, or not at all. This is unfortunate, for as the bright kinds, or + those we esteem most, diminish in numbers the less interesting kinds + multiply, and we lose much of the pleasure which bird life is fitted to + give us. When we visit woods, or other places to which birds chiefly + resort, in districts uninhabited by man, or where he pays little or no + attention to the feathered creatures, the variety of the bird life + encountered affords a new and peculiar delight. There is a constant + succession of new forms and new voices; in a single day as many species + may be met with as one would find in England by searching diligently for a + whole year. + </p> + <p> + And yet this may happen in a district possessing no more species than + England boasts; and the + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + EXOTIC BIRDS FOR BRITAIN 163 + </p> + <p> + actual number of individuals may be even less than with us. In sparrows, + for instance, of the one common species, we are exceedingly rich; but in + bird life generally, in variety of birds, especially in those of graceful + forms and beautiful plumage, we have been growing poorer for the last + fifty years, and have now come to so low a state that it becomes us to + inquire whether it is not in our power to better ourselves. It is an old + familiar truth--a truism--that it is easier to destroy than to restore or + build up; nevertheless, some comfort is to be got from the reflection that + in this matter we have up till now been working against Nature. She loves + not to bring forth food where there are none to thrive on it; and when our + unconsidered action had made these gaps, when, despising her gifts or + abusing them, we had destroyed or driven out her finer kinds, she fell + back on her lowlier kinds--her reserve of coarser, more generalized + species--and gave them increase, and bestowed the vacant places which we + had created on them. What she has done she will undo, or assist us in + undoing; for we should be going back to her methods, and should have her + with and not against us. Much might yet be + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 164 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + done to restore the balance among our native species. Not by legislation, + albeit all laws restraining the wholesale destruction of bird life are + welcome. On this subject the Honourable Auberon Herbert has said, and his + words are golden: "For myself, legislation or no legislation, I would turn + to the friends of animals in this country, and say, 'If you wish that the + friendship between man and animals should become a better and truer thing + than it is at present, you must make it so by countless individual + efforts, by making thousands of centres of personal influence.'" + </p> + <p> + The subject is a large one. In this paper the question of the introduction + of exotic birds will be chiefly considered. Birds have been blown by the + winds of chance over the whole globe, and have found rest for their feet. + That a large number of species, suited to the conditions of this country, + exist scattered about the world is not to be doubted, and by introducing a + few of these we might accelerate the change so greatly to be desired. At + present a very considerable amount of energy is spent in hunting down the + small contingents of rare species that once inhabited our + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + EXOTIC BIRDS FOR BRITAIN 165 + </p> + <p> + islands, and still resort annually to its shores, persistently + endeavouring to re-establish their colonies. A less amount of labour and + expense would serve to introduce a few foreign species each year, and the + reward would be greater, and would not make us ashamed. We have generously + given our own wild animals to other countries; and from time to time we + receive cheering reports of an abundant increase in at least two of our + exportations--to wit, the rabbit and the sparrow. We are surely entitled + to some return. Dead animals, however rich their pelt or bright their + plumage may be, are not a fair equivalent. Dead things are too much with + us. London has become a mart for this kind of merchandise for the whole of + Europe, and the traffic is not without a reflex effect on us; for life in + the inferior animals has come or is coming to be merely a thing to be + lightly taken by human hands, in order that its dropped garment may be + sold for filthy lucre. There are warehouses in this city where it is + possible for a person to walk ankle-deep--literally to wade--in + bright-plumaged bird-skins, and see them piled shoulder-high on either + side of him--a sight to make the angels weep I + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 166 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + Not the angel called woman. It is not that she is naturally more cruel + than man; bleeding wounds and suffering in all its forms, even the sigh of + a burdened heart, appeal to her quick sympathies, and draw the ready + tears; but her imagination helps her less. The appeal must in most cases + be direct and through the medium of her senses, else it is not seen and + not heard. If she loves the ornament of a gay-winged bird, and is able to + wear it with a light heart, it is because it calls up no mournful image to + her mind; no little tragedy enacted in some far-off wilderness, of the + swift child of the air fallen and bleeding out its bright life, and its + callow nestlings, orphaned of the breast that warmed them, dying of hunger + in the tree. We know, at all events, that out of a female population of + many millions in this country, so far only ten women, possibly fifteen, + have been found to raise their voices--raised so often and so loudly on + other questions--to protest against the barbarous and abhorrent fashion of + wearing slain birds as ornaments. The degrading business of supplying the + demand for this kind of feminine adornment must doubtless continue to + flourish in our midst, commerce not + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + EXOTIC BIRDS FOR BRITAIN 167 + </p> + <p> + being compatible with morality, but the material comes from other lands, + unblessed as yet with Wild Bird Protection Acts, and "individual efforts, + and thousands of centres of personal influence"; it comes mainly from the + tropics, where men have brutish minds and birds a brilliant plumage. This + trade, therefore, does not greatly affect the question of our native bird + life, and the consideration of the means, which may be within our reach, + of making it more to us than it now is. Some species from warm and even + hot climates have been found to thrive well in England, breeding in the + open air; as, for instance, the black and the black-necked swans, the + Egyptian goose, the mandarin and summer ducks, and others too numerous to + mention. But these birds are semi-domestic, and are usually kept in + enclosures, and that they can stand the climate and propagate when thus + protected from competition is not strange; for we know that several of our + hardy domestic birds--the fowl, pea-fowl, Guinea-fowl, and Muscovy + duck--are tropical in their origin. Furthermore, they are all + comparatively large, and if they ever become feral in England, it will not + be for many years to come. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 168 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + That these large kinds thrive so well with us is an encouraging fact; but + the question that concerns us at present is the feasibility of importing + birds of the grove, chiefly of the passerine order, and sending them forth + to give a greater variety and richness to our bird life. To go with such + an object to tropical countries would only be to court failure. Nature's + highest types, surpassing all others in exquisite beauty of form, + brilliant colouring, and perfect melody, can never be known to our woods + and groves. These rarest avian gems may not be removed from their setting, + and to those who desire to know them in their unimaginable lustre, it will + always be necessary to cross oceans and penetrate into remote + wildernesses. We must go rather to regions where the conditions of life + are hard, where winters are long and often severe, where Nature is not + generous in the matter of food, and the mouths are many, and the + competition great. Nor even from such regions could we take any strictly + migratory species with any prospect of success. Still, limiting ourselves + to the resident, and consequently to the hardiest kinds, and to those + possessing only a partial migration, it is surprising to find how + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + EXOTIC BIRDS FOR BRITAIN 169 + </p> + <p> + many there are to choose from, how many are charming melodists, and how + many have the bright tints in which our native species are so sadly + lacking. The field from which the supply can be drawn is very extensive, + and includes the continent of Europe, the countries of North Asia, a large + portion of North America and Antarctic America, or South Chili and + Patagonia. It would not be going too far to say that for every English + species, inhabiting the garden, wood, field, stream, or waste, at least + half a dozen resident species, with similar habits, might be obtained from + the countries mentioned which would be superior to our own in melody (the + nightingale and lark excepted), bright plumage, grace of form, or some + other attractive quality. The question then arises; What reason is there + for believing that these exotics, imported necessarily in small numbers, + would succeed in winning a footing in our country, and become a permanent + addition to its avifauna? For it has been admitted that our species are + not few, in spite of the losses that have been suffered, and that the bird + population does not diminish, however much its character may have altered + and + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 170 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + deteriorated from the aesthetic point of view, and probably also from the + utilitarian. There are no vacant places. Thus, the streams are fished by + herons, grebes, and kingfishers, while the rushy margins are worked by + coots and gallinules, and, above the surface, reed and sedge-warblers, + with other kinds, inhabit the reed-beds. The decaying forest tree is the + province of the woodpecker, of which there are three kinds; and the trunks + and branches of all trees, healthy or decaying, are quartered by the small + creeper, that leaves no crevice unexplored in its search for minute + insects and their eggs. He is assisted by the nuthatch; and in summer the + wryneck comes (if he still lives), and deftly picks up the little active + ants that are always wildly careering over the boles. The foliage is + gleaned by warblers and others; and not even the highest terminal twigs + are left unexamined by tits and their fellow-seekers after little things. + Thrushes seek for worms in moist grounds about the woods; starlings and + rooks go to the pasture lands; the lark and his relations keep to the + cultivated fields; and there also dwells the larger partridge. Waste and + stony grounds are occupied by the chats, and even on the barren + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + EXOTIC BIRDS FOR BRITAIN 171 + </p> + <p> + mountain summits the ptarmigan gets his living. Wagtails run on the clean + margins of streams; and littoral birds of many kinds are in possession of + the entire sea-coast. Thus, the whole ground appears to be already + sufficiently occupied, the habitats of distinct species overlapping each + other like the scales on a fish. And when we have enumerated all these, we + find that scores of others have been left out. The important fly-catcher; + the wren, Nature's diligent little housekeeper, that leaves no dusty + corner uncleaned; and the pigeons, that have a purely vegetable diet. The + woods and thickets are also ranged by jays, cuckoos, owls, hawks, magpies, + butcher-birds--Nature's gamekeepers, with a licence to kill, which, after + the manner of game-keepers, they exercise somewhat indiscriminately. Above + the earth, the air is peopled by swifts and swallows in the daytime, and + by goatsuckers at night. And, as if all these were not enough, the finches + are found scattered everywhere, from the most secluded spot in nature to + the noisy public thoroughfare, and are eaters of most things, from flinty + seed to softest caterpillar. This being the state of things, one might + imagine that experience and + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 172 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + observation are scarcely needed to prove to us that the exotic, strange to + the conditions, and where its finest instincts would perhaps be at fault, + would have no chance of surviving. Nevertheless, odd as it may seem, the + small stock of facts bearing on the subject which we possess point to a + contrary conclusion. It might have been assumed, for instance, that the + red-legged partridge would never have established itself with us, where + the ground was already fully occupied by a native species, which possessed + the additional advantage of a more perfect protective colouring. Yet, in + spite of being thus handicapped, the stranger has conquered a place, and + has spread throughout the greater part of England. Even more remarkable is + the case of the pheasant, with its rich plumage, a native of a hot region; + yet our cold, wet climate and its unmodified bright colours have not been + fatal to it, and practically it is one of our wild birds. The large + capercailzie has also been successfully introduced from Norway. Small + birds would probably become naturalized much more readily than large ones; + they are volatile, and can more quickly find suitable feeding-ground, and + safe + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + EXOTIC BIRDS FOR BRITAIN 173 + </p> + <p> + roosting and nesting places; their food is also more abundant and easily + found; their small size, which renders them inconspicuous, gives them + safety; and, finally, they are very much more adaptive than large birds. + </p> + <p> + It is not at all probable that the red-legged partridge will ever drive + out our own bird, a contingency which some have feared. That would be a + misfortune, for we do not wish to change one bird for another, or to lose + any species we now possess, but to have a greater variety. We are better + off with two partridges than we were with one, even if the invader does + not afford such good sport nor such delicate eating. They exist side by + side, and compete with each other; but such competition is not necessarily + destructive to either. On the contrary, it acts and re-acts healthily and + to the improvement of both. It is a fact that in small islands, very far + removed from the mainland, where the animals have been exempt from all + foreign competition--that is, from the competition of casual + colonists--when it does come it proves, in many cases, fatal to them. + Fortunately, this country's large size and nearness to the mainland has + prevented any such + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 174 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + fatal crystallization of its organisms as we see in islands like St. + Helena. That any English species would be exterminated by foreign + competition is extremely unlikely; whether we introduce exotic birds or + not, the only losses we shall have to deplore in the future will, like + those of the past, be directly due to our own insensate action in slaying + every rare and beautiful thing with powder and shot. From the introduction + of exotic species nothing is to be feared, but much to be hoped. + </p> + <p> + There is another point which should not be overlooked. It has after all + become a mere fiction to say that <i>all</i> places are occupied. Nature's + nice order has been destroyed, and her kingdom thrown into the utmost + confusion; our action tends to maintain the disorderly condition, while + she is perpetually working against us to re-establish order. When she + multiplies some common, little-regarded species to occupy a space left + vacant by an artificially exterminated kind, the species called in as a + mere stop-gap, as it were, is one not specially adapted in structure and + instincts to a particular mode of life, and consequently cannot fully and + effectually occupy the + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="link174" id="link174"></a> <img + src="images/hudson-birds-21.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-21.jpg" width="418" + height="664" /> + </p> + <p> + HERON. + </p> + <p> + . . . the streams are fished by herons.' + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + EXOTIC BIRDS FOR BRITAIN 175 + </p> + <p> + ground into which it has been permitted to enter. To speak in metaphor, it + enters merely as a caretaker or ignorant and improvident steward in the + absence of the rightful owner. Again, some of our ornamental species, + which are fast diminishing, are fitted from their peculiar structure and + life habits to occupy places in nature which no other kinds, however + plastic they may be, can even partially fill. The wryneck and the + woodpecker may be mentioned; and a still better instance is afforded by + the small, gem-like kingfisher + </p> + <p> + --the only British bird which can properly be described as gem-like. When + the goldfinch goes + </p> + <p> + --and we know that he is going rapidly--other coarser fringilline birds, + without the melody, brightness, and charm of the goldfinch--sparrow and + bunting--come in, and in some rough fashion supply its place; but when the + kingfisher disappears an important place is left absolutely vacant, for in + this case there is no coarser bird of homely plumage with the fishing + instinct to seize upon it. Here, then, is an excellent opportunity for an + experiment. In the temperate regions of the earth there are many fine + kingfishers to select from; some are resident in countries colder than + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 176 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + England, and are consequently very hardy; and in some cases the rivers and + streams they frequent are exceedingly poor in fish. Some of them are very + beautiful, and they vary in size from birds no larger than a sparrow to + others as large as a pigeon. + </p> + <p> + Anglers might raise the cry that they require all the finny inhabitants of + our waters for their own sport. It is scarcely necessary to go as deeply + into the subject as mathematical-minded Mudie did to show that Nature's + lavishness in the production of life would make such a contention + unreasonable. He demonstrated that if all the fishes hatched were to live + their full term, in twenty-four years their production power would convert + into fish (two hundred to the solid foot) as much matter as there is + contained in the whole solar system--sun, planets, and satellites! An + "abundantly startling" result, as he says. To be well within the mark, + ninety-nine out of every hundred fishes hatched must somehow perish during + that stage when they are nothing but suitable morsels for the kingfisher, + to be swallowed entire; and a portion of all this wasted food might very + well go to sustain a few species, which would be + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + EXOTIC BIRDS FOR BRITAIN 177 + </p> + <p> + beautiful ornaments of the waterside, and a perpetual delight to all + lovers of rural nature, including anglers. It may be remarked in passing, + that the waste of food, in the present disorganized state of nature, is + not only in our streams. + </p> + <p> + The introduction of one or more of these lovely foreign kingfishers would + not certainly have the effect of hastening the decline of our native + species; but indirectly it might bring about a contrary result--a subject + to be touched on at the end of this paper. Practical naturalists may say + that kingfishers would be far more difficult to procure than other birds, + and that it would be almost impossible to convey them to England. That is + a question it would be premature to discuss now; but if the attempt should + ever be made, the difficulties would not perhaps be found insuperable. In + all countries one hears of certain species of birds that they invariably + die in captivity; but when the matter is closely looked into, one usually + finds that improper treatment and not loss of liberty is the cause of + death. Unquestionably it would be much more difficult to keep a kingfisher + alive and healthy during a long sea-voyage than a common seed-eating bird; + but the + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 178 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + same may be said of woodpeckers, cuckoos, warblers, and, in fact, of any + species that subsists in a state of nature on a particular kind of animal + food. Still, when we find that even the excessively volatile humming-bird, + which subsists on the minutest insects and the nectar of flowers, and + seems to require unlimited space for the exercise of its energies, can be + successfully kept confined for long periods and conveyed to distant + countries, one would imagine that it would be hard to set a limit to what + might be done in this direction. We do not want hard-billed birds only. We + require, in the first place, variety; and, secondly, that every species + introduced, when not of type unlike any native kind, as in the case of the + pheasant, shall be superior in beauty, melody, or some other quality, to + its British representative, or to the species which comes nearest to it in + structure and habits. Thus, suppose that the introduction of a pigeon + should be desired. We know that in all temperate regions, these birds vary + as little in colour and markings as they do in form; but in the vocal + powers of different species there is great diversity; and the main objects + would therefore be to secure a bird which + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + EXOTIC BIRDS FOR BRITAIN 179 + </p> + <p> + would be an improvement in this respect on the native kinds. There are + doves belonging to the same genus as stock-dove and wood-pigeon, that have + exceedingly good voices, in which the peculiar mournful dove-melody has + reached its highest perfection--weird and passionate strains, surging and + ebbing, and startling the hearer with their mysterious resemblance to + human tones. Or a Zenaida might be preferred for its tender lament, so + wild and exquisitely modulated, like sobs etherealized and set to music, + and passing away in sigh-like sounds that seem to mimic the aerial voices + of the wind. + </p> + <p> + When considering the character of our bird population with a view to its + improvement, one cannot but think much, and with a feeling almost of + dismay, of the excessive abundance of the sparrow. A systematic + persecution of this bird would probably only serve to make matters worse, + since its continued increase is not the cause but an effect of a + corresponding decrease in other more useful and attractive species; and if + Nature is to have her way at all there must be birds; and besides, no + bird-lover has any wish at see such a thing attempted. The sparrow has + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 180 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + his good points, if we are to judge him as we find him, without allowing + what the Australians and Americans say of him to prejudice our minds. + Possibly in those distant countries he may be altogether bad, resembling, + in this respect, some of the emigrants of our species, who, when they go + abroad, leave their whole stock of morality at home. Even with us Miss + Ormerod is exceedingly bitter against him, and desires nothing less than + his complete extirpation; but it is possible that this lady's zeal may not + be according to knowledge, that she may not know a sparrow quite so well + as she knows a fly. At all events, the ornithologist finds it hard to + believe that so bad an insect-catcher is really causing the extinction of + any exclusively insectivorous species. On her own very high authority we + know that the insect supply is not diminishing, that the injurious kinds + alone are able to inflict an annual loss equal to £10,000,000 on the + British farmer. To put aside this controversial matter, the sparrow with + all his faults is a pleasant merry little fellow; in many towns he is the + sole representative of wild bird life, and is therefore a great deal to + us--especially in the metropolis, in which he most + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + EXOTIC BIRDS FOR BRITAIN 181 + </p> + <p> + abounds, and where at every quiet interval his blithe chirruping comes to + us like a sound of subdued and happy laughter. In London itself this + merriment of Nature never irritates; it is so much finer and more aerial + in character than the gross jarring noises of the street, that it is a + relief to listen to it, and it is like melody. In the quiet suburbs it + sounds much louder and without intermission. And going further afield, in + woods, gardens, hedges, hamlets, towns--everywhere there is the same + running, rippling sound of the omnipresent sparrow, and it becomes + monotonous at last. We have too much of the sparrow. But we are to blame + for that. He is the unskilled worker that Nature has called in to do the + work of skilled hands, which we have foolishly turned away. He is willing + enough to take it all on himself; his energy is great; he bungles away + without ceasing; and being one of a joyous temperament, he whistles and + sings in his tuneless fashion at his work, until, like the grasshopper of + Ecclesiastes, he becomes a burden. For how tiring are the sight and sound + of grasshoppers when one journeys many miles and sees them incessantly + rising like a sounding cloud before his + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 182 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + horse, and hears their shrill notes all day from the wayside! Yet how + pleasant to listen to their minstrelsy in the green summer foliage, where + they are not too abundant! We can have too much of anything, however + charming it may be in itself. Those who live where scores of humming-birds + are perpetually dancing about the garden flowers find that the eye grows + weary of seeing the daintiest forms and brightest colours and liveliest + motions that birds exhibit. We are told that Edward the Confessor grew so + sick of the incessant singing of nightingales in the forest of + Havering-at-Bower that he prayed to Heaven to silence their music; + whereupon the birds promptly took their departure, and returned no more to + that forest until after the king's death. The sparrow is not so sensitive + as the legendary nightingales, and is not to be got rid of in this easy + manner. He is amenable only to a rougher kind of persuasion; and it would + be impossible to devise a more effectual method of lessening his + predominance than that which Nature teaches--namely to subject him to the + competition of other and better species. He is well equipped for the + struggle--hardy, pugnacious, numerous, and in + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + EXOTIC BIRDS FOR BRITAIN 183 + </p> + <p> + possession. He would not be in possession and so predominant if he had not + these qualities, and great pliability of instinct and readiness to seize + on vacant places. Nevertheless, even with the sturdy sparrow a very small + thing might turn the scale, particularly if we were standing by and + putting a little artificial pressure on one side of the balance; for it + must be borne in mind that the very extent and diversity of the ground he + occupies is a proof that he does not occupy it effectually, and that his + position is not too strong to be shaken. It is not probable that our + action in assisting one side against the other would go far in its + results; still, a little might be done. There are gardens and grounds in + the suburbs of London where sparrows are not abundant, and are shyer than + the birds of other species, and this result has been brought about by + means of a little judicious persecution. Shooting is a bad plan, even with + an air-gun; its effects are seen by all the birds, for they see more from + their green hiding-places than we imagine, and it creates a general alarm + among them. Those who wish to give the other birds a chance will only + defeat their own object by shooting the sparrows. A + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 184 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + much better plan for those who are able to practise it prudently is to + take their nests, which are more exposed to sight than those of other + birds; but they should be taken after the full complement of eggs have + been laid, and only at night, so that other birds shall not witness the + robbery and fear for their own treasures. Mr. Henry George, in that book + of his which has been the delight of so many millions of rational souls, + advocates the destruction of all sharks and other large rapacious fishes, + after which, he says, the ocean can be stocked with salmon, which would + secure an unlimited supply of good wholesome food for the human race. No + such high-handed measures are advocated here with regard to the sparrow. + Knowledge of nature makes us conservative. It is so very easy to say, + "Kill the sparrow, or shark, or magpie, or whatever it is, and then + everything will be right." But there are more things in nature than are + dreamt of in the philosophy of the class of reformers represented by the + gamekeeper, and the gamekeeper's master, and Miss Ormerod, and Mr. Henry + George. Let him by all means kill the sharks, but he will not conquer + Nature in that way: she + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + EXOTIC BIRDS FOR BRITAIN 185 + </p> + <p> + will make more sharks out of something else--possibly out of the very + salmon on which he proposes to regale his hungry disciples. To go into + details is not the present writer's purpose; and to finish with this part + of the subject, it is sufficient to add that in the very wide and varied + field occupied by the sparrow, in that rough, ineffectual manner possible + to a species having no special and highly perfected feeding instincts, + there is room for the introduction of scores of competitors, every one of + which should be better adapted than the sparrow to find a subsistence at + that point or that particular part of the field where the two would come + into rivalry; and every species introduced should also possess some + quality which would make it, from the aesthetic point of view, a valuable + addition to our bird life. This would be no war of violence, and no + contravention of Nature's ordinances, but, on the contrary, a return to + her safe, healthy, and far-reaching methods. + </p> + <p> + There is one objection some may make to the scheme suggested here which + must be noticed. It may be said that even if exotic species able to thrive + in our country were introduced there + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 186 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + would be no result; for these strangers to our groves would all eventually + meet with the same fate as our rarer species and casual visitors--that is + to say, they would be shot. There is no doubt that the amateur naturalist + has been a curse to this country for the last half century, that it is + owing to the "cupidity of the cabinet" as old Robert Mudie has it--that + many of our finer species are exceedingly rare, while others are + disappearing altogether. But it is surely not too soon to look for a + change for the better in this direction. Half a century ago, when the few + remaining great bustards in this country were being done to death, it was + suddenly remembered by naturalists that in their eagerness to possess + examples of the bird (in the skin) they had neglected to make themselves + acquainted with its customs when alive. Its habits were hardly better + known than those of the dodo and solitaire. The reflection came too late, + in so far as the habits of the bird in this country are concerned; but + unhappily the lesson was not then taken to heart, and other fine species + have since gone the way of the great bustard. But now that we have so + clearly seen the disastrous effects of this method + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + EXOTIC BIRDS FOR BRITAIN 187 + </p> + <p> + of "studying ornithology," which is not in harmony with our humane + civilization, it is to be hoped that a better method will be adopted--that + "finer way" which Thoreau found and put aside his fowling-piece to + practise. There can be no doubt that the desire for such an improvement is + now becoming very general, that a kindlier feeling for animal, and + especially bird life is growing up among us, and there are signs that it + is even beginning to have some appreciable effect. The fashion of wearing + birds is regarded by most men with pain and reprobation; and it is + possible that before long it will be thought that there is not much + difference between the action of the woman who buys tanagers and + humming-birds to adorn her person, and that of the man who kills the + bittern, hoopoe, waxwing, golden oriole, and Dartford-warbler to enrich + his private collection. + </p> + <p> + A few words on the latest attempt which has been made to naturalize an + exotic bird in England will not seem out of place here. About eight years + ago a gentleman in Essex introduced the rufous tinamou--a handsome game + bird, nearly as large as a fowl--into his estate. Up till the + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 188 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + present time, or till quite recently these birds have bred every year, and + at one time they had increased considerably and scattered about the + neighbourhood. When it began to increase, the neighbouring proprietors and + sportsmen generally were asked not to shoot it, but to give it a chance, + and there is reason to believe that they have helped to protect it, and + have taken a great interest in the experiment. Whatever the ultimate + result may be, the partial success attained during these few years is + decidedly encouraging, and that for more reasons than one. In the first + place, the bird was badly chosen for such an experiment. It belongs to the + pampas of La Plata, to which it is restricted, and where it enjoys a dry, + bright climate, and lives concealed in the tall close-growing indigenous + grasses. The conditions of its habitat are therefore widely different from + those of Essex, or of any part of England; and, besides, it has a peculiar + organisation, for it happens to be one of those animals of ancient types + of which a few species still survive in South America. That so unpromising + a subject as this large archaic tinamou should be able to maintain its + existence in this country, even for a very few + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + EXOTIC BIRDS FOR BRITAIN 189 + </p> + <p> + years, encourages one to believe that with better-chosen species, more + highly organized, and with more pliant habits, such as the hazel hen of + Europe for a game bird, success would be almost certain. + </p> + <p> + Another circumstance connected with the attempted introduction of this + unsuitable bird, even of more promise than the mere fact of the partial + success achieved, is the greatest interest the experiment has excited, not + only among naturalists throughout the country, but also among landlords + and sportsmen down in Essex, where the bird was not regarded merely as + fair game to be bagged, or as a curiosity to be shot for the collector's + cabinet, but was allowed to fight its own fight without counting man among + its enemies. And it is to be expected that the same self-restraint and + spirit of fairness and intelligent desire to see a favourable result would + be shown everywhere if exotic species were to be largely introduced, and + breeding centres established in suitable places throughout the country. + When it once became known that individuals were doing this thing, giving + their time and best efforts and at considerable expense not for their own + selfish gratification, but for the + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 190 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + general good, and to make the country more delightful to all lovers of + rural sights and sounds, there would be no opposition, but on the contrary + every assistance, since all would wish success to such an enterprise. Even + the most enthusiastic collector would refrain from lifting a weapon + against the new feathered guests from distant lands; and if by any chance + an example of one should get into his hands he would be ashamed to exhibit + it. + </p> + <p> + The addition of new beautiful species to our avifauna would probably not + be the only, nor even the principal benefit we should derive from the + carrying out of the scheme here suggested. The indirect effect of the + knowledge all would possess that such an experiment was being conducted, + and that its chief object was to repair the damage that has been done, + would be wholly beneficial since it would enhance the value in our eyes of + our remaining native rare and beautiful species. A large number of our + finer birds are annually shot by those who know that they are doing a + great wrong--that if their transgression is not punishable by law it is + really not less grave than that of the person who maliciously barks a + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + EXOTIC BIRDS FOR BRITAIN 191 + </p> + <p> + shade tree in a park or public garden--but who excuse their action by + saying that such birds must eventually get shot, and that those who first + see them might as well have the benefit. The presence of even a small + number of exotic species in our woods and groves would no doubt give rise + to a better condition of things; it would attract public attention to the + subject; for the birds that delight us with their beauty and melody should + be for the public, and not for the few barbarians engaged in exterminating + them; and the "collector" would find it best to abandon his evil practices + when it once began to be generally asked, if we can spare the rare, lovely + birds brought hither at great expense from China or Patagonia, can we not + also spare our own kingfisher, and the golden oriole, and the hoopoe, that + comes to us annually from Africa to breed, but is not permitted to breed, + and many other equally beautiful and interesting species? + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-22.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-22.jpg" width="159" + height="120" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /><a name="link192" id="link192"></a> <img + src="images/hudson-birds-23.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-23.jpg" width="400" + height="170" /> + </p> + <p> + MOOR-HENS IN HYDE PARK + </p> + <p> + THE sparrow, like the poor, we have always with us, and on windy days even + the large-sized rook is blown about the murkiness which does duty for sky + over London; and on such occasions its coarse, corvine dronings seem not + unmusical, nor without something of a tonic effect on our jarred nerves. + And here the ordinary Londoner has got to the end of his ornithological + list--that is to say, his winter list. He knows nothing about those + wind-worn waifs, the "occasional visitors" to the metropolis--the pilgrims + to distant Meccas and Medinas that have fallen, overcome by weariness, at + the wayside; or have encountered storms in the great aerial sea, and lost + compass and reckoning, and have been lured by false lights to perish + miserably at the hands of their cruel + </p> + <p> + 192 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + MOOR-HENS IN HYDE PARK 193 + </p> + <p> + enemies. It may be true that gulls are seen on the Serpentine, that + woodcocks are flushed in Lincoln's Inn Fields, but the citizen who goes to + his office in the morning and returns after the lamps have been lighted, + does not see them, and they are nothing in his life. Those who concern + themselves to chronicle such incidents might just as well, for all that it + matters to him, mistake their species, like that bird-loving but + unornitho-logical correspondent of the Times who wrote that he had seen a + flock of golden orioles in Kensington Gardens. It turned out that what he + had seen were wheatears, or they might draw a little on their + imaginations, and tell of sunward-sailing cranes encamped on the dome of + St. Paul's Cathedral, flamingoes in the Round Pond, great snowy owls in + Westminster Abbey, and an ibis--scarlet, glossy, or sacred, according to + fancy--perched on Peabody's statue, at the Royal Exchange. + </p> + <p> + But his winter does not last for ever. When the bitter months are past, + with March that mocks us with its crown of daffodils; when the sun shines, + and the rain is soon over; and elms and limes in park and avenue, and + unsightly smoke- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 194 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + blackened brushwood in the squares, are dressed once more in tenderest + heart-refreshing green, even in London we know that the birds have + returned from beyond the sea. Why should they come to us here, when it + would seem so much more to their advantage, and more natural for them to + keep aloof from our dimmed atmosphere, and the rude sounds of traffic, and + the sight of many people going to and fro? Are there no silent green + retreats left where the conditions are better suited to their shy and + delicate natures? Yet no sooner is the spring come again than the birds + are with us. Not always apparent to the eye, but everywhere their + irrepressible gladness betrays their proximity; and all London is ringed + round with a mist of melody, which presses on us, ambitious of winning its + way even to the central heart of our citadel, creeping in, mist-like, + along gardens and tree-planted roads, clinging to the greenery of parks + and squares, and floating above the dull noises of the town as clouds + fleecy and ethereal float above the earth. + </p> + <p> + Among our spring visitors there is one which is neither aerial in habits, + nor a melodist, yet is eminently attractive on account of its graceful + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + MOOR-HENS IN HYDE PARK 195 + </p> + <p> + form, pretty plumage, and amusing manners; nor must it be omitted as a + point in its favour that it is not afraid to make itself very much at home + with us in London.* This is the little moor-hen, a bird possessing some + strange customs, for which those who are curious about such matters may + consult its numerous biographies. Every spring a few individuals of this + species make their appearance in Hyde Park, and settle there for the + season, in full sight of the fashionable world; for their breeding-place + happens to be that minute transcript of nature midway between the Dell and + Rotten Row, where a small bed of rushes and aquatic grasses flourishes in + the stagnant pool forming the end of the Serpentine. Where they pass the + winter--in what Mentone or Madeira of the ralline race--is not known. + There is a pretty story, which circulated throughout Europe a little over + fifty years ago, of a Polish gentleman, capturing a stork that built its + nest on his roof every summer, and putting an iron collar on its neck + </p> + <p> + *Note that when this was written in 1893, the moor-hen was never known to + winter in London; his habits have changed in this respect during the last + two decades: he is now a permanent resident. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 196 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + with the inscription, "Haec Ciconia ex Polonia." The following summer it + reappeared with something which shone very brightly on its neck, and when + the stork was taken again this was found to be a collar of gold, with + which the iron collar had been replaced, and on it were graven the words, + "India cum donis remittit ciconian Polonis." No person has yet put an iron + collar on the moor-hen to receive gifts in return, or followed its feeble + fluttering flight to discover the limits of its migration which is + probably no further away than the Kentish marshes and other wet sheltered + spots in the south of England; that it leaves the country when it quits + the park is not to be believed. Still, it goes with the wave, and with the + wave returns; and, like the migratory birds that observe times and + seasons, it comes back to its own home--that circumscribed spot of earth + and water which forms its little world, and is more to it than all other + reedy and willow-shaded pools and streams in England. It is said to be shy + in disposition, yet all may see it here, within a few feet of the Row, + with so many people continually passing, and so many pausing to watch the + pretty birds as they trip about their little plot + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="link196" id="link196"></a> <img + src="images/hudson-birds-24.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-24.jpg" width="626" + height="471" /> + </p> + <p> + MOORHEN. + </p> + <p> + " . . . that quaint, graceful, jetting gait." + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + MOOR-HENS IN HYDE PARK 197 + </p> + <p> + of green turf, deftly picking minute insects from the grass and not + disdaining crumbs thrown by the children. A dainty thing to look at is + that smooth, olive-brown little moor-hen, going about with such freedom + and ease in its small dominion, lifting its green legs deliberately, + turning its yellow beak and shield this way and that, and displaying the + snow-white undertail at every step, as it moves with that quaint, + graceful, jetting gait peculiar to the gallinules. + </p> + <p> + Such a fact as this--and numberless facts just as significant all pointing + to the same conclusion, might be adduced--shows at once how utterly + erroneous is that often-quoted dictum of Darwin's that birds possess an + instinctive or inherited fear of man. These moor-hens fear him not at all; + simply because in Hyde Park they are not shot at, and robbed of their eggs + or young, nor in any way molested by him. They fear no living thing, + except the irrepressible small dog that occasionally bursts into the + enclosure, and hunts them with furious barkings to their reedy little + refuge. And as with these moor-hens, so it is with all wild birds; they + fear and fly from, and suspiciously watch from a safe distance, whatever + molests + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 198 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + them, and wherever man suspends his hostility towards them they quickly + outgrow the suspicion which experience has taught them, or which is + traditional among them; for the young and inexperienced imitate the action + of the adults they associate with, and learn the suspicious habit from + them. + </p> + <p> + It is also interesting and curious to note that a bird which inhabits two + countries, in summer and winter, regulates his habits in accordance with + the degree of friendliness or hostility exhibited towards him by the human + inhabitants of the respective areas. The bird has in fact two traditions + with regard to man's attitude towards him--one for each country. Thus, the + field-fare is an exceedingly shy bird in England, but when he returns to + the north if his breeding place is in some inhabited district in northern + Sweden or Norway he loses all his wildness and builds his nest quite close + to the houses. My friend Trevor Battye saw a pair busy making their nest + in a small birch within a few yards of the front door of a house he was + staying at. "How strange," said he to the man of the house, "to see + field-fares making a nest in such a place!" + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + MOOR-HENS IN HYDE PARK 199 + </p> + <p> + "Why strange?" said the man in surprise. "Why strange? Because of the + boys, always throwing stones at a bird. The nest is so low down, that any + boy could put his hand in and take the eggs." "Take the eggs!" cried the + man, more astonished than ever. "And throwing stones at a bird! Who ever + heard of a boy doing such things!" + </p> + <p> + Closely related to this error is another error, which is that noise in + itself is distressing to birds, and has the effect of driving them away. + To all sounds and noises which are not associated with danger to them, + birds are absolutely indifferent. The rumbling of vehicles, puffing and + shrieking of engines, and braying of brass bands, alarm them less than the + slight popping of an air gun, where that modest weapon of destruction is + frequently used against them. They have no "nerves" for noise, but the + apparition of a small boy silently creeping along the hedge-side, in + search of nests or throwing stones, is very terrifying to them. They fear + not cattle and horses, however loud the bellowing may be; and if we were + to transport and set loose herds of long-necked camelopards, trumpeting + elephants, and rhinoceroses of horrible aspect, the little birds + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 200 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + would soon fear them as little as they do the familiar cow. But they + greatly fear the small-sized, quiet, unobtrusive, and meek-looking cat. + Sparrows and starlings that fly wildly at the shout of a small boy or the + bark of a fox-terrier, build their nests under every railway arch; and the + incubating bird sits unalarmed amid the iron plates and girders when the + express train rushes overhead, so close to her that one would imagine that + the thunderous jarring noise would cause the poor thing to drop down dead + with terror. To this indifference to the mere harmless racket of + civilization we owe it that birds are so numerous around, and even in, + London; and that in Kew Gardens, which, on account of its position on the + water side, and the numerous railroads surrounding it, is almost as much + tortured with noise as Willesden or Clapham Junction, birds are + concentrated in thousands. Food is not more abundant there than in other + places; yet it would be difficult to find a piece of ground of the same + extent in the country proper, where all is silent and there are no human + crowds, with so large a bird population. They are more numerous in Kew + than elsewhere, in spite of the noise and the + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + MOOR-HENS IN HYDE PARK 201 + </p> + <p> + people, because they are partially protected there from their human + persecutors. It is a joy to visit the gardens in spring, as much to hear + the melody of the birds as to look at the strange and lovely vegetable + forms. On a June evening with a pure sunny sky, when the air is elastic + after rain, how it rings and palpitates with the fine sounds that people + it, and which seem infinite in variety! Has England, burdened with care + and long estranged from Nature, so many sweet voices left? What aerial + chimes are those wafted from the leafy turret of every tree? What clear, + choral songs--so wild, so glad? What strange instruments, not made with + hands, so deftly touched and soulfully breathed upon? What faint melodious + murmurings that float around us, mysterious and tender as the lisping of + leaves? Who could be so dull and exact as to ask the names of such + choristers at such a time! Earthly names they have, the names we give + them, when they visit us, and when we write about them in our dreary + books; but, doubtless, in their brighter home in cloudland they are called + by other more suitable appellatives. Kew is exceptionally favoured for the + reason + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 202 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + mentioned, but birds are also abundant where there are no hired men with + red waistcoats and brass buttons to watch over their safety. Why do they + press so persistently around us; and not in London only, but in every town + and village, every house and cottage in this country? Why are they always + waiting, congregating as far from us as the depth of garden, lawn, or + orchard will allow, yet always near as they dare to come? It is not + sentiment, and to be translated into such words as these: "Oh man, why are + you unfriendly towards us, or else so indifferent to our existence that + you do not note that your children, dependants, and neighbours cruelly + persecute us? For we are for peace, and knowing you for the lord of + creation, we humbly worship you at a distance, and wish for a share in + your affection." No; the small, bright soul which is in a bird is + incapable of such a motive, and has only the lesser light of instinct for + its guide, and to the birds' instinct we are only one of the wingless + mammalians inhabiting the earth, and with the cat and weasel are labelled + "dangerous," but the ox and horse and sheep have no such label. Even our + larger, dimmer eyes can easily discover the + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + MOOR-HENS IN HYDE PARK 203 + </p> + <p> + attraction. Let any one, possessing a garden in the suburbs of London, + minutely examine the foliage at a point furthest removed from the house, + and he will find the plants clean from insects; and as he moves back he + will find them increasingly abundant until he reaches the door. Insect + life is gathered thickly about us, for that birdless space which we have + made is ever its refuge and safe camping ground. And the birds know. One + came before we were up, when cat and dog were also sleeping, and a report + is current among them. Like ants when a forager who has found a honey pot + returns to the nest, they are all eager to go and see and taste for + themselves. Their country is poor, for they have gathered its spoils, and + now this virgin territory sorely tempts them. To those who know a bird's + spirit it is plain that a mere suspension of hostile action on our part + would have the effect of altering their shy habits, and bringing them in + crowds about us. Not only in the orchard and grove and garden walks would + they be with us, but even in our house. The robin, the little bird "with + the red stomacher," would be there for the customary crumbs at meal-time, + and many dainty + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 204 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + fringilline pensioners would keep him company. And the wren would be + there, searching diligently in the dusty angles of cornices for a savoury + morsel; for it knows, this wise little Kitty Wren, that "the spider taketh + hold with her hands, and is in king's palaces"; and wandering from room to + room it would pour forth many a gushing lyric--a sound of wildness and joy + in our still interiors, eternal Nature's message to our hearts. + </p> + <p> + Who delights not in a bird? Yet how few among us find any pleasure in + reading of them in natural history books! The living bird, viewed closely + and fearless of our presence, is so much more to the mind than all that is + written--so infinitely more engaging in its spontaneous gladness, its + brilliant vivacity, and its motions so swift and true and yet so graceful! + Even leaving out the melody, what a charm it would add to our homes if + birds were permitted to take the part there for which Nature designed + them--if they were the "winged wardens" of our gardens and houses as well + as of our fields. Bird-biographies are always in our bookcases; and the + bird-form meets our sight everywhere in decorative art Eastern and + Western; for its aerial beauty is without + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + MOOR-HENS IN HYDE PARK 205 + </p> + <p> + parallel in nature; but the living birds, with the exception of the + unfortunate captives in cages, are not with us. + </p> + <blockquote> + <p> + A robin redbreast in a cage<br /> Puts all heaven in a rage, + </p> + </blockquote> + <p> + sings Blake prophet and poet; and for "robin redbreast" I read every + feathered creature endowed with the marvellous faculty of flight. Wild, + and loving their safety and liberty, they keep at a distance, at the end + of the garden or in the nearest grove, where from their perches they + suspiciously watch our movements, always waiting to be encouraged, waiting + to feed on the crumbs that fall from our table and are wasted, and on the + blighting insects that ring us round with their living multitudes. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-25.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-25.jpg" width="117" + height="65" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="link206" id="link206"></a> <img + src="images/hudson-birds-26.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-26.jpg" width="405" + height="166" /> + </p> + <h3> + THE EAGLE AND THE CANARY + </h3> + <p> + ONE week-day morning, following a crowd of well-dressed people, I + presently found myself in a large church or chapel, where I spent an hour + very pleasantly, listening to a great man's pulpit eloquence. He preached + about genius. The subject was not suggested by the text, nor did it have + any close relation with the other parts, of his discourse; it was simply a + digression, and, to my mind, a very delightful one. He began about the + restrictions to which we are all more or less subject, the aspirations + that are never destined to be fulfilled, but are mocked by life's brevity. + And it was at this point that--probably thinking of his own case--he + branched off into the subject of genius; and proceeded to show that a man + possessing that divine quality finds existence a + </p> + <p> + 206 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + THE EAGLE AND THE CANARY 207 + </p> + <p> + much sadder affair than the ordinary man; the reason being that his + aspirations are so much loftier than those of other minds, the difference + between his ideal and reality must be correspondingly greater in his case. + This was obvious--almost a truism; but the illustration by means of which + he brought it home to his hearers was certainly born of poetic + imagination. The life of the ordinary person he likened to that of the + canary in its cage. And here, dropping his lofty didactic manner, and--if + I may coin a word--smalling his deep, sonorous voice, to a thin reedy + treble, in imitation of the tenuous fringilline pipe, he went on with + lively language, rapid utterance, and suitable brisk movements and + gestures, to describe the little lemon-coloured housekeeper in her gilded + cage. Oh, he cried, what a bright, busy bustling life is hers, with so + many things to occupy her time! how briskly she hops from perch to perch, + then to the floor, and back from floor to perch again! how often she drops + down to taste the seed in her box, or scatter it about her in a little + shower! how curiously, and turning her bright eyes critically this way and + that, she listens to every new sound and regards every ob- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 208 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + ject of sight! She must chirp and sing, and hop from place to place, and + eat and drink, and preen her wings, and do at least a dozen different + things every minute; and her time is so fully taken up that the narrow + limits confining her are almost forgotten--the wires that separate her + from the great world of wind-tossed woods, and of blue fields of air, and + the free, buoyant life for which her instincts and faculties fit her, and + which, alas! can never more be hers. + </p> + <p> + All this sounded very pretty, as well as true, and there was a pleased + smile on every face in the audience. + </p> + <p> + Then the rapid movements and gestures ceased, and the speaker was silent. + A cloud came over his rough-hewn majestic visage; he drew himself up, and + swayed his body from side to side, and shook his black gown, and lifted + his arms, as their plumed homologues are lifted by some great bird, and + let them fall again two or three times; and then said, in deep measured + tones, which seemed to express rage and despair, "But did you ever see the + eagle in his cage?" + </p> + <p> + The effect of the contrast was grand. He shook himself again, and lifted + and dropped his + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + THE EAGLE AND THE CANARY 209 + </p> + <p> + arms again, assuming, for the nonce, the peculiar aquiline slouch; and + there before us stood the mighty bird of Jove, as we are accustomed to see + it in the Zoological Gardens; its deep-set, desolate eyes looking through + and beyond us; ruffling its dark plumage, and lifting its heavy wings as + if about to scorn the earth, only to drop them again, and to utter one of + those long dreary cries which seem to protest so eloquently against a + barbarous destiny. Then he proceeded to tell us of the great raptor in its + life of hopeless captivity; his stern, rugged countenance, deep bass + voice, and grand mouth-filling polysllables suiting his subject well, and + making his description seem to our minds a sombre magnificent picture + never to be forgotten--at all events, never by an ornithologist. + </p> + <p> + Doubtless this part of his discourse proved eminently pleasing to the + majority of his hearers, who, looking downwards into the depths of their + own natures, would be able to discern there a glimmer, or possibly more + than a glimmer of that divine quality he had spoken of, and which was, + unhappily for them, not recognized by the world at large; so that, for the + moment, he was ad- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 210 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + dressing a congregation of captive eagles, all mentally ruffling their + plumage and flapping their pinions, and uttering indignant screams of + protest against the injustice of their lot. + </p> + <p> + The illustration pleased me for a different reason, namely, because, being + a student of bird-life, his contrasted picture of the two widely different + kinds, when deprived of liberty, struck me as being singularly true to + nature, and certainly it could not have been more forcibly and + picturesquely put. For it is unquestionably the fact that the misery we + inflict by tyrannously using the power we possess over God's creatures, is + great in proportion to the violence of the changes of condition to which + we subject our prisoners; and while canary and eagle are both more or less + aerial in their mode of life, and possessed of boundless energy, the + divorce from nature is immeasurably greater in one case than in the other. + The small bird, in relation to its free natural life, is less confined in + its cage than the large one. Its smallness, perching structure, and + restless habits, fit it for continual activity, and its flitting, active + life within the bars bears some resemblance except in the great matter of + flight, to its life in a + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + THE EAGLE AND THE CANARY 211 + </p> + <p> + state of nature. Again, its lively, curious, and extremely impressible + character, is in many ways an advantage in captivity; every new sound and + sight, and every motion, however slight, in any object or body near it, + affording it, so to speak, something to think about. It has the further + advantage of a varied and highly musical language; the frequent exercise + of the faculty of singing, in birds, with largely developed vocal organs, + no doubt reacts on the system, and contributes not a little to keep the + prisoner healthy and cheerful. + </p> + <p> + On the other hand, the eagle, on account of its structure and large size, + is a prisoner indeed, and must languish with all its splendid faculties + and importunate impulses unexercised. You may gorge it with gobbets of + flesh until its stomach cries, "Enough"; but what of all the other organs + fed by the stomach, and their correlated faculties? Every bone and muscle + and fibre, every feather and scale, is instinct with an energy which you + cannot satisfy, and which is like an eternal hunger. Chain it by the feet, + or place it in a cage fifty feet wide--in either case it is just as + miserable. The illimitable fields of thin cold air, where it outrides the + winds and soars exulting be- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 212 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + yond the clouds, alone can give free space for the display of its powers + and scope to its boundless energies. Nor to the power of flight alone, but + also to a vision formed for sweeping wide horizons, and perceiving objects + at distances which to short-sighted man seem almost miraculous. Doubtless, + eagles, like men, possess some adaptiveness, else they would perish in + their enforced inactivity, swallowing without hunger and assimilating + without pleasure the cold coarse flesh we give them. A human being can + exist, and even be tolerably cheerful, with limbs paralyzed and hearing + gone; and that, to my mind, would be a parallel case to that of the eagle + deprived of its liberty and of the power to exercise its flight, vision, + and predatory instincts. + </p> + <p> + As I sit writing these thoughts, with a cage containing four canaries on + the table before me, I cannot help congratulating these little prisoners + on their comparatively happy fate in having been born, or hatched, finches + and not eagles. And yet albeit I am not responsible for the restraint + which has been put upon them, and am not their owner, being only a visitor + in the house, I am troubled with some uncomfortable feelings concerning + their + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + .THE EAGLE AND THE CANARY 213 + </p> + <p> + condition--feelings which have an admixture of something like a sense of + shame or guilt, as if an injustice had been done, and I had stood by + consenting. I did not do it, but we did it. I remember Matthew Arnold's + feeling lines on his dead canary, "Poor Matthias," and quote: + </p> + <blockquote> + <p> + Yet, poor bird, thy tiny corse<br /> Moves me, somehow, to remorse;<br /> + Something haunts my conscience, brings<br /> Sad, compunctious visitings.<br /> + Other favourites, dwelling here,<br /> Open lived with us, and near;<br /> + Well we knew when they were glad<br /> Plain we saw if they were sad;<br /> + Sympathy could feel and show<br /> Both in weal of theirs and woe.<br /> + <br /> Birds, companions more unknown,<br /> Live beside us, but + alone;<br /> Finding not, do all they can,<br /> Passage from their souls + to man.<br /> Kindness we bestow and praise,<br /> Laud their plumage, + greet their lays;<br /> Still, beneath their feathered breast + </p> + </blockquote> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 214 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <blockquote> + <p> + Stirs a history unexpressed.<br /> Wishes there, and feeling strong,<br /> + Incommunicably throng;<br /> What they want we cannot guess. + </p> + </blockquote> + <p> + This, as poetry, is good, but it does not precisely fit my case; my + "compunctious visitings" being distinctly different in origin and + character from the poet's. He--Matthew Arnold--is a poet, and the author + of much good verse, which I appreciate and hold dear. But he was not a + naturalist--all men cannot be everything. And I, a naturalist, hold that + the wishes, thronging the restless little feathered breast are not + altogether so incommunicable as the melodious mourner of "Poor Matthias" + imagines. The days--ay, and years--which I have spent in the society of my + feathered friends have not, I flatter myself, been so wasted that I cannot + small my soul, just as the preacher smalled his voice, to bring it within + reach of them, and establish some sort of passage. + </p> + <p> + And so, thinking that a little more knowledge of birds than most people + possess, and consideration for them--for I will not be so harsh to speak + of justice--and time and attention given to their + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + THE EAGLE AND THE CANARY 215 + </p> + <p> + wants, might remove this reproach, and silence these vague suggestions of + a too fastidious conscience, I have taken the trouble to add something to + the seed with which these little prisoners had been supplied. For we give + sweetmeats to the child that cries for the moon--an alternative which + often acts beneficially--and there is nothing more to be done. Any one of + us, even a philosopher, would think it hard to be restricted to dry bread + only, yet such a punishment would be small compared with that which we, in + our ignorance or want of consideration, inflict on our caged animals--our + pets on compulsion. Small, because an almost infinite variety of flavours + drawn from the whole vegetable kingdom--a hundred flavours for every one + in the dietary which satisfies our heavier mammalian natures--is a + condition of the little wild bird's existence and essential to its + well-being and perfect happiness. And so, to remedy this defect, I went + out into the garden, and with seeding grasses and pungent buds, and leaves + of a dozen different kinds, I decorated the cage until it looked less like + a prison than a bower. And now for an hour the little creatures have been + busy with their varied green + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 216 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + fare, each one tasting half a dozen different leaves every minute, hopping + here and there and changing places with his fellows, glancing their bright + little eyes this way and that, and all the time uttering gratulatory notes + in the canary's conversational tone. And their language is not altogether + untranslatable. I listen to one, a pretty pure yellow bird, but slightly + tyrannical in his treatment of the others, and he says, or seems to say: + "This is good, I like it, only the old leaf is tough; the buds would be + better. . . . These are certainly not so good. <i>I tasted them out of + compliment to nature, though they were scarcely palatable. . . .</i>" No, + that was not my own expression; it was said by Thoreau, perhaps the only + human a little bird can quote with approval. "This is decidedly + bitter--and yet--yes, it does leave a pleasant flavour on the palate. Make + room for me there--or I shall make you and let me taste it again. Yes, I + fancy I can remember eating something like this in a former state of + existence, ages and ages ago." And so on, and so on, until I began to + imagine that the whole thing had been put right, and that the + uncomfortable feeling would return to trouble me no + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + THE EAGLE AND THE CANARY 217 + </p> + <p> + more. But at the rate they are devouring their green stuff there will not + be a leat, scarcely a stem left in another hour; and then? Why, then they + will have the naked wires of their cage all round them to protect them + from the cat and for hunger there will be seed in the box. + </p> + <p> + After all, then, what a little I have been able to do! But I flatter + myself that if they were mine I should do more. I never keep captive + birds, but if they were given to me, and I could not refuse, I should do a + great deal more for them. All my knowledge of their ways and their + requirements would teach me how to make their caged existence less unlike + the old natural life, than it now is. To begin the ameliorating process, I + should place them in a large cage, large enough to allow space for flight, + so that they might fly to and fro, a few feet each way, and rest their + little feet from continual perching. That would enable them to exercise + their most important muscles and experience once more, although in a very + limited degree, the old delicious sensation of gliding at will through the + void air. The wires of their new cage would be of brass or of some bright + metal, and the wooden parts + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 218 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + and perches green enamelled, or green variegated with brown and grey, and + the roof would be hung with glass lustres, to quiver and sparkle into + drops of violet, red, and yellow light, gladdening these little lovers of + bright colours; for so we deem them. I should also add gay flowers and + berries, crocus and buttercup and dandelion, hips and haws and mountain + ash and yellow and scarlet leaves--all seasonable jewellery from woods and + hedges and from the orchard and garden. Then would come the heaviest part + of my task, which would be to satisfy their continual craving for new + tastes in food, their delight in an endless variety. I should go to the + great seed-merchants of London and buy samples of all the cultivated seeds + of the earth, and not feed them in a trough, or manger, like heavy + domestic brutes, but give it to them mixed and scattered in small + quantities, to be searched for and gladly found in the sand and gravel and + turf on the wide floor of the cage. And, higher up, the wires of their + dwelling would be hung with an endless variety of seeded grasses, and + sprays of all trees and plants, good, bad, and indifferent. For if the + volatile bird dines on no more than twenty dishes every day he + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + THE EAGLE AND THE CANARY 219 + </p> + <p> + loves to taste of a hundred and to have at least a thousand on the table + to choose from. + </p> + <p> + Feeding the birds and keeping the cage always sweet and clean would occupy + most, if not the whole of my time. But would that be too much to give if + it made me tranquil in my own mind? For it must be noted that I have done + all this, mentally and on paper, for my own satisfaction rather than that + of the canaries. Birds are not worth much--<i>to us</i>. Are not five + sparrows sold for three farthings? I have even shot many birds and have + felt no compunction. True, they perished before their time, but they did + not languish, and being dead there was an end of them; but the caged + canaries continuing with us, cannot be dismissed from the mind with the + same convenient ease. After all, I begin to think that my imaginary + reforms, if carried out, would not quite content me. The "compunctious + visitings" would continue still. I look out of the window and see a + sparrow on a neighbouring tree, loudly chirruping. And as I listen, trying + to find comfort by thinking of the perils which do environ him, his + careless unconventional sparrow-music resolves itself into articulate + speech, interspersed + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 320 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + with occasional bursts of derisive laughter. He knows, this fabulous + sparrow, what I have been thinking about and have written. "How would you + like it," I hear him saying, "O wise man that knows so much about the ways + of birds, if you were shut up in a big cage--in Windsor Castle, let us + say--with scores of menials to wait on you and anticipate your every want? + That is, I must explain, every want compatible with--ahem!--the captive + condition. Would you be happy in your confinement, practising with the + dumb-bells, riding up and down the floors on a bicycle and gazing at + pictures and filigree caskets and big malachite vases and eating dinners + of many, many courses? Or would you begin to wish that you might be + allowed to live on sixpence a day--<i>and earn it</i>; and even envy the + ragged tramp who dines on a handful of half-rotten apples and sleeps in a + hay-stack, but is free to come and go, and range the world at will? You + have been playing at nature; but Nature mocks you, for your captives thank + you not. They would rather go to her without an intermediary, and take a + scantier measure of food from her hand, but flavoured as she only can + flavour it. Widen your cage, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + THE EAGLE AND THE CANARY 221 + </p> + <p> + naturalist; replace the little twinkling lustres with sun and moon and + milky way; plant forests on the floor, and let there be hills and valleys, + rivers and wide spaces; and let the blue pillars of heaven be the wires of + your cage, with free entrance to wind and rain; then your little captives + will be happy, even happy as I am, in spite of all the perils which do + environ me--guns and cats and snares, with wet and fog and hard frosts to + come." + </p> + <p> + And, seeing my error, I should open the cage and let them fly away. Even + to death, I should let them fly, for there would be a taste of liberty + first, and life without that sweet savour, whether of aerial bird or + earth-bound man, is not worth living. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-27.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-27.jpg" width="247" + height="163" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="link222" id="link222"></a> <img + src="images/hudson-birds-28.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-28.jpg" width="392" + height="151" /> + </p> + <p> + CHANTICLEER + </p> + <p> + DURING the month of September I spent several days at a house standing on + high ground in one of the pleasantest suburbs of London, commanding a fine + view at the back of the breezy, wooded, and not very far-off Surrey hills; + and all round, from every window, front and back, such a mass of greenery + met the eye, almost concealing the neighbouring houses, that I could + easily imagine myself far out in the country. In the garden the + omnipresent sparrow, and that always pleasant companion the starling, + associated with the thrush, blackbird, green linnet, chaffinch, redstart, + wren, and two species of tits; and, better than all these, not fewer than + half a dozen robins warbled their autumn notes from early morning until + late in the evening. Domestic + </p> + <p> + 222 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + CHANTICLEER 223 + </p> + <p> + bird-life was also represented by fifteen fowls, and the wise laxity + existing in the establishment made these also free of the grounds; for of + eyesores and painful skeletons in London cupboards, one of the worst, to + my mind, is that unwholesome coop at the back where a dozen unhappy birds + are usually to be found immured for life. These, more fortunate, had ample + room to run about in, and countless broad shady leaves from which to pick + the green caterpillar, and red tortoise-shaped lady-bird, and + parti-coloured fly, and soft warm soil in which to bathe in their own + gallinaceous fashion, and to lie with outstretched wings luxuriating by + the hour in the genial sunshine. And having seen their free wholesome + life, I did not regard the new-laid egg on the breakfast-table with a + feeling of repugnance, but ate it with a relish. + </p> + <p> + I have said that the fowls numbered fifteen; five were old birds, and ten + were chickens, closely alike in size, colour and general appearance. They + were not the true offspring of the hen that reared them, but hatched from + eggs bought from a local poultry-breeder. As they advanced in age to their + teens, or the period in chicken-life corre- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 224 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + sponding to that in which, in the human species, boy and girl begin to + diverge, their tails grew long, and they developed very fine red combs; + but the lady of the house, who had been promised good layers when she + bought the eggs clung tenaciously to the belief that long arching tails + and stately crests were ornaments common to both sexes in this particular + breed. By and by they commenced to crow, first one, then two, then all, + and stood confessed cockerels. Incidents like this, which are of frequent + occurrence, serve to keep alive the exceedingly ancient notion that the + sex of the future chick can be foretold from the shape of the egg. As I + had no personal interest in the question of the future egg-supply of the + establishment, I was not sorry to see the chickens develop into cocks; + what did interest me were their first attempts at crowing--those grating + sounds which the young bird does not seem to emit, but to wrench out with + painful effort, as a plant is wrenched out of the soil, and not without + bringing away portions of the lungs clinging to its roots. The bird + appears to know what is coming, like an amateur dentist about to extract + one of his own double-pronged teeth, and setting his feet + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + CHANTICLEER 335 + </p> + <p> + firmly on the ground, and throwing himself well back before an imaginary + looking-glass, and with arched-neck, wide-open beak, and rolling eyes, + courageously performs the horrible operation. One cannot help thinking + that a cockerel brought up without any companions of his own sex and age + would not often crow, but in this instance there were no fewer than ten of + them to encourage each other in the laborious process of tuning their + harsh throats. Heard subsequently in the quiet of the early morning, these + first tuning efforts suggested some reflections to my mind, which may not + prove entirely without interest to fanciers who aim at something beyond a + mere increase in our food-supply in their selecting and refining + processes. + </p> + <p> + To continue my narration. I woke in the morning at my usual time, between + three and four o'clock, which is not my getting-up time, for, as a rule, + after half an hour or so I sleep again. The waking is not voluntary as far + as I know; for although it may seem a contradiction in terms to speak of + coming at will out of a state of unconsciousness, we do, in cases + innumerable, wake voluntarily, or at the desired time, not perhaps + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 226 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + being altogether unconscious when sleeping. If, however, this early waking + were voluntary, I should probably say that it was for the pleasure of + listening to the crowing of the cocks at that silent hour when the night, + so near its end, is darkest, and the mysterious tide of life, prescient of + coming dawn, has already turned, and is sending the red current more and + more swiftly through the sleeper's veins. I have spent many a night in the + desert, and when waking on the wide silent grassy plain, the first + whiteness in the eastern sky, and the fluting call of the tinamou, and the + perfume of the wild evening primrose, have seemed to me like a + resurrection in which I had a part; and something of this feeling is + always associated in my mind with the first far-heard notes of + Chanticleer. + </p> + <p> + It was very dark and quiet when I woke; my window was open, with only a + lace curtain before it to separate me from the open air. Presently the + profound silence was broken. From a distance of fifty or sixty yards away + on the left hand came the crow of a cock, soon answered by another further + away on the same side, and then, further away still, by a third. Other + voices took + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + CHANTICLEER 227 + </p> + <p> + up the challenge on the right, some near, some far, until it seemed that + there was scarcely a house in the neighbourhood at which Chanticleer was + not a dweller. There was no other sound. Not for another hour would the + sparrows burst out in a chorus of chirruping notes, lengthened or + shortened at will, variously inflected, and with a ringing musical sound + in some of them, which makes one wonder why this bird, so high in the + scale of nature, has never acquired a set song for itself. For there is + music in him, and when confined with a singing finch he will sometimes + learn its song. Then the robins, then the tits, then the starlings, + gurgling, jarring, clicking, whistling, chattering. Then the pigeons + cooing soothingly on the roof and window-ledges, taking flight from time + to time with sudden, sharp flap, flap, followed by a long, silken sound + made by the wings in gliding. At four the cocks had it all to themselves; + and, without counting the cockerels (not yet out of school), I could + distinctly hear a dozen birds; that is to say, they were near enough for + me to listen to their music critically. The variety of sounds they emitted + was very great, and, if cocks were selected for their vocal qualities, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 228 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + would have shown an astonishing difference in the musical tastes of their + owners. A dozen dogs of as many different breeds, ranging from the + boar-hound to the toy terrier, would not have shown greater dissimilarity + in their forms than did these cocks in their voices. For the fowl, like + the dog, has become an extremely variable creature in the domestic state, + in voice no less than in size, form, colour, and other particulars. At one + end of the scale there was the raucous bronchial strain produced by the + unwieldy Cochin. What a bird is that! Nature, in obedience to man's + behests, and smiling with secret satire over her work, has made it + ponderous and ungraceful as any clumsy mammalian, wombat, ardvaark, + manatee, or hippopotamus. The burnished red hackles, worn like a light + mantle over the black doublet of the breast, the metallic dark green + sickle-plumes arching over the tail, all the beautiful lines and rich + colouring, have been absorbed into flesh and fat for gross feeders; and + with these have gone its liveliness and vigour, its clarion voice and + hostile spirit and brilliant courage; it is Gallus bankiva degenerate, + with dulled brains + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + CHANTICLEER 229 + </p> + <p> + and blunted spurs, and its hoarse crow is a barbarous chant. + </p> + <p> + And far away at the other end, startling in its suddenness and + impetuosity, was a trisyllabic crow, so brief, piercing, and emphatic, + that it could only have proceeded from that peppery uppish little bird, + the bantam. And of the three syllables, the last, which should be the + longest, was the shortest, "short and sharp like the shrill swallow's + cry," or perhaps even more like the shrieky bark of an enraged little cur; + not a <i>reveille</i> and silvern morning song in one, as a crow should + be, but a challenge and a defiance, wounding the sense like a spur, and + suggesting the bustle and fury of the cockpit. + </p> + <p> + If this style of crowing was known to Milton, it is perhaps accountable + for the one bad couplet in the "Allegro": + </p> + <p> + While the cock with lively din Scatters the rear of darkness thin. + </p> + <p> + Someone has said that every line in that incomparable poem brings at least + one distinct picture vividly before the mind's eye. The picture + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 230 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + the first line of the couplet I have quoted suggests to ray mind is not of + crowing Chanticleer at all, but of a stalwart, bare-armed, blowsy-faced + woman, vigorously beating on a tin pan with a stick; but for what + purpose--whether to call down a passing swarm of bees, or to summon the + chickens to be fed--I never know. It is only my mental picture of a + "lively din." As to the second line, all attempts to see the thing + described only bring before me clouds and shadows, confusedly rushing + about in an impossible way; a chaos utterly unlike the serenity and + imperceptible growth of morning, and not a picture at all. + </p> + <p> + By and by I found myself paying special attention to one cock, about a + hundred yards away, or a little more perhaps, for by contrast all the + other songs within hearing seemed strangely inferior. Its voice was + singularly clear and pure, the last note greatly prolonged and with a + slightly falling inflection, yet not collapsing at the finish as such long + notes frequently do, ending with a little internal sound or croak, as if + the singer had exhausted his breath; but it was perfect in its way, a + finished performance, artistic, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + CHANTICLEER 231 + </p> + <p> + and, by comparison, brilliant. After once hearing this bird I paid little + attention to the others, but after each resounding call I counted the + seconds until its repetition. It was this bird's note, on this morning, + and not the others, which seemed to bring round me that atmosphere of + dreams and fancies I exist in at early cockcrow--dreams and memories, + sweet or sorrowful, of old scenes and faces, and many eloquent passages in + verse and prose, written by men in other and better days, who lived more + with nature than we do now. Such a note as this was, perhaps, in Thoreau's + mind when he regretted that there were no cocks to cheer him in the + solitude of Walden. "I thought," he says, "that it might be worth while + keeping a cockerel for his music merely, as a singing bird. The note of + this once wild Indian pheasant is certainly the most remarkable of any + bird's, and if they could be naturalized without being domesticated it + would soon become the most famous sound in our woods. . . . To walk in a + winter morning in a wood where these birds abounded, their native woods, + and hear the wild cockerels crow on the trees, clear and shrill for miles + over the surrounding coun- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 232 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + try--think of it! It would put nations on the alert. Who would not be + early to rise, and rise earlier and earlier on each successive morning of + his life, till he became unspeakably healthy, wealthy, and wise?" + </p> + <p> + Soon I fell into thinking of one in some ways greater than Thoreau, so + unlike the skyey-minded New England prophet and solitary, so much more + genial and tolerant, more mundane and lovable; and yet like Thoreau in his + nearness to nature. Not only a lover of generous wines--"That mark upon + his lip is wine"--and books "clothed in black and red," all natural sights + and sounds also "filled his herte with pleasure and solass," and the early + crowing of the cock was a part of the minstrelsy he loved. Perhaps when + lying awake during the dark quiet hours, and listening to just such a note + as this, he conceived and composed that wonderful tale of the "Nun's + Priest," in which the whole character of Chanticleer, his glory and his + foibles, together with the homely virtues of Dame Partlett, are so + admirably set forth. + </p> + <p> + And longer ago it was perhaps such a note as this, heard in imagination by + the cock-loving + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + CHANTICLEER 233 + </p> + <p> + Athenians, which all at once made them feel so unutterably weary of + endless fighting with the Lacedaemonians, and inspired their hearts with + such a passionate desire for the long untasted sweets of security and + repose. Is it one of my morning fancies merely--for fact and fancy mingle + strangely at this still, mysterious hour, and are scarcely + distinguishable--or is it related in history that this strange thing + happened when all the people of the violet-crowned city were gathered to + witness a solemn tragedy, in which certain verses were spoken that had a + strange meaning to their war-weary souls? "Those who sleep in the morning + in the arms of peace do not start from them at the sound of the trumpet, + and nothing interrupts their slumbers but the peaceful crowing of the + cock." And at these words the whole concourse was electrified, and rose up + like one man, and from thousands of lips went forth a great cry of "Peace! + Peace! Let us make peace with Sparta!" + </p> + <p> + Hark! once more that long clarion call: it is the last time--the very + last; for all the others have sung a dozen times apiece and have gone to + sleep again. So would this one have done, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 234 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + but cocks, like minstrels among men, are vain creatures, and some kind + officious fairy whispered in his ear that there was an appreciative + listener hard by, and so to please me he sang, just one stave more. + </p> + <p> + Lying and listening in the dark, it seemed to me that there were two + opposite qualities commingled in the sound, with an effect analogous to + that of shadow mingling with and chastening light at eventide. First, it + was strong and clear, full of assurance and freedom, qualities admirably + suited to the song of a bird of Chanticleer's disposition; a lusty, + ringing strain, not sung in the clouds or from a lofty perch midway + between earth and heaven, but with feet firmly planted on the soil, and + earthly; and compared with the notes of the grove like a versified + utterance of Walt Whitman compared with the poems of the true inspired + children of song--Blake, Shelley, Poe. Earthly, but not hostile and eager; + on the contrary, leisurely, <i>peaceful</i> even dreamy, with a touch of + tenderness which brings it into relationship with the more aerial tones of + the true singers; and this is the second quality I spoke of, which gave a + charm to this note and made it + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + CHANTICLEER 235 + </p> + <p> + seem better than the others. This is partly the effect of distance, which + clarifies and softens sound, just as distance gives indistinctness of + outline and ethereal blueness to things that meet the sight. To objects + beautiful in themselves, in graceful lines and harmonious proportions and + colouring, the haziness imparts an additional grace; but it does not make + beautiful the objects which are ugly in themselves, as, for instance, an + ugly square house. So in the etherealizing effect of distance on sound, + when so loud a sound as the crowing of a strong-lunged cock becomes dreamy + and tender at a distance of one hundred yards, there must be good musical + elements in it to begin with. I do not remark this dreaminess in the notes + of other birds, some crowing at an equal distance, others still further + away. All natural music is heard best at a distance; like the chiming of + bells, and the music of the flute, and the wild confused strains of the + bagpipes, for among artificial sounds these come the nearest to those made + by nature. The "shrill sharps" of the thrush must be softened by distance + to charm; and the skylark, when close at hand, has both shrill and harsh + sounds scarcely pleasing. He must mount + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 336 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + high before you can appreciate his merit. I do not recommend any one to + keep a caged cock in his study for the sake of its music, crow it never so + well. + </p> + <p> + To return to the ten cockerels; they did not crow very much, and at first + I paid little attention to them. After a few days I remarked that one + individual among them was rapidly acquiring the clear vigorous strain of + the adult bird. Compared with that fine note which I have described, it + was still weak and shaky, but in shape it was similar, and the change had + come while its brethren were still uttering brief and harsh screeches as + at the beginning. Probably, where there is a great mixture of varieties, + it is the same with the fowl as with man in the diversity of the young, + different ancestral characters appearing in different members of the same + family. This cockerel was apparently the musical member, and promised in a + short time to rival his neighbour. Having heard that it was intended to + keep one of the cockerels to be the parent of future broods, I began to + wonder whether the prize in the lottery--to wit, life and a modest + harem--would fall to this fine singer or not. The odds were that + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + CHANTICLEER 237 + </p> + <p> + his musical career would be cut short by an early death, since the ten + birds were very much alike in other respects, and I felt perfectly sure + that his superior note would weigh nothing in the balance. For when has + the character of the voice influenced a fancier in selecting? Never I + believe, odd as it seems. I have read a very big book on the various + breeds of the fowl, but the crowing of the cock was not mentioned in it. + This would not seem so strange if fanciers had invariably looked solely to + utility, and their highest ambition had ended at size, weight and quality + of flesh, early maturity, hardihood, and the greatest number of eggs. This + has not been the case. They possess, like others, the love of the + beautiful, artificial as their standards sometimes appear; and there are + breeds in which beauty seems to have been the principal object, as, for + instance, in several of the gold and silver spangled and pencilled + varieties. But, besides beauty of plumage, there are other things in the + fowl worthy of being improved by selection. One of these has been + cultivated by man for thousands of years, namely, the combative spirit and + splendid courage of the male bird. But there is a spirit + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 238 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + abroad now which condemns cock-fighting, and to continue selecting and + breeding cocks solely for their game-points seems a mere futility. The + energy and enthusiasm expended in this direction would be much better + employed in improving the bird's vocal powers. + </p> + <p> + The morning song of the cock is a sound unique in nature, and of all + natural sounds it is the most universal. "All climates agree with brave + Chanticleer. He is more indigenous even than the natives. His health is + ever good; his lungs are sound; his spirits never flag." He is a pet bird + among tribes that have never seen the peacock, goose, and turkey. In + tropical countries where the dog becomes dumb, or degenerates into a mere + growler, his trumpet never rusts. It is true that he was cradled in the + torrid zone, yet in all Western lands, where he "shakes off the powdery + snow," with vigorous wings, his voice sounds as loud and inspiriting as in + the hot jungle. Pale-faced Londoners, and blacks, and bronzed or painted + barbarians, all men all the world over, wake at morn to the "peaceful + crowing of the cock," just as the Athenians woke of old, and the nations + older still. It is not, therefore, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + CHANTICLEER 239 + </p> + <p> + strange that this song has more associations for man than any other sound + in nature. But, apart from any adventitious claims to our attention, the + sound possesses intrinsic merits and pleases for its own sake. In our + other domestic birds we have, with regard to this point, been unfortunate. + We have the gobbling of turkeys, and the hoarse, monotonous come back of + the guinea-fowl, screaming of peacocks and geese, and quacking, hissing, + and rasping of mallard and mus-covy. Above all these sounds the ringing, + lusty, triumphant call of Chanticleer, as the far-reaching toll of the + bell-bird sounds above the screaming and chattering of parrots and toucans + in the Brazilian forest. A fine sound, which in spite of many changes of + climate and long centuries of domestication still preserves that + forest-born character of wildness, which gives so great a charm to the + language of many woodland gallinaceous birds. As we have seen, it is + variable, and in some artificial varieties has been suffered to degenerate + into sounds harsh and disagreeable; yet it is plain that an improved voice + in a beautiful breed would double the bird's value from an aesthetic point + of view. As things now are, the + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 240 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + fine voices are in a very small minority. Some bad voices in artificial + breeds, i.e., those which, like the Brahma and Cochin, diverge most widely + from the original type--are perhaps incurable, like the carrion crow's + voice; for that bird will probably always caw harshly in spite of the + musical throat which anatomists find in it. We can only listen to our + birds, and begin experimenting with those already possessed of shapely + notes and voices of good quality. + </p> + <p> + I am not going to be so ill-mannered as to conclude without an apology to + those among us who under no circumstances can tolerate the crowing of the + cock. It is true that I have not been altogether unmindful of their + prepossessions, and have freely acknowledged in divers places that + Chanticleer does not always please, and that there is abundant room for + improvement; but if they go further than that, if for them there exists + not on this round globe a cock whose voice would fail to irritate, then I + have not shown consideration enough, and something is still owing to their + feelings, which are very acute. It is possible that one of these sensitive + persons may take up my book, and, attracted by its title, dip into this + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + CHANTICLEER 241 + </p> + <p> + paper, hoping to find in it a practical suggestion for the effectual + muzzling of the obnoxious bird. The only improvement which would fall in + with such a one's ideas on the subject of cock-crowing would be to improve + this kind of natural music out of existence. Naturally the paper would + disappoint him; he would be grieved at the writer's erroneous views. I + hope that his feelings would take no acuter form. I have listened to a + person, usually mild-mannered, denouncing a neighbour in the most + unmeasured terms for the crime of keeping a crowing cock. If the cock had + been a non-crower, a silent member, it would have been different: he would + hardly have known that he had a neighbour. There is a very serious, even a + sad, side to this question. Mr. Sully maintains that as civilization + progresses, and as we grow more intellectual, all noise, which is pleasing + to children and savages, and only exhilarates their coarse and juvenile + brains, becomes increasingly intolerable to us. What unfortunate creatures + we then are! We have got our pretty rattle and are now afraid that the + noise it makes is going to be the death of us. But what is noise? Will any + two highly intellectual beings agree as + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 242 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + to the particular sound which produces the effect of rusty nails thrust in + among the convolutions of the brain? Physicians are continually + discovering new forms of nervous maladies, caused by the perpetual hurry + and worry and excitement of our modern life; and perhaps there is one form + in which natural sounds, which being natural should be agreeable, or at + any rate innocent, become more and more abhorrent. This is a question + which concerns the medical journals; also, to some extent, those who + labour to forecast the future. Happily, all our maladies are thrown off, + sooner or later, if they do not kill us; and we can cheerfully look + forward to a time when the delicate chords in us shall no longer be made + to vibrate "like sweet bells jangled out of tune and harsh" to any sound + in nature, and when the peaceful crowing of the cock shall cease to madden + the early waker. For, whatever may be the fate awaiting our city + civilization, brave Chanticleer, improved as to his voice or not, will + undoubtedly still be with us. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-29.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-29.jpg" width="90" + height="99" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="link243" id="link243"></a> <img + src="images/hudson-birds-30.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-30.jpg" width="404" + height="169" /> + </p> + <h3> + IN AN OLD GARDEN + </h3> + <p> + A SUNNY morning in June--a golden day among days that have mostly a + neutral tint; a large garden, with no visible houses beyond, but green + fields and unkept hedges and great silent trees, oak and ash and + elm--could I wish, just now, for a more congenial resting-place, or even + imagine one that comes nearer to my conception of an earthly paradise? It + is true that once I could not drink deeply enough from the sweet and + bitter cup of wild nature, and loved nature best, and sought it gladly + where it was most savage and solitary. But that was long ago. Now, after + years of London life, during which I have laboured like many another "to + get a wan pale face," with perhaps a wan pale mind to match, that past + wildness would prove too potent and + </p> + <p> + 243 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 244 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + sharp a tonic; unadulterated nature would startle and oppress me with its + rude desolate aspect, no longer familiar. This softness of a + well-cultivated earth, and unbroken verdure of foliage in many shades, and + harmonious grouping and blending of floral hues, best suit my present + enervated condition. I had, I imagine, a swarter skin and firmer flesh + when I could ride all day over great summer-parched plains, where there + was not a bush that would have afforded shelter to a mannikin, and think + that I was having a pleasant journey. The cloudless sky and vertical + sun--how intolerable they would now seem, and scorch my brain and fill my + shut eyes with dancing flames! At present even this mild June sun is + strong enough to make the old mulberry tree on the lawn appear grateful. + It is an ancient, rough-barked tree, with wide branches, that droop + downwards all round, and rest their terminal leaves on the sward; + underneath it is a natural tent, or pavilion, with plenty of space to move + about and sling a hammock in. Here, then, I have elected to spend the + hottest hours of my one golden day, reading, dreaming, listening at + intervals to the fine bird-sounds that have a. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + IN AN OLD GARDEN 345 + </p> + <p> + medicinal and restorative effect on the jarred and wounded sense. + </p> + <p> + From the elms hard by comes a subdued, airy prattle of a few sparrows. It + is rather pleasant, something like a low accompaniment to the notes of the + more tuneful birds; the murmurous music of a many-stringed instrument, + forming the indistinct ground over which runs the bright embroidery of + clear melodious singing. + </p> + <p> + This morning, while lying awake from four to five o'clock, I almost hated + the sparrows, they were there in such multitudes, and so loud and + persistent sounded their jangling through the open window. It set me + thinking of the England of the future--of a time a hundred years hence, + let us say--when there will remain with us only two representatives of + feral life--the sparrow and the house-fly. Doubtless it will come, unless + something happens; but, doubtless, it will not continue. It will still be + necessary for a man to kill something in order to be happy; and the + sportsmen of that time, like great Gambetta, in the past, will sit in the + balconies, popping with pea-rifles at the sparrows until not one is left + to twitter. Then will come the turn of the untamed + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 246 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + and untamable fly; and he will afford good sport if hunted a la Domitain, + with fine, needle-tipped paper javelins, thrown to impale him on the wall. + </p> + <p> + One of our savants has lately prophesied that the time will come when only + the microscopic organisms will exist to satisfy the hunting instinct in + man. How these small creatures will be taken he does not tell us. Perhaps + the hunters will station themselves round a table with a drop of preserved + water on its centre, made large and luminous by means of a ray of + magnifying light. When that time comes the amoeba--that "wandering Jew," + as an irreverent Quarterly Reviewer has called it--will lose its + immortality, and the spry rotifer will fall a victim to the infinitesimal + fine bright arrows of the chase. A strange quarry for men whose + paeliolithic progenitors hunted the woolly mastodon and many-horned + rhinoceros and sabre-toothed tiger! + </p> + <p> + That sad day of very small things for the sportsman is, however, not near, + nor within measurable distance; or, so it seemed to me when, an hour ago, + I strolled round the garden, curiously peering into every shrub, to find + the visible and comparatively noble insect-life in great + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + IN AN OLD GARDEN 247 + </p> + <p> + abundance. Beetles were there--hard, round, polished, and of various + colours, like sea-worn pebbles on the beach; and some, called lady-birds + in the vernacular, were bound like the books that Chaucer loved in black + and red. And the small gilded fly, not less an insect light-headed, a + votary of vain delights, than in the prehistoric days when a white-headed + old king, discrowned and crazed, railed against sweet Nature's liberty. + And ever waiting to welcome this inconstant lover (with falces) there sits + the solitary geometric spider, an image and embodiment of patience, not on + a monument, but a suspended wheel of which he is himself the hub; and so + delicately fashioned are the silver spokes thereof, radiating from his + round and gem-like body, and the rings, concentric tire within tire, that + its exceeding fineness, like swift revolving motion, renders it almost + invisible. Caterpillars, too, in great plenty--miniature porcupines with + fretful quills on end, and some naked even as they came into the world. + This one, called the earth-measurer, has drunk himself green with + chlorophyll so as to escape detection. Vain precaution! since eccentric + motion betrays him to keen avian eyes, when, like + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 248 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + the traveller's snake, he erects himself on the tip of his tail and sways + about in empty space, vaguely feeling for something, he knows not what. + And the mechanical tortrix that rolls up a leaf for garment and food, and + preys on his own case and shelter until he has literally eaten himself + stark naked; after which he rolls up a second leaf, and so on + progressively. Thus in his larval life does he symbolize some restless + nation that makes itself many successive constitutions and forms of + government, in none of which it abides long; but afterwards some higher + thing, when he rests motionless, in form like a sarcophagus, whence the + infolded life emerges to haunt the twilight--a grey ghost moth. There is + no end to rolled-up leaves, and to the variety of creatures that are + housed in them; for, just as the "insect tribes of human kind" in all + places and in all ages, while seeking to improve their condition, + independently hit on the same means and inventions, so it is with these + small six-legged people; and many species in many places have found out + the comfort and security of the green cylinder. + </p> + <p> + So many did I open that I at last grew tired + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + IN AN OLD GARDEN 249 + </p> + <p> + of the process, like a man to whom the post has brought too many letters; + but there was one--the last I opened--the living active contents of which + served to remind me that some insects are unable to make a cylinder for + themselves, having neither gum nor web to fasten it with, and yet they + will always find one made by others to shelter themselves in. Here were no + fewer than six unbeautiful creatures, brothers and sisters, hatched from + eggs on which their parent earwig sat incubating just like an eagle or + dove or swallow, or, better still, like a pelican; for in the end did she + not give of her own life-fluid to nourish her children? Unbeautiful, yet + not without a glory superior to that of the Purple Emperor, and the + angelic blue Morpho, and the broad-winged Ornithoptera, that caused an + illustrious traveller to swoon with joy at the sight of its supreme + loveliness. Du Maurier has a drawing of a little girl in a garden gazing + at two earwigs racing along a stem. "I suppose," she remarks + interrogatively to her mamma, "that these are Mr. and Mrs. Earwig?" and on + being answered affirmatively, exclaims, "What could they have seen in each + other?" What they saw was blue + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 250 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + blood, or something in insectology corresponding to it. The earwig's + lustre is that of antiquity. He existed on earth before colour came in; + and colour is old, although not so old as Nature's unconscious + aestheticism which, in the organic world, is first expressed in beauty of + form. It is long since the great May flies, large as swifts, had their + aerial cloudy dances over the vast everglades and ancient forests of + ferns; and when, on some dark night, a brilliant Will-o'-the-wisp rose and + floated above the feathery foliage, drawn in myriads to its light, they + revolved about it in an immense mystical wheel, misty-white, glistening, + and touched with prismatic colour. Floating fire and wheel were visible + only to the stars, and the wakeful eyes of giant scaly monsters lying + quiescent in the black waters below; but they were very beautiful + nevertheless. The modest earwig was old on the earth even then; he dates + back to the time, immeasurably remote, when scorpions possessed the earth, + and taught him to frighten his enemies with a stingless tail--that curious + antique little tail which has not yet forgot its cunning. + </p> + <p> + Greater than all these inhabitants of the garden, ancient or modern by + reason of their + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + IN AN OLD GARDEN 251 + </p> + <p> + numbers, which is the sign of predominance, are the small wingless people + that have colonies on every green stem and under every green leaf. + </p> + <p> + These are the true generators of that heavenly sweat, or saliva of the + stars, concerning which Pliny the Younger wrote so learnedly. And they are + many tribes--green, purple, brown, isabel-line; but all are one nation, + and sacred to that fair god whom the Carian water-nymph loved not wisely + but too well. For, albeit the children of an ancient union, they marry + not, nor are given in marriage, yet withal multiply exceedingly, so that + one (not two) may in a single season produce a billion. And at last when + autumn comes, won back from the cold god to his hot mother, they know love + and wedlock, and die like all married things. These are the + Aphides--sometimes unprettily called plant-lice, and vaguely spoken of by + the uninformed as "blight"--and they nourish themselves on vegetable + juices, that thin green blood which is the plant's life. + </p> + <p> + This, then, is the fruit which the birds have, come to gather. In June is + their richest harvest; it is more bountiful than September, when apples + redden, and grapes in distant southern lands are + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 252 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + gathered for the wine-press. In yon grey wall at the end of the lawn, just + above the climbing rose-bush, there are now seven hungry infants in one + small cradle, each one, some one says, able to consume its own weight of + insect food every day. I am inclined to believe that it must be so, while + trying to count the visits paid to the nest in one hour by the parent + tits--those small tits that do the gardener so much harm! We know, on good + authority, that the spider has a "nutty flavour"; and most insects in the + larval stage afford succulent and toothsome, or at all events beaksome, + morsels. These are, just now, the crimson cherries, purple and yellow + plums, currants, red, white, and black--and sun-painted peaches, asking in + their luscious ripeness for a mouth to melt in, that fascinate finch and + flycatcher alike, and make the starlings smack their horny lips with a + sound like a loving kiss. + </p> + <p> + Not that I care, or esteem birds for what they eat or do not eat. With all + these creatures that are at strife among themselves, and that birds prey + upon, I am at peace, even to the smallest that are visible--the red spider + which is no spider; and the minute gossamer spider clinging to + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + IN AN OLD GARDEN 253 + </p> + <p> + the fine silvery hairs of the flying summer; and the coccus that fall from + the fruit trees to float on their buoyant cottony down--a summer snow. + Fils de la Vierge are these, and sacred. The man who can needlessly set + his foot on a worm is as strange to my soul as De Quincey's imaginary + Malay, or even his "damned crocodile." The worm that one sees lying + bruised and incapable on the gravel walk has fallen among thieves. These + little lives do me good and not harm. I smell the acid ants to strengthen + my memory. I know that if I set an overturned cockchafer on his legs three + sins shall be forgiven me; that if I am kindly tolerant of the spider that + drops accidentally on my hand or face, my purse shall be mysteriously + replenished. At the same time, one has to remember that such sentiments, + as a rule, are not understood by those who have charge over groves and + gardens, whose minds are ignorant and earthy, or, as they would say, + practical. Of the balance of nature they know and care naught, nor can + they regard life as sacred; it is enough to know that it is or may be + injurious to their interests for them to sweep it away. The small thing + that has been flying about and uttering + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 254 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + musical sounds since April may, when July comes, devour a certain number + of cherries. Nor is even this plea needed. If it is innocent for the lower + creatures to prey upon one another, it cannot be less innocent for man to + destroy them indiscriminately, if it gives him any pleasure to do so. It + is idle to go into such subtle questions with those who have the power to + destroy; if their hands are to be restrained it is not by appealing to + feelings which they do not possess, but to their lower natures--to their + greed and their cunning. For the rest of us, for all who have conquered or + outgrown the killing instinct, the impartiality that pets nothing and + persecutes nothing is doubtless man's proper attitude towards the inferior + animals; a godlike benevolent neutrality; a keen and kindly interest in + every form of life, with indifference as to its ultimate destiny; the + softness which does no wrong with the hardness that sees no wrong done. + </p> + <p> + To return to the birds. The starlings have kissed like lovers, and + fluttered up vertically on their short wings, trying to stream like + eagles, only to return to the trees once more and sit there chattering + pleasant nothings; at intervals + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + IN AN OLD GARDEN 255 + </p> + <p> + throwing out those soft, round, modulated whistled notes, just as an idle + cigarette-smoker blows rings of blue smoke from his lips; and now they + have flown away to the fields so that I can listen to the others. + </p> + <p> + A thrush is making music on a tall tree beyond the garden hedge, and I am + more grateful for the distance that divides us than for the song; for, + just now, he does not sing so well as sometimes of an evening, when he is + most fluent, and a listener, deceived by his sweetness and melody, writes + to the papers to say that he has heard the nightingale. Just now his song + is scrappy, composed of phrases that follow no order and do not fit or + harmonize, and is like a poor imitation of an inferior mocking-bird's + song. + </p> + <p> + Between the scraps of loud thrush-music I listen to catch the thin, + somewhat reedy sound of a yellow-hammer singing in the middle of the + adjoining grassy field. It comes well from the open expanse of purpling + grass, and reminds me of a favourite grasshopper in a distant sunny land. + O happy grasshopper! singing all day in the trees and tall herbage, in a + country where every village urchin is not sent afield to "study natural + his- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 256 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + tory" with green net and a good store of pins, shall I ever again hear thy + breezy music, and see thee among the green leaves, beautiful with + steel-blue and creamy-white body, and dim purple over and vivid red + underwings? + </p> + <p> + The bird of the pasture-land is singing still, perhaps, but all at once I + have ceased to hear him, for something has come to lift me above his low + grassy level, something faint and at first only the suspicion of a sound; + then a silvery lisping, far off and aerial, touching the sense as lightly + as the wind-borne down of dandelion. + </p> + <p> + If any place for any soul there be Disrobed and disentrammelled, + </p> + <p> + doubtless it is from such a place and such a soul that this sublimated + music falls. The singer, one can imagine, has never known or has forgotten + earth; and if it is visible to him, how small it must seem from that + altitude, "spinning like a fretful midge" beneath him in the vast void I + </p> + <p> + It is the lark singing in the blue infinite heaven, at this distance with + something ethereal and heavenly in his voice; but now the wide circling + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + IN AN OLD GARDEN 257 + </p> + <p> + wings that brought him for a few moments within hearing, have borne him + beyond it again; and missing it, the sunshine looks less brilliant than + before, and all other bird-voices seem by comparison dull and of the + earth. + </p> + <p> + Certainly there is nothing spiritual in the song of the chaffinch. There + he sits within sight, motionless, a little bird-shaped automaton, made to + go off at intervals of twelve or thirteen seconds; but unfortunately one + hears with the song the whirr and buzz of the internal machinery. It is + not now as in April, when it is sufficient in a song that it shall be + joyous; in the leafy month, when roses are in bloom, one grows critical, + and asks for sweetness and expression, and a better art than this vigorous + garden singer displays in that little double flourish with which he + concludes his little hurry-scurry lyric. He has practised that same + flourish for five thousand years--to be quite within the mark--and it is + still far from perfect, still little better than a kind of musical sneeze. + So long is art! + </p> + <p> + Perhaps in some subtle way, beyond the psychologist's power to trace, he + has become aware of my opinion of his performance--the unspoken + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 258 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + detraction which yet affects its object; and, feeling hurt in his + fringilline <i>amour propre</i>, he has all at once taken himself off. + Never mind; a better singer has succeeded him. I have heard and seen the + little wren a dozen times to-day; now he has come to the upper part of the + tree I am lying under, and although so near his voice sounds scarcely + louder than before. This is also a lyric, but of another kind. It is not + plaintive, nor passionate; nor is it so spontaneous as the warbling of the + robin--that most perfect feathered impressionist; nor is it endeared to me + by early associations since I listened in boyhood to the songs of other + wrens. In what, then, does its charm consist? I do not know. Certainly it + is delicate, and may even be described as brilliant, in its limited way + perfect, and to other greater songs like the small pimpernel to a poppy or + a hollyhock. Unambitious, yet finished, it has the charm of distinction. + The wren is the least self-conscious of our singers. Somewhere among the + higher green translucent leaves the little brown barred thing is quietly + sitting, busy for the nonce about nothing, dreaming his summer dream, and + unknowingly telling it aloud. When shall + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + IN AN OLD GARDEN 259 + </p> + <p> + we have symbols to express as perfectly our summer-feeling--our dream ? + </p> + <p> + That small song has served to remind me of two small books I brought into + the garden to read--the works of two modern minor poets whose "wren-like + warblings," I imagined, would suit my mood and the genial morning better + than the stirring or subtle thoughts of greater singers. Possibly in that + I was mistaken; for there until now lie the books neglected on a lawn + chair within reach of my hand. The chair was dragged hither half-an-hour + ago by a maiden all in white, who appeared half inclined to share the + mulberry shade with me. She did not continue long in that mind. In a + lively manner, she began speaking of some trivial thing; but after a very + few moments all interest in the subject evaporated, and she sat humming + some idle air, tapping the turf with her fantastic shoe. Presently she + picked up one of my books, opened it at random and read a line or two, her + vermilion under-lip curling slightly; then threw it down again, and + glanced at me out of the corners of her eyes; then hummed again, and + finally became silent, and sat bending forward a little, her dark lustrous + eyes gazing with + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 260 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + strange intentness through the slight screen of foliage into the vacant + space beyond. What to see? The poet has omitted to tell us to what the + maiden's fancy lightly turns in spring. Doubtless it turns to thoughts of + something real. Life is real; so is passion--the quickening of the blood, + the wild pulsation. But the pleasures and pains of the printed book are + not real, and are to reality like Japanese flowers made of coloured bits + of tissue paper to the living fragrant flowers that bloom to-day and + perish to-morrow; they are a simulacrum, a mockery, and present to us a + pale phantasmagoric world, peopled with bloodless men and women that + chatter meaningless things and laugh without joy. The feeling of unreality + affects us all at times, but in very different degrees. And perhaps I was + too long a doer, herding too much with narrow foreheads, drinking too + deeply of the sweet and bitter cup, to experience that pure unfailing + delight in literature which some have. Its charm, I fancy, is greatest to + those in whom the natural man, deprived in early life of his proper + aliment, grows sickly and pale, and perishes at last of inanition. There + is ample room then for the latter higher growth-- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + IN AN OLD GARDEN 261 + </p> + <p> + the unnatural cultivated man. Lovers of literature are accustomed to say + that they find certain works "helpful" to them; and doubtless, being all + intellect, they are right. But we, the less highly developed, are + compounded of two natures, and while this spiritual pabulum sustains one, + the other and larger nature is starved; for the larger nature is earthly, + and draws its sustenance from the earth. I must look at a leaf, or smell + the sod, or touch a rough pebble, or hear some natural sound, if only the + chirp of a cricket, or feel the sun or wind or rain on my face. The book + itself may spoil the pleasure it was designed to give me, and instead of + satisfying my hunger, increase it until the craving and sensation of emptiness + becomes intolerable. Not any day spent in a library would I live again, + but rather some lurid day of labour and anxiety, of strife, or peril, or + passion. + </p> + <p> + Occupied with this profound question, I scarcely noticed when my + shade-sharer, with whom I sympathised only too keenly in her restless + mood, rose and, lifting the light green curtain, passed out into the + sunshine and was gone. Nor did I notice when the little wren ceased + singing over- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 262 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + head. At length recalled to myself I began to wonder at the unusual + silence in the garden, until, casting my eyes on the lawn, I discovered + the reason; for there, moving about in their various ways, most of the + birds were collected in a loose miscellaneous flock, a kind of happy + family. There were the starlings, returned from the fields, and looking + like little speckled rooks; some sparrows, and a couple of robins hopping + about in their wild startled manner; in strange contrast to these last + appeared that little feathered clodhopper, the chaffinch, plodding over + the turf as if he had hobnailed boots on his feet; last, but not least, + came statuesque blackbirds and thrushes, moving, when they moved, like + automata. They all appear to be finding something to eat; but I Watch the + thrushes principally, for these are more at home on the moist earth than + the others, and have keener senses, and seek for nobler game. I see one + suddenly thrust his beak into the turf and draw from it a huge earthworm, + a wriggling serpent, so long that although he holds his head high, a third + of the pink cylindrical body still rests in its run. What will he do with + it? We know how wandering Waterton treated the boa + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + IN AN OLD GARDEN 263 + </p> + <p> + which he courageously grasped by the tail as it retreated into the bushes. + Naturally, it turned on him, and, lifting high its head, came swiftly + towards his face with wide-open jaws; and at this supreme moment, without + releasing his hold on its tail, with his free hand he snatched off his + large felt hat and thrust it down the monster's throat, and so saved + himself. + </p> + <p> + Just as I am intently watching to see how my hatless little Waterton will + deal with <i>his</i> serpent, a startling bark, following by a canine + shriek, then a yell, resound through the silent garden; and over the lawn + rush those three demoniacal fox-terriers, Snap, Puzzy, and Babs, all + determined to catch something. Away fly the birds, and though now high + overhead, the baffled brutes continue wildly careering about the grounds, + vexing the air with their frantic barkings. No more birds to-day! But now + the peace-breakers have discovered me, and come tearing across the lawn, + and on to the half-way chair, then to the hammock, scrambling over each + other to inflict their unwelcome caresses on my hands and face. + </p> + <p> + Ah well, let them have their way and do their worst, since the birds are + gone, and I shall go + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 264 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + soon. It is a consolation to think that they are not my pets; that I shall + not grieve, like their mistress, when their brief barking period is over; + that I care just so much and no more for them than for any other living + creature, not excepting the <i>fer-de-lance</i>, "quoiled in the path like + rope in a ship," or the broad-winged vulture "scaling the heavens by + invisible stairs." None are out of place where Nature placed them, nor + unbeautiful; none are unlovable, since their various qualities--the rage + of the one and the gentleness of the other--are but harmonious lights and + shades in the ever-changing living picture that is so perfect. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-31.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-31.jpg" width="103" + height="122" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="linkcornish" id="linkcornish"></a> <img + src="images/hudson-birds-32.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-32.jpg" width="404" + height="170" /> + </p> + <h3> + BIRDS IN A CORNISH VILLAGE + </h3> + <p> + <a name="link265" id="link265"></a> + </p> + <h4> + I + </h4> + <h4> + TAKING STOCK OF THE BIRDS + </h4> + <p> + HAVING begun, or first written, this book in one village, which was near + London, I am now finishing, or re-writing, it in another in "the westest + part of all the land," over three hundred miles from the first. Here I had + to go over this ancient work of twenty-three years ago, which was also my + first English bird book, to prepare it for a new edition; and after all + necessary corrections, omissions and additions of fresh matter made in the + foregoing parts, it seemed best to throw out the whole of the concluding + portion, which dealt mainly with the question of bird-preservation as + </p> + <p> + 265 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 266 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + it presented itself at that time and is now out of date, thanks to the + legislation of recent years and to the growth in this country of the + feeling or desire for birds during the last two or three decades. In place + of this discarded matter I propose to give here the results of recent + observations on the bird life of a Cornish village. + </p> + <p> + My residence in the Cornish Village (or villages) was during May and June, + 1915, and again from October of the same year to June, 1916. These were + months of ill-health, so that I was prevented from pursuing my customary + outdoor rambling life; but, like that poor creature the barnyard fowl that + can't use its wings, instinctively, or from old habit, I used my eyes in + keeping a watch on the feathered (and flying) people about me. + </p> + <p> + The village, Lelant, is on the Hayle estuary, and to see the Atlantic one + has but to walk past the grey old church at the end of the street, where + the ground rises, to find oneself in a wilderness of towans, as the + sand-hills are there called, clothed in their rough, grey-green marram + grass and spreading on either hand round the bay of St. Ives. A beautiful + sight, for the sea on a + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 267 + </p> + <p> + sunny day is of that marvellous blue colour seen only in Cornwall; far out + on a rock on the right hand stands the shining white Godrevy lighthouse, + and on the left, on the opposite side of the bay, the little ancient + fishing-town of St. Ives. + </p> + <p> + The river or estuary, in sight of the doors and windows of the village, + was haunted every day by numbers of gulls and curlews. These last numbered + about one hundred and fifty birds, and were always there except at full + tide, when they would fly away to the fields and moors. Of all my bird + neighbours I think that these gave me most pleasure, especially at night, + when lying awake I would listen by the hour to the perpetual curlew + conversation going on in the dark--an endless series of clear modulated + notes and trills, with a beautiful expression of wildness and freedom, a + reminder of lonely seashores and mountains and moorlands in the north + country. What wonder that Stevenson, sick in his tropical island--sick for + his cold grey home so many thousands of miles away, wished once more to + hear the whaup crying over the graves of his forefathers, and to hear no + more at all! + </p> + <p> + Of bird music by day there was little; you would + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 268 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + hear more of it in one morning in that small rustic village in Berkshire + where the first part of this book was written than in a whole summer in + one of these West Cornwall villages, so few comparatively are the + songsters. Nor was this scarcity in the village only; it was everywhere, + as I found when able to get out for a few hours during my two spring + seasons in the place. Close by were the extensive woods of Trevalloe, + where I was struck by the extraordinary silence and where I listened in + vain for a single note from blackcap, garden-warbler, willow-wren, + wood-wren, or redstart. The thrushes, chaffinch, chiff-chaff, and + greenfinch were occasionally heard; outside the wood the buntings, chats, + and the skylark were few and far between. + </p> + <p> + This scarcity of small birds is, I think, due in the first place to the + extraordinary abundance of the jackdaw, the diligent seeker after small + birds' nests, and to the autumn and winter pastime of bush-beating to + which men and boys are given in these parts, and which the Cornish + authorities refuse to suppress. + </p> + <p> + After a time, when, owing to increasing debility, I was confined more and + more to the + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 269 + </p> + <p> + village, I began to concentrate my attention on a few common species that + were always present, particularly on the three commonest--rook, daw, and + starling; the first two residents, the starling, a winter visitor from + September to April. + </p> + <p> + In October, I started feeding the birds at the house where I was staying + as a guest, throwing the scraps on a lawn at the back which sloped down + towards the estuary. First came all the small birds in the immediate + neighbourhood--robin, dunnock, wagtail, chaffinch, throstle, blackbird, + and blue and ox-eye tits. Then followed troops of starlings, and soon all + the rooks and daws in the village began to see what was going on and come + too, and this attracted the gulls from the estuary--I wished that it had + drawn the curlews; and all these big ones were so greedy and bold, so + noisy and formidable-looking that the small birds were quite driven out; + all except the starlings that came in hungry crowds and were determined to + get their share. + </p> + <p> + At the beginning of December I had to move to a nursing-home at the + Convent of the Sisters of the Cross at the adjacent village of Hayle, just + across the estuary. The Convent buildings and + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 270 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + grounds and gardens are fortunately outside the ugly village, and my room + had an exceptionally big window occupying almost the whole wall on one + side, with an outlook to the south over the green fields and moors towards + Helston. An ideal sick-room for a man who can't be happy without the + company of birds, and here, even when lying on my bed before I was able to + sit or stand by the window, a large portion of the sky, rainy or blue, was + visible, and rooks and daws and gulls and troops of starlings, and the + curlews from the river, were seen coming and going all day long. + </p> + <p> + But it was much better when I was able to go to the window, since now, by + feeding them, I could draw the birds to me. I fed them on a green field + beneath my window, where the Convent milch-cows were accustomed to graze + for some hours each day. All through the winter there was grass for them, + and I was glad to have them there, as the cow is my favourite beast, and + it was also pleasant to see the wintering starlings consorting with them, + clustering about their noses, just as they do in the pasture lands in + summer time. But I found it best to feed the birds when + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 271 + </p> + <p> + the cows were not there, on account of the behaviour of one of them, a + young animal who had not yet been sobered by having a calf of her own. She + was a frivolous young thing and when tired of feeding, she would start + teasing the old cows, pushing them with her horns, then flinging up her + hind legs to challenge them to a romp. The sight of a crowd of birds under + my window would bring her at a gallop to the spot to find out what all the + fuss was about, and the birds would be driven off. + </p> + <p> + One morning I was at my window when the field was empty of bird and beast + life with the exception of a solitary old rook, a big bird who was a + constant attendant and so much bigger than most of the rooks that I had + come to know it well. By and by the young cow walked into the field by + herself and, after gazing all round as if surprised at finding the place + so lifeless, she caught sight of and fixed her eyes on the old rook + working at the turf some fifty or sixty yards away. Presently she began + walking towards it, and when within about twenty yards put her head down + and charged it. The rook paid no attention until she was almost on it, + then rose up, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 272 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + emitting its angriest, most raucous screams while hovering just over her + head, and having thus relieved its indignant feelings it flew heavily away + to the far end of the field, and settling down began prodding away at the + soil. The cow, standing still, gazed after it, and one could almost + imagine her saying: "So you won't get out of the field! Well! I'll soon + make you. I'm going to have it all to myself this morning." And at once + she began rapidly walking towards the bird. But half-way to it was the + post set up in the middle of the field for the cows to rub their hides, + and on coming abreast of it the sight of it and its proximity suggested + the delight of a rub, and turning off at right angles she walked straight + to the post and began rubbing herself against it. The rook went on with + its business, and after that there was no more quarrelling. + </p> + <p> + Another morning this same old rook came with his mate to the field: + separating, they came down a distance of a hundred yards or more apart and + began searching for grubs. By and by the old cock discovered something + particularly good and after vigorously prodding the turf for a few moments + he sprang up and flew excitedly to his + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 273 + </p> + <p> + mate, who instantly knew what this action meant and began fluttering her + wings and crying for the dainty morsel which he proceeded to deliver into + her wide-open mouth. Having fed her, he flew back to the same spot and + began working again. + </p> + <p> + This is a common action of the rooks, and I saw this same bird feed his + mate on other occasions during the winter months, when I have no doubt + that he, poor wretch, could hardly find food enough to keep himself alive + during the dark season of everlasting wind and rain when the dim daylight + lasted for about six hours. But I never saw a daw or starling feed his + mate, or feed another daw or starling, although I watched closely every + day and often for an hour at a stretch, and though I am convinced that the + starling, like the rook and crow and daw, and in fact all the Corvidae, + pairs for life. To this point I will return presently; let me first relate + another incident about our frivolous and irresponsible young cow. + </p> + <p> + One morning when the cows were in the field, some herring-gulls drifted by + and a few of them remained circling about above the field. I threw + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 274 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + out a piece of bread, and a troop of starlings rushed to it, and one of + the gulls dropped down and took possession of it, but had scarcely began + tearing at it when two more gulls dropped down and the first bird, lifting + his wings began screaming "Hands off!" at the others, and the others, also + raising their wings, screamed their wailing screams in reply. The young + cow, attracted by the noise, gazed at them for a few moments, then all at + once putting her head down furiously charged them. The three gulls rose up + simultaneously and floated over her and then away, leaving her standing on + the spot, shaking her head in anger and disgust at their escape. A + rhinoceros charging a ball of thistledown or a soap-bubble, and causing it + to float away with the wind it created, would not have been a more + ludicrous spectacle. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-33.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-33.jpg" width="131" + height="96" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="link275" id="link275"></a> + </p> + <h4> + II + </h4> + <h4> + DO STARLINGS PAIR FOR LIFE? + </h4> + <p> + FROM my boyhood, when I first began to observe birds, I started with the + imbibed notion that those which paired for life were the rare + exceptions--the dove that rhymed with love, the eagle, and perhaps half a + dozen more. Who, for instance, would imagine that the sexes could be + faithful in parasitical species like the cuckoo of Europe and the + cow-birds of America? Yet even as a boy I made the discovery that an + Argentine cow-bird that lays its eggs in the nests of other species, does + actually pair for life; and so effectually mated is it, that on no day and + no season of the year will you see a male without his female: if he flies + she flies with him and feeds and drinks with him, and when he perches she + perches at his side, and he never utters a sound but a responsive sound + immediately falls from her devoted beak. + </p> + <p> + 275 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 276 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + Again, it may seem unlikely that there can be pairing for life in species, + like the chaffinch of northern Europe and, with us, of Scotland, in which + the sexes separate and migrate separately. Also of non-gregarious species + like the nightingale in which the males arrive in this country several + days before the females. Yet I am confident that if we could catch and + mark a considerable number of pairs it would be found that the same male + and female found one another and re-mated every year. + </p> + <p> + It comes to this, that birds may pair for life, yet not be all the time or + all the year together, as in the case of hawks, crows, owls, herons, and + many others. In numberless species which undoubtedly pair for life the + sexes keep apart during several hours each day, and there is some evidence + that those that separate for a part of the year remain faithful. + </p> + <p> + An incident, related by Miss Ethel Williams, of Winchester, in her natural + history notes contributed to a journal in that city, bears on this point. + She had among the bird pensioners in the garden of her house adjoining the + Cathedral green, a female thrush that grew tame enough to + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 277 + </p> + <p> + fly into the house and feed on the dining-room table. Her thrush paired + and bred for several seasons in the garden, and the young, too, were tame + and would follow their mother into the house to be fed. The male was wild + and too shy ever to venture in. She noticed the first year that it had a + wing-feather which stuck out, owing probably to a malformation of the + socket. Each year after the breeding season the male vanished, the female + remaining alone through the winter months, but in spring the male came + back--the same bird with the unmistakable projecting wing-feather. Yet it + was certain that this bird had gone quite away, otherwise he would have + returned to the garden, where there was food in abundance during the + spells of frosty weather. As he did not appear it is probable that he + migrated each autumn to some warmer climate beyond the sea. + </p> + <p> + I have noticed that wagtails, thrushes, blackbirds, and some other species + when the young are out of the nest, divide the brood between male and + female and go different ways and spend the daylight hours at a distance + apart, each attending to the one or two young birds in its charge. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 278 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + One winter, a few years ago, I was staying for a few days at a cottage + facing Silchester Common, and on going out after breakfast to feed the + birds I particularly noticed a male grey wagtail among those that came to + me, on account of its beauty and tameness. Every morning I fed it, and on + my speaking to my landlady about it she said, "Oh, we know that bird well; + this is the fourth winter it has spent with us, but it always came before + with its mate. The poor little thing had only one leg, but managed to hop + about and feed very well; this year the poor thing didn't turn up with its + mate, so we suppose it had met its death somewhere during the summer." + </p> + <p> + I have often watched the gatherings of pied wagtails (always with a + certain number of the grey species among them) in places where they spend + the winter in our southern counties, at some spot where they are + accustomed to congregate each evening to hold a sort of frolic before + going to roost, and it has always appeared to me that the birds, both pied + and grey, were in pairs. So too, in watching the starlings day after day + in the field in front of my window. Well able with my binocular to observe + them closely, I saw much + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 279 + </p> + <p> + to convince me that the starling, too, lives all the year with his mate. + </p> + <p> + Each morning the birds that had made our village their daily + feeding-ground, would, on arrival from the roosting-place in one body, + break up into numerous small parties of half a dozen to twenty or more + birds. All day long these little flocks were hurrying about from field to + field, spending but a short time at one spot, so hungry were they and + anxious to find a more productive one, and in every field they would meet + and mix with other small groups, and presently all would fly, and breaking + up into small parties again go off in different directions. Thus one had a + constant succession of little flocks in the field from morning till night, + and I found from counting the birds in each small group that in three + cases in four they were in even numbers. Again, I have often seen a group + of three, five, seven or nine birds on the field, and after a while a + solitary starling from a neighbouring field or from some treetop near by + has flown down to join the group and make the numbers even. + </p> + <p> + The birds when feeding, I have said, are always in a desperate hurry, and + little wonder, since + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 280 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + after a night, usually wet and cold, of from sixteen to eighteen hours and + only about six to feed in, they must be in a half-starved state and + frantic to find something to swallow. No sooner do they alight than they + begin running about, prodding with their beaks, and all the time + advancing, the birds keeping pretty well abreast. Now, from time to time + you will notice that a bird finds something to delay him and is left + behind by the others. On they go--prod, prod, then a little run, then + prod, prod again and run again--while he, excited over his find, and + vigorously digging at the roots of the grass, lets them go on without him + until he is yards behind. Whenever this happens you will see one of the + advancing birds pause in its prodding to look back from time to time as if + anxious about the one left behind; and by and by this same bird, its + anxiety increasing, will suddenly spring into the air and fly back to + place itself at the side of the other, to wait quietly until it has + finished its task; and no sooner does the busy one put up its head to + signal that he is ready than up they spring and fly together on to the + flock. No one witnessing this action can doubt for a moment that these two + are mates, + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 281 + </p> + <p> + and that wherever they paired and bred originally + </p> + <p> + --in Lincoln or York or Thurso or perhaps in one of the western + islands--they paired for life and will stick together, summer and winter + and in all their wanderings, as long as they live. + </p> + <p> + Until one observes starlings in this close way, even to their minutest + actions--I had indeed little else to do during my three winter months in + this nursing-home--it is only natural to believe that among gregarious + species the starling is one of those least likely to pair for life, seeing + that in it the gregarious instinct is intensified and more highly + developed than in most others. One would suppose that the flock, which is + like an organism + </p> + <p> + --that is to say, the attachment to the flock + </p> + <p> + --would, out of the breeding season, take the place of the close relation + or companionship between bird and bird seen in species known to pair for + life. Only the pairing passion, one would suppose, could serve to dissolve + the company of birds and this only for a brief season of about a couple of + months' duration. There is but one brood raised in the season, and the + whole business of reproduction is well over before the end of June. Later + breeders are those that have lost + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 282 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + their first eggs or broods. And no sooner are the young brought off and + instructed in the starling's sole vocation (except his fruit-eating) of + extracting the grubs it subsists on from the roots of the grass--a + business which detains them for a week or two--than the married life is + apparently over and the communal life resumed. The whole life of the bird + is then changed; the sole tie appears to be that of the flock; home and + young are forgotten: the birds range hither and thither about the land, + and by and by migrate to distant places, some passing oversea, while + others from the northern counties and from Scotland and the islands come + down to the south of England, where they winter in millions and myriads. + There they form the winter habit of congregating in immense numbers in the + evening at their favourite roosting-places, and hundreds and thousands of + small flocks, which during the daylight hours exist distributed over an + area of hundreds of square miles all make to one point and combine into + one flock. At such times they actually appear to rejoice in their own + incalculable numbers and gather earlier than they need at the + roosting-place, so that the whole vast gathering + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 283 + </p> + <p> + may spend an hour or so in their beloved aerial exercises. + </p> + <p> + To anyone who witnesses these gatherings and sees the birds rising from + time to time from the wood, and appearing like a big black cloud in the + sky, growing lighter and darker alternately as the birds scatter wide or + mass themselves in a closer formation, until after wheeling about for some + minutes they pour back into the trees; and who listens to the noise they + make, as of a high wind in the wood, composed, as it is, of an infinity of + individual voices, it must seem incredible that all these birds can keep + in pairs. For how could any couple hold together in such circumstances, or + when separated ever meet again in such a multitude, or, should they ever + meet by chance, how recognize one another when all are exactly alike in + size, shape, colour and voice? + </p> + <p> + They can, and certainly do, keep together, and when forced apart as, when + pursued by a hawk, they scatter in all directions, they can quickly find + one another again. They can do it because of their perfect discipline, or + instinct, or the perfection of the system they follow during their autumn + and winter wanderings and migrations. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 284 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + The breeding season over, the birds in each locality unite in a small + flock composed of twenty or thirty to fifty or more pairs and start their + wandering life. Those in the north migrate or drift south, and vast + numbers, as we see, spend the winter in the southern counties. And here + they have their favourite roosting-places and are accustomed to assemble + in tens and hundreds of thousands. But the original small flock composed + of a few pairs, is never broken up--never absorbed by the multitude. Each + morning when it is light enough, the birds quit the roosting-wood, but not + all together; they quit it in flocks, flock following flock so closely as + to appear like a continuous stream of birds, and the streams flow out in + different directions over the surrounding country. Each stream of birds is + composed of scores and hundreds of units, and each unit drops out of the + stream and slopes away to this or that side, to drop down on its own + chosen feeding-ground, to which it returns morning after morning through + the winter. When all the units have dropped out and settled on their + feeding areas for the day, it may be seen that the whole country within a + circuit of ten or twelve or more miles from the roosting- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 285 + </p> + <p> + place has been occupied, that each flock has its own territory, where it + splits up into some groups and spends its short hours flying about and + exploring every green field, and one might almost say "every grass." One + can only explain this perfect distribution by assuming that each unit + instinctively looks for unoccupied ground in its winter habitat, and that + consequently there is very little overlapping. It must also be assumed + that at the place of assembly in the evening each flock has its own + roosting-place--its own trees and bushes where the members of the flock + can still keep together and to which after each aerial performance they + can return. The flock comes back to sleep on its own tree, and no doubt + every couple roosts side by side on its own twig. + </p> + <p> + On the return of Spring the birds do not migrate in a body, but slip away, + flock by flock, to reappear about the end of April in their old + breeding-place in the North Country, with, perhaps, the loss of a few + members--the one that was old and died in the season of scarcity; and one + that was taken at the roost by a brown owl, and one that had its feet + frozen to the perch; and was killed by a jackdaw when struggling to free + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 286 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + itself; and one that was struck down by a sparrow-hawk on his homeward + journey. + </p> + <p> + What I have so far been unable to trace is the career of the young after + August. We see that once they are able to fend for themselves they club + together in small flocks and continue together during their "brown thrush" + stage, but by and by they get the adult plumage and language and are no + longer distinguishable as young. Do they, then, join the old birds before + the wandering and migrating south begins? And do they pair or not before + the winter? + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-34.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-34.jpg" width="160" + height="123" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="link287" id="link287"></a> + </p> + <h3> + III + </h3> + <h4> + VILLAGE BIRDS IN WINTER + </h4> + <p> + THROUGHOUT the winter of 1915-16, and more particularly during my three + months in the hospital at Hayle, from the beginning of December to March, + I was greatly impressed at the perpetual state of hunger in which the + birds exist, especially the three commonest species in our village--rook, + daw, and starling. Little wonder that the sight of a piece of bread thrown + out on the green field below my window would bring all these three and + many others with a rush from all sides, every one eager to get a morsel! + But the birds that live most in a groove, as it were, like the rook and + starling, and have but one kind of food and one way of finding it, are + always the worst off in winter. These subsist on the grubs and other + minute organisms they are able to pick out of the grass roots, and are + life workers paid by the + </p> + <p> + 287 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 288 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + piece who must labour hard and incessantly to make enough to keep + themselves alive; their winter life is accordingly in startling contrast + to that of the daw--one that lives on his wits and fares better and + altogether has an easier and more amusing time. + </p> + <p> + It was the habit of the three species named to quit the wood where they + roosted as soon as it was light enough for them to feed, the time varying + according to the state of the weather from half-past eight to ten o'clock, + the mornings being usually wet and dark. The rooks that had their rookery + in the village numbered forty or fifty birds, and these would remain at + the village, getting their food in the surrounding fields for the rest of + the day. The daws would appear in a body of two or three hundred birds, + but after a little while many of them would go on to their own villages + further away, leaving about sixty to eighty birds belonging to the + village. Last of all the starlings would appear in flocks and continuous + streams of birds often fighting their way against wind and rain, leaving + about a couple of hundred or more behind, these being the birds that had + settled in the village for the season, and + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 289 + </p> + <p> + worked in the grass fields in and surrounding it. Rooks and starlings + would immediately fall to work, while the daws, the flock breaking up into + small parties of three or four, would distribute themselves about the + village and perch on the chimney-pots. They would perch and then fly, and + for all the rest of the day would be incessantly shifting about from place + to place, on the look-out for something to eat, dropping from time to time + to snatch up a crust of bread or the core of an apple thrown away by a + child in the road, or into a back garden or on to a dust-heap where + potato-parings and the head of a mackerel or other refuse had been thrown. + They were very bold, but not as courageous as the old-time British kite + that often swooped to snatch the bread from a child's hand. + </p> + <p> + From time to time one, or a pair, of a small party of these daws would + drop down on the field before my window when the rooks and starlings were + there prodding busily at the turf, but though I watched them a thousand + times I never detected them trying to find something for themselves. They + simply stood or walked about among the working birds, watching them + intently. Grub- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 290 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + finding was an art they had not acquired, or were too indolent or proud to + practise; but they were not too proud to beg or steal; they simply watched + the other birds in the hope of being able to snatch up a big unearthed + grub and run away with it. As a rule after a minute or two they would get + tired of waiting and rush off with a lively shout. Back they would go to + the chimney-pots and to their flying up and down, suspending their flight + over this or that yard or garden, and by and by one would succeed in + picking up something big, and at once all the other daws in sight would + give chase to take it from him; for these village daws are not only + parasites and cadgers, but worse--they are thieves without honour among + themselves. + </p> + <p> + In spite of all the time and energy wasted in their perpetual races and + chases going on all over the village, every bird exerting himself to the + utmost to rob all he can from his pals, they get enough to eat; for when + the day is over and other daws from other villages drop in to visit them, + all unite in a big crowd and wheel about, making the place ring with their + merry yelping cries, before sailing away to the wood. One + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 291 + </p> + <p> + might say after witnessing and listening to this evening performance that + they have great joy in their rascally lives. + </p> + <p> + But for the poor starling there is little joy in these brief, dark, wet + winter days, even if there is little frost in this West Cornwall climate. + A frost of a few days' duration would be fatal to incalculable numbers, + especially if, as in the great frosts of the winters of 1894-5 and 1896-7, + severest in the south and west of England, it should come late in winter, + I think it can be taken as a fact that a long or overseas migration takes + place before midwinter or not at all. In January and February, when birds + are driven to the limits of the land by a great cold they do not cross the + sea, either because they are too weak to attempt such an adventure or for + some other reason unknown to us. We see that on these occasions they come + to the seashore and follow it south and west even to the western extremity + of Cornwall, and then either turn back inland or wait where they are for + open weather, many perishing in the meantime. + </p> + <p> + During those three winter months, when I watched the starlings at work on + the field before + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 292 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + my hospital window, they appeared to be in a perpetual state of extreme + hunger and were always running over the ground, rapidly prodding as they + moved, and apparently finding their food almost exclusively on the + surface--that is to say, on the surface of the soil but under the grass, + at its surface roots. At other seasons they go deep when they know from + the appearance of every blade of grass whether or not there is a grub + feeding on its roots beneath the surface. Without shooting and examining + the stomachs of a large number of starlings it was not possible to know + just what the food consisted of; but with my strong binocular on them I + could make out that at almost every dig of the beak something was picked + up, and could actually see it when the beak was held up with the minute + morsel at its tip--a small, thread-like, semi-transparent worm or grub in + most instances. Two or three of these atomies would hardly have made a + square meal for a ladybird, and I should think that a starling after + swallowing a thousand would fed very hungry. And on many days this scanty, + watery food had to be searched for in very painful conditions, as it + rained heavily on most days and + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 293 + </p> + <p> + often all day long. At such times the birds in their sodden plumage looked + like drowned starlings fished out of a pool and galvanized into activity. + Nor were they even seen to shake the wet off--a common action in swallows + and other birds that feed in the rain; they were too hungry, too anxious + to find something to eat to keep the starling soul and body together + before the long night of eighteen or twenty hours would overtake them. + </p> + <p> + No doubt the winter of 1915-16 was exceptionally wet and cold, although + without any severe frosts; a long frost in February, when the birds were + most reduced, would probably have proved fatal to at least half their + number. But though it continued wet and cold, things began to mend for the + starlings towards the end of February, and in March the improvement was + very marked; they were not in such a perpetual hurry; their time was + longer now, and by the end of the month their working day had increased + from five or six to twelve or fourteen hours, and the light had increased + and grubs were easier to find. By April, the starlings no longer appeared + to be the same species as the poor, rusty, be- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 294 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + draggled wretches we had been accustomed to see; they are now lively, + happy birds with a splendid gloss on their feathers and beaks as bright a + yellow as the blackbird's. Finally, in April they left us, not going in a + body, but flock by flock, day after day, until by the end of the month all + were gone back to their homes in the north--all but the two or three to + half a dozen pairs in each village. And these few that stay behind are new + colonists in West Cornwall. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-35.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-35.jpg" width="143" + height="130" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="link295" id="link295"></a> + </p> + <h4> + IV INCREASING BIRDS IN BRITAIN + </h4> + <p> + ABOUT the daw, or Jackie, or Dorrie or Jackie-Dorrie, as he is variously + and familiarly called, and his village habits, there will be more to say + presently; just now my concern is with another matter--a veritable daw + problem. + </p> + <p> + For the last twenty years or longer it has seemed to me that the daw is an + increasing species in Britain; at all events I am quite sure that it is so + in the southern half of England, particularly along the coast of Somerset, + Devon, Dorset, and in Cornwall, more than in any other county. And why is + it? He is certainly not a respectable bird, like the starling, for + example--if we do not go to the cherry-grower for the starling's + character. He is and always has been on the keeper's and farmer's black + list, and scarcely a week passes but you will find him described in some + gamekeeper's + </p> + <p> + 295 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 296 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + or farmer's journal as "even worse than the rook." Even the ornithologists + who are interested in birds as birds haven't a good word to say of the + daw. According to them he alone is responsible for the disappearance of + his distinguished relation, the chough. (The vulgar daw is of course + devoid of any distinction at all, unless it be his grey pate and wicked + little grey eyes.) + </p> + <p> + The ornithologists were wrong about the chough, just as they had been + wrong about the goldfinch, during the late years of the nineteenth + century, and as they were wrong about the swallows and martins in later + years. Of the goldfinch, they said, and solemnly put it down in their + books, that owing to improved methods of agriculture the thistle had been + extirpated and the bird, deprived of his natural food, had forsaken this + country. But no sooner did our County Councils begin to avail themselves + of the powers given them by the Bird Act of twenty years ago to protect + the goldfinch from the bird-catcher, than it began to increase again and + is still increasing, year by year, all over the country. + </p> + <p> + Of the decrease of swallows and martins, they + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 297 + </p> + <p> + said it resulted from the action of the sparrows in ousting them from + their nests and nesting-sites. But we know the true cause of the decline + of these two species, the best loved and best protected of all birds in + Britain, not even excepting robin redbreast. The French Government, in + response to representations on this matter from our Foreign Office, have + caused enquiries to be made and have found that our swallows are being + destroyed wholesale in France during the autumn migration, and have + promised to put a stop to this deplorable business. They do not appear to + have done so, since the promise was made three years ago, and I can say + from my own observation in the south and west countries that the decline + has continued and that we have never had so few swallows come to us as in + the present summer of 1916. + </p> + <p> + The daw--to return to that subject--has always been regarded as an + injurious species, and down to a quarter of a century ago every farm lad + in possession of a gun shot it in the interests of the henwife, even as he + had formerly shot the kite, a common British species and a familiar + feature in the landscape down to the early years + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 298 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + of last century. Doubtless it was a great thing to bring down this great + bird "that soars sublime" and nail it to the barn-door. By the middle of + the last century it had become a rarity, and the ensuing rush for + specimens and eggs for private collectors quickly brought about its + virtual extinction. The kite is but one of several species--six of them + hawks--extirpated within the last forty years. Why, then, does the daw, + more injurious to the game-preserver and henwife than any one of these + lost hawks, continue to flourish and increase in numbers? It is, I + imagine, because of the growth of a sentiment which favours its + preservation. But it is not the same as that which has served to preserve + the rook and made it so common. That is a sentiment confined to the + landowning class--to those who inherit great houses where the ancient + rookery with its crowd of big, black, contentious birds caw-cawing on the + windy elms, has come to be an essential part of the establishment, like + the gardens and park and stables and home-farm and, one might add, the + church and village. This sentiment differs, too, from the heron-sentiment, + which serves to keep that bird with us in spite of the annual wail, ris- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 299 + </p> + <p> + ing occasionally in South Devon to a howl, of human trout-fishers. It is a + traditional feeling coming down from the far past in England--from the + time of William the Conqueror to that of William of Orange and the decay + of falconry. That a species without any sentiment to favour it and without + special protection by law may increase is to be seen in the case of the + starling. This increase has come about automatically after we had + destroyed the starling's natural enemies and then ceased to persecute it + ourselves. Of all birds it was the most preyed on by certain raptorial + species, especially by the sparrowhawk, which is now becoming so rare, + assisted by the hobby (rarer still) and the merlin. It was more exposed + than other birds to these enemies owing to its gregarious and feeding + habits in grasslands and the open country, also to its slower flight. The + greatest drain on the species, came, however, from man. The starling was a + favourite bird for shooting-matches up till about thirty years ago, and + was taken annually in large numbers by the bird-catchers for the purpose. + It is probable that this use of the bird for sport caused people to eat + it, and so common did the habit become that + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 300 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + at the end of summer, or before the end, shooting starlings for the pot + was practised everywhere. Old men in the country have told me that forty + or fifty years ago it was common to hear people on the farms say that of + all birds the starling was the best to eat. + </p> + <p> + When starling and sparrow shooting-matches declined, the starling went out + of favour as a table-bird, and from that time the species has been + increasing. At present the rate of increase grows from year to year, and + during the last decade the birds have colonized every portion of the north + of Scotland and the islands, where the starling had previously been a rare + visitor--a bird unknown to the people. Here in West Cornwall where I am + writing this chapter the starling was only a winter visitor until + recently. Eight years ago I could only find two pairs breeding in the + villages--about twenty-five in number--in which I looked for them; in the + summer of 1915 I found them breeding in every town and village I visited. + At present, June, 1916, there are six pairs in the village I am staying + at. It may be the case, and from conversations I have had with farmers + about the bird I am inclined to believe + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 301 + </p> + <p> + it is so, that a strong feeling in favour of the starling (in the pastoral + districts) is growing up at the present time, a feeling which in the end + is more powerful to protect than any law; but such a feeling has not + become general as yet, and consequently has had nothing to do with the + extraordinary increase of the bird. + </p> + <p> + The wood-pigeon is another species which, like the starling, has increased + greatly in recent years, without special protection and with no sentiment + in its favour. . . . The sentiment is all confined to the nature-lovers, + whose words have no effect on the people generally, least of all on the + farmers. I am reminded here of the experience of a young man, an ardent + bird-lover, on his visit to a Yorkshire farm. His host, who was also a + young man, took him a walk across his fields. It was a spring day of + brilliant sunshine, and the air was full of the music of scores of soaring + skylarks. The visitor long in cities pent, was exhilarated by the strains + and kept on making exclamations of rapturous delight, "Just listen to the + larks! Did you ever hear anything like it!" and so on. + </p> + <p> + His host, his eyes cast down, trudged on in + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 302 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + glum silence. Finally the young man, carried away by his enthusiasm, + stopped and turning to his companion shouted, "Listen! Listen! Do you hear + the larks?" + </p> + <p> + "Oh, yes," drawled the other, looking more glum than ever, "I hear them + fast enough. And I wish they were all dead!" + </p> + <p> + So with the other charming species. The moan of doves in immemorial elms + is a pleasing sound to the poets, but it does not prevent the farmers + throughout the land from wishing them all dead; and every person who + possesses a gun is glad to help in their massacre. For the bird is a pest + and he who shoots it is doing something for England; furthermore, shooting + it is first-rate sport, not like slaughtering wretched little sparrows or + innocent young rooks just out of their windy cradles. And when shot it is + a good table-bird, with as much tasty flesh on it as a woodcock or + partridge. + </p> + <p> + How, then can we account for the increase of such a species? One cause is + undoubtedly to be found in the removal by gamekeepers of its three chief + enemies--the carrion crow, magpie, and jay--all these three being great + devourers of pigeon's eggs, which of all eggs are most con- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 303 + </p> + <p> + spicuous and open to attack. Then again the winter immigration of + wood-pigeons from northern Europe appears to be on the increase, and it + may be conjectured that a considerable number of these visitors remain + annually to breed with us. There has also been an increase in the + stockdove and turtle-dove in recent years, and the former species is + extending its range in the north. The cause or causes of the increase of + the turtledove are not far to seek. Its chief feathered enemies, the egg + and fledgling robbers, are the same as the wood-pigeon's; moreover, the + turtledove is least persecuted by man of our four pigeons, and being + strictly migratory it quits the country before shooting-time begins; add + to this that the turtle-dove has been specially protected under Sir + Herbert Maxwell's Act of 1894 in a good number of English counties, from + Surrey to Yorkshire. + </p> + <p> + Of the stock-dove we can only say that, like the ring-dove, it has + increased in spite of the persecution it is subject to, since no person + out after pigeons would spare it because it is without a white collar. + With the exception of the county of Buckinghamshire it is not on the + schedule any- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 304 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + where in the country. One can only suppose that this species has been + indirectly benefited by the bird legislation and all that has been done to + promote a feeling favourable to bird-preservation during the last thirty + years. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-36.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-36.jpg" width="133" + height="82" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="link305" id="link305"></a> + </p> + <h4> + V + </h4> + <h4> + THE DAW SENTIMENT + </h4> + <p> + I HAVE spoken of the wood adjacent to the villages of Hayle and Lelant + where the rooks, daws, and starlings of the neighbourhood have their + winter roosting-place. This is at Trevelloe, the ancient estate of the + Praeds, who now call themselves Tyringham. Here the daws congregate each + evening in such numbers that a stranger to the district and to the local + habits of the bird might imagine that all the cliff-breeding jackdaws in + West Cornwall had come to roost at that spot. Yet the cliff-breeders, + albeit abundant enough, are but a minority of the daw population of this + district. The majority of these birds live and breed in the neighbouring + villages and hamlets--St. Ives, Carbis Bay, Towadneck, Lelant, Phillack, + Hayle, and others further away. It is a jackdaw metropolis and, as we have + seen, every village receives its own quota of birds each morning, and + </p> + <p> + 305 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 306 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + there they spend the daylight hours and subsist on the waste food and on + what they can steal, just as the semi-domestic raven and the kite did in + former ages, from Roman times down to the seventeenth century. + </p> + <p> + Early in May the winter congregation breaks up, the cliff-breeders going + back to the rocks and the village birds to their chimneys, where they + presently set about relining their old nests. There are plenty of places + for all, since there are chimneys in almost every cottage where fires are + never lighted, and as ventilation is not wanted in bedrooms the birds are + allowed to bring in more materials each year, until the whole flue is + filled up. Year by year the materials brought in, sink lower and lower + until they rest on the closed iron register and change in time to a solid + brown mould. Thus, however long-lived a daw may be--and there are probably + more centenarians among the daws than among the human inhabitants of the + villages--it is a rare thing for one to be disturbed in his tenancy. + </p> + <p> + In the cottage opposite the one I was staying in, its owner, an old woman + who had lived in it all her life, had recently died, aged eighty-seven. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 307 + </p> + <p> + She was very feeble at the last, and one cold day when she could not leave + her bed, the extraordinary idea occurred to some one of her people that it + might be a good thing to light a fire in her room. The fireplace was + examined and was found to have no flue, or that the flue had been filled + with earth or cement. The village builder was called in, and with the aid + of a man on the roof and poles and various implements he succeeded in + extracting two or three barrow-loads of hard earth which had no doubt once + been sticks, centuries ago, as the building was very ancient. No one had + remembered that the daws had always occupied the same chimney; the old + dame herself had seen them going in and out of it from her childhood, and + her end was probably hastened by the disturbance made in cleaning it. Now + she is gone the daws here are in possession of it once more. + </p> + <p> + All through the month of May daws were to be seen about the village, + dropping from time to time upon the chimney-pots where they had their + nests and occasionally bringing some slight materials to form a new + lining, but it was very rare to see one with a stick in his beak. The + flues + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 308 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + were already full of old sticks and no more were wanted. It was amusing to + see a bird flying about, suddenly tumble out of the air on to a + chimneypot, then with tail tipped up and wings closed, dive into the + cavity below. One wondered how the young birds would be got out! + </p> + <p> + Talking with the rector of the neighbouring parish of Phillack one day on + this subject, he said, "Don't imagine that the daws restrict themselves to + the chimneys where fires are not lighted. At all events it isn't so at + Phillack. Perhaps we have too many daws in our village, but every year + before lighting fires in the drawing and dining-rooms we have to call in a + man with a pole to clear the flues out." He told me that a few years ago, + one cold June day, a fire was lighted in the drawing-room, and as the + smoke all poured out into the room a man was sent up to the roof with a + pole to clear the obstruction out. Presently a mess of sticks came down + and with them two fully-fledged young jackdaws, one dead, killed with the + pole, the other sound and lively. This one they kept and it soon became + quite tame; when able to fly it would go off and associate with the wild + birds, but refused to leave + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 309 + </p> + <p> + the house until the following summer, when it found a mate and went away. + </p> + <p> + The head keeper at Trevelloe, a remarkably vigorous and intelligent + octogenarian who has been in his place over half a century, gave me some + interesting information about the daws. He says they have greatly + increased in recent years in this part of Cornwall because they are no + longer molested; no person, he says, not even a game-keeper anxious about + his pheasants, would think of shooting a jackdaw. But this is not because + the bird has changed its habits. He is as great a pest as ever he was, and + as an example of how bad jackdaws can be, he related the following + incident told him by a friend of his, a head keeper on an estate adjoining + a shooting his master took one year on the northwest coast of England. It + happened that a big colony of daws existed within a mile or two of the + preserves, and one day the keeper was called' away in a hurry and left the + coops unattended for the best part of a day; it was the biggest mistake he + had ever made and the chief disaster of his life. On his return he found + that the daws had been before him and that all his precious chicks had + been car- + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 310 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + ried off. For several hours of that day there was a steady coming and + going of birds between the cliffs and the coops, every daw going back with + a chick in his beak for his hungry young in the nest. + </p> + <p> + Yet my informant, this ancient and singularly intelligent old man, a + gamekeeper all his life, who knows his jackdaw, could not tell me why + gamekeepers no longer persecute so injurious a bird I He will not allow a + sparrow-hawk to exist in his woods, yet all he could say when I repeated + my question was, "No keeper ever thinks of hurting a jack now, but I can't + say why." + </p> + <p> + The reason of it I fancy is plain enough; it is simply the sentiment I + have spoken of. In a small way it has always existed in certain places, in + towns, where the jackdaw is associated in our minds with cathedrals and + church towers--where he is the "ecclesiastical daw"; but the modern wider + toleration is due to the character, the personality, of the bird itself, + which is more or less like that of all the members of the corvine family, + with the exception of the rook, who always tries his best to be an honest, + useful citizen; but it is not precisely the same. They may be regarded + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 311 + </p> + <p> + as bad hats generally In the bird community, and on this very + account--"I'm sorry to say," to quote Mr. Pecksniff--they touch a chord in + us; and the daw being the genial rascal in feathers par excellence is + naturally the best loved. + </p> + <p> + It has thus come about that of all the Corvidae the daw is now the + favourite as a pet bird, and in the domestic condition he is accorded more + liberty than is given to other species. We think he makes better use of + his freedom, that he does not lose touch with his human friends when + allowed to fly about, and appears more capable of affection. + </p> + <p> + Formerly, the raven and magpie came first as pets. The raven vanished as a + pet, because like the goshawk, kite, and buzzard, he was extirpated in the + interests of the game-preserver and hen-wife. The magpie was then first, + and has only been recently ousted from that ancient, honourable position. + The pie was a superior bird as a feathered pet in a cage; he is beautiful + in shape and colour in his snow-white and metallic dark-green and + purple-glossed plumage, and his long graduated tail. Moreover, he is a + clever bird. To my mind there is no more fascinating species + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 312 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + when I can find it in numbers, in places where it is not persecuted, and + is accustomed to congregate at intervals, not as rooks and starlings do + merely because they are gregarious, but purely for social purposes--to + play and converse with one another. Its language at such times is so + various as to be a surprise and delight to the listener; while its ways of + amusing itself, its clowning and the little tricks and practical jokes the + birds are continually playing on each other, are a delight to witness. All + this is lost in a caged bird. He is handsome to look at and remarkably + intelligent, but he distinguishes between magpies and men; he doesn't + reveal himself; his accomplishments, vocal and mental, are for his own + tribe. In this he differs from the daw; for the daw is less specialized; + he is an undersized common crow, livelier, more impish than that bird, + also more plastic, more adaptive, and takes more kindly to the domestic or + parasitic life. Human beings to him are simply larger daws, and unlike the + pie he can play his tricks and be himself among them as freely as when + with his feathered comrades. We like him best because he makes himself one + of us. + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 313 + </p> + <p> + Undoubtedly the chough comes nearest to the daw mentally, and as it is a + far more beautiful bird--the poor daw having little of that quality--it + would probably have been our prime favourite among the crows but for its + rarity. Formerly it was a common pet bird, caged or free, in all the coast + districts where it inhabited, and it may be that the desire for a pet + chough was the cause of its decline and final disappearance all round the + south and west coasts of England, except at one spot near Tintagel where + half a dozen pairs still exist only because watchers appointed by the + Royal Society for the Protection of Birds are always on the spot to warn + off the nest-robbers during the breeding season. But of the chough in + captivity or as a domesticated bird we know little now, as no records have + been preserved. I have only known one bird, taken from a North Devon cliff + about forty years ago, at a house near the coast; a very beautiful pet + bird with charming, affectionate ways, always free to range about the + country and the cliffs, where it associated with the daws. It was the last + of its kind at that place, and I do not know if it still lives. + </p> + <p> + Next to the chough the jay comes nearest to + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 314 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + the daw mentally of all our crows, and as he excels most of our wild birds + in beauty he would naturally have been a first favourite as a pet but for + the fact that it is only in a state of nature in which he is like the + daw--lively, clever, impish; in captivity he is more like the magpie and + affiliates even less than that bird with his human associates. In + confinement he is a quiet, almost sedate, certainly a silent bird: He is + essentially a woodland species; all his graces, his various, often + musical, language, with many imitations of bird and animal sounds, and his + spectacular games and pretty wing displays, are for his own people + exclusively. He must have his liberty in the woods and a company of his + fellow-jays to exhibit his full lustre. + </p> + <p> + The difference between jay and daw is similar to that between fox and dog; + or rather let us say, between one of the small desert foxes of Syria and + Egypt--the fennec, for instance--and the jackal, the domestic dog's + progenitor; the first gifted with exquisite grace and beauty, was too + highly specialized to suit the domestic condition; hence the generalized + un-beautiful beast was chosen to be man's servant and companion. In + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 315 + </p> + <p> + the same way it looks as if we were taking to the daw in preference to the + more beautiful bird because he is more like us, or understands us better, + or adapts himself more readily to our way of life. + </p> + <p> + I believe that about nine out of every ten interesting and amusing stories + about charming pet birds I have heard in England during the last quarter + of a century relate to the daw, and this, I think, goes to show that he is + a prime favourite as a feathered pet, at all events in the southern and + western counties. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-37.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-37.jpg" width="123" + height="80" /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> <a name="link316" id="link316"></a> + </p> + <h4> + VI + </h4> + <h4> + STORY OF A JACKDAW + </h4> + <p> + WHEN I laid my pen down after concluding Part V it pleased me to think + that I had written the last word, that, my task finished, I was free to go + on to something else. But I was not yet wholly free of the jackdaws; their + yelping cries were still ringing in my mental ears, and their remembered + shapes were still all about me in their black dress, or cassock, grey + hood, and malicious little grey eyes. The persistent images suggested that + my task was not properly finished after all, that it would be better to + conclude with one of those anecdotes or stories of the domesticated bird + which I have said are so common; also that this should be a typical story, + which would serve to illustrate the peculiar daw sentiment--the + affectionate interest we take in him, not only in spite of his impudence + and impishness and naughtiness, but also to some extent because of these + same + </p> + <p> + 316 + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 317 + </p> + <p> + qualities, which find an echo in us. Accordingly I set myself to recall + some of the latest anecdotes of this kind which I had heard, and selected + the one which follows, not because it was more interesting as a daw story + than the others, but mainly on account of the shrewd and humorous and + dramatic way in which it was related to me by a little boy of the working + class. + </p> + <p> + I met him on a bright Sunday morning at the end of June in the park-like + grounds of Walmer Castle. I had not long been seated on a garden bench + when a daw came flying to a tree close by and began craning her neck and + eyeing me with one eye, then the other, with an intense, almost painful + curiosity; and these nervous movements and gestures immediately revealed + to me that she had a nestful of young birds somewhere close by. After + changing her position several times to view me from other points and find + out what I was there for, she came to the conclusion that I was not to be + got rid of, and making a sudden dash to a tree standing just before me, + disappeared in a small hole or cleft in the trunk about forty-five feet + above the ground, and in a few seconds came out again and flew swiftly + away. In four or five + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 318 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + minutes she returned, and after eyeing me suspiciously a short time flew + again to the tree and, vanishing from sight in the hole, remained there. I + was intently watching that small black spot in the bark to see her emerge, + when a little boy came slowly sauntering past my bench, and glancing at + him I found that his shrewd brown eyes were watching my face and that he + had a knowing half-smile on his lips. + </p> + <p> + "Hullo, my boy!" I said. "I can see plainly enough what is in <i>your</i> + mind. You know I'm watching a hole in the tree where a jackdaw has just + gone in, and your intention is, when no one is about, to swarm up the tree + and get the young birds." + </p> + <p> + "Oh, no," he returned. "I'm not going to climb the tree and don't want any + young jackdaws. I always come to look because the birds breed in that hole + every year. Two years ago I had a bird from the nest, but I don't want + another." + </p> + <p> + Then at my invitation he sat down to tell me about it. One morning when he + came the young had just come off, and he found one squatting on the ground + under the trees, looking stupefied. No doubt when it flew out it had + struck against + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 319 + </p> + <p> + a trunk or branch and come down bruised and stunned. + </p> + <p> + He wrapped it up in a handkerchief and took it home to Deal and put it in + a box; then mother got some flannel and made a sort of bed for it, and + warmed some milk and they opened its beak and fed it with a teaspoon. Next + day it was all right and opened its beak to be fed whenever they came near + it, and in two or three days it began flying about the room and perching + on their shoulders. Then he brought it back to Walmer and let it go and + saw it fly off into the trees, but when he got home mother scolded him for + having let it go when its parents were not about; she said it would die of + starvation, and was going on at him when in flew the jackdaw and came flop + on her shoulder! After that mother and father said they'd keep the daw a + little longer, and then he could let it go at a distance where there were + other daws about. By and by they said they'd let it stay where it was. + Father liked a bloater for his tea, and there was nothing the jackdaw was + fonder of, so he was always on the table at tea-time, eating out of + father's plate. Then he got to be troublesome. He was always + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 320 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + watching for a door or window of the parlour to be opened to let the air + in, and that was the room mother was so careful about, and every time he + got in he'd fly straight to the mantelpiece, which was covered with + photographs and ornaments. They were mostly those little things--pigs and + dogs and parrots and all sorts of animals made of glass and china, and the + jackdaw would begin to pick them up and throw them down on to the fender, + and of course he broke a lot of them. That made mother mad, and she + scolded him and told him to get rid of the bird. So he wrapped it up so as + it shouldn't know where it was going and went off two or three miles along + the coast, and let it go where there were other daws. It flew off and + joined them, and he came home. That afternoon Jackie came back, and they + wondered how he had found his way. Father said 'twas plain enough, that + the bird had just followed the coast till he got back to Deal, and there + he was at home. He said the only way to lose it was to take it somewhere + away from the sea; so he wrapped it up again and took it to his Aunt + Ellen's at Northbourne, about five miles from Deal. His aunt told him to + carry + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 321 + </p> + <p> + it to the park, where he'd find other daws and settle down. And that's + what he did, but Jackie came back to Deal again that same day; the + strangest thing was that mother and father made a great fuss over it and + fed it just as if they were glad to have it back. Next day it got into the + parlour and broke some more things, and mother scolded him for not getting + rid of the bird, and father said he knew how it could be done. One of his + pals was going to Dover, and he would ask him to take the bird and let it + go up by the castle where it would mix with the jackdaws there, and that + would be too far away for it to come back. But it did come back, and after + that he sent it to Ashford, and then to Canterbury, and I don't know how + many other places, but it always came back, and they always seemed very + glad to see it back. All the same, mother was always scolding him about + the bird and complaining to father about the damage it did in the house. + Then one day Aunt Ellen came to see mother, and told her the best way to + get rid of the daw would be to send it abroad; she said her husband's + cousin, Mr. Sturge, was going out to his relations in Canada to work on + their farm, and she would get + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + 322 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE + </p> + <p> + her husband to ask him to take the jackdaw. It would never come back from + such a distant place. A week afterwards Mr. Sturge sent word that he would + take the bird, as he thought his relations would like to have a real old + English jackdaw to remind them of home. So one day Aunt Ellen came and + took Jackie away in a small covered basket. The funniest thing was the way + father went on when he came home to tea. "A bloater with a soft roe," he + says; "just what Jackie likes! Where's the bird got to? Come to your tea, + Jackie!" + </p> + <p> + "He's gone," says mother, "gone to Canada, and a good riddance, too!" + </p> + <p> + "Oh, gone, has he?" says father. "Then we're a happy family and going to + lead a quiet life. No more screams and tears over broken chiny dolls! And + if ever Billy brings another jackdaw into the house we'll dust his coat + for him." + </p> + <p> + Here Billy interposed to say that if he ever made such a mistake again + they could thrash him as much as they liked. + </p> + <p> + "Oh, yes," said father, "we'll thrash you fast enough; mother'll do it for + the sake of her chiny toys and dolls." + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <br /> + </p> + <p> + BIRDS IN CORNISH VILLAGE 323 + </p> + <p> + That put mother up. "You're in a nasty temper," she says, "but you know I + miss the bird as much as you do!" + </p> + <p> + "Then," said father, "why the devil didn't you tell that sister of yours + to mind her own business when she came interfering about my jackdaw! And + that Sturge, he'll soon get tired of the bird and give it away for a pint + of beer before he gets to Liverpool." + </p> + <p> + "So much the better," says mother. "If Jackie can get free before they + take him aboard you may be sure he'll find his way back to Deal." + </p> + <p> + And that's what they went on hoping for days and days; but Jackie never + came back, so I s'pose Mr. Sturge took him out all right and that he's in + Canada now. + </p> + <p> + <img src="images/hudson-birds-38.jpg" alt="hudson-birds-38.jpg" width="282" + height="170" /> + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + + + + + +End of Project Gutenberg's Birds in Town and Village, by W. H. 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