Swallow, Bank. Sand Martin 



We draw an invidious distinction when we sa}^ that 

 the bank swallow is prettier than the cliff swallow . . . 

 or otherwise set one above another. They are all as pretty 

 as pictures, and those that are not brilliant in color possess 

 unequalled grace, for a swallow in the air is the purest 

 poetry of motion; it is as if it and the air were one. You 

 cannot take the bird from the sky without dimming all 

 its lustre. It is not strange that the Delaware Indians 

 called these birds ''feathered spirits." 



Abbott. Birdland Echoes.^^ 



The Origin of Bank Swallows 



AN ESKIMO STORY. 



Once upon a time, some exceedingly wise children were 

 playing on the edge of a cliff near their native village. Sud- 

 denly while building mud houses, they were changed into 

 swallows. Yet with all their change of body and manner 

 of living, they remembered their last occupation as children 

 and still made houses on the cUff. 



The memory of that last hour of childish play has been 



given to all their descendants, for, even to this day they 



come to a cHff to build their nests of mud. . 



Adapted. 



SWALLOW, BARN 



Barn swallows take first rank among a family of birds 

 famous for their power of flight. While their relatives 

 are circling about feeding on insects in the air above, 

 they capture their prey nearer the ground, skimming 

 low over the fields, turning quickly to right or left, up 

 or down, and pursuing their erratic course with marvelous 



^ ' Chapman. Handbook of Birds.^^ 



145 



