Bird Life in a Suburban Parish 159 



agitation. Thev ne\er saw nie, though tlie wliole family 

 ahnost laii ()\er my feet. They had evidently been alarmed 

 by some haymakers in the next field, just over the hedge. 

 None of these, either, had the slightest idea of my presenee, 

 though they were working for hours only a few yards away. 

 In the same clump of bushes behind the Wood-pigeon's 

 nest was also a Turtle-dove's nest and a Hullfinch's nest, 

 both with young, while a little farther down was a (Toldfineh's 

 nest A\'ith four eggs, and a Nightjar brooding o^er two 

 young ones. 



After the departure of the Partridges a friendly Robin 

 came and inspected me, and accepted an iuAitation to share 

 my lunch. Perching on the camera-case, it hopped down 

 and ate all tlie crumbs thrown to it, constantly coming back 

 for more throughout the day. A Turtle-dove preened its 

 feathers hard by, while Thrushes and Bullfinches flitted in 

 and out of the bushes and hopped all roimd me. Besides 

 all these, a family party of little brown AA^rens busily searched 

 the bushes immediately in front of my face, till I expected 

 them to perch on my head and search my pockets for 

 food. One of them was certainly within six inches of my 

 nose, and a Thrush came almost as near. The A\^rens 

 simply ignored me altogether, treating me as a piece of a 

 tree or an inanimate log. 



But though the A\^)od-pigeon is shy, the Tiu'tle-dove 

 is still more so, and is the only bird I have known to desert 

 her nest, and abandon her helpless young ones to die miserably 

 of star\'ation, because I have hidden myself near in order 



