CHAPTER VIII 

 Bird Life in Dutch Marshes 



They are all ir.JiiL' iin\\- : no liiiiLTtT <ln the Ruffs trainpli' tlie sedire into a liard 



ffoor ill their tiirlitiiitr-i"iiiir^- "hile tlie s()l)er Reeves stand roiind, adniiriiiii- the 



toiiruainent (if their l()\ers, jfay \\ith ears and tippets, no t\\(i of them alike. (i(tne 

 are Ruffs and Reeves, Spoonbills, Bitterns, Avosets. 



Thi's Kingsley wrote in liis eloquent lament over the disap- 

 pearance of tlie old fen country and its wild inhabitants 

 and their picturesque associations. And gone they truly are 

 as regular and common visitors. 



But fortunately the memory of places seems to linger 

 strangely in tlie minds of birds. They are very reluctant to 

 forsake altogether any locality frequented by tliem through 

 many generations : and for years they or their descendants, 

 impelled by Ave know not what inherited instinct or ghost 

 of a memory, will revisit the once-familiar spots, in spite of 

 persecution, and in spite of sadly altered circumstances. 



Of the Lincolnshire fen country barely a trace remains, 

 to such an extent has it been drained and culti\ated. growing 

 roots and corn where formerly the " Coot clanked and the 

 Bittern boomed, and tlie Sedge-bird, not content with its 

 own sweet song, mocked the notes of all the birds around ; 

 while high overhead hung motionless Hawk beyond Hawk» 



