LETTER XXV. 181 



flock congregated on a projecting moulding running under the 

 very projecting eaves of a house immediately opposite to mine. 

 They clustered like bees, two or three deep, scrambling for places, 

 some continually dropping off and taking short flights, and then 

 returning again to try to obtain a precarious footing. A sudden 

 thunderstorm with hail came on in the middle of the day. I 

 heard a noise in the room over where I sat as if somebody was 

 moving about. I went up to ascertain who it was ; on opening 

 the door the rustling noise increased, and I immediately saw the 

 cause of it. The room was quite alive with little birds ! They 

 fluttered about on the floor, were entangled in the bed and window- 

 curtains ; every article of furniture had some perched on it, while 

 the windows were quite filled with them fluttering against the 

 panes in vainly attempting to get through, just as bees and butter- 

 flies do in similar circumstances. A little room adjoining was 

 equally swarming. The housemaid coming at my call, held up 

 her hands in dismay at the state of the room — everything covered 

 with feathers and dirt. She was followed by the cat, which made 

 short work of two or three, till she was kicked out, and then we 

 set to work catching the birds and throwing them out of the 

 window. Catching them was quite easy ; being all Martins they 

 could not rise readily and merely buzzed about the floor and walls 

 like moths. As they were all perfectly similar, I only killed one 

 to keep as a specimen. They were all young Martins — birds of the 

 year in immature plumage, and small. The window was open, and 

 is just under a projecting roof, under the eaves of which the whole 

 vast army was sheltering from the hail, and which took flight the 

 moment I entered the room ; but the large detachment which had 



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