The Mason-Wasps 



easily recognized the Wall-swallow: his si- 

 lent flight, his white belly and his ball- 

 shaped nest fastened to the cliff told me 

 all about him. I in my turn now learnt, 

 apart from the books, that this species fixes 

 its nests to perpendicular rocks when the 

 cornices of our buildings and the ledges of 

 our roofs are missing. Even so must it 

 have nested in the ages that preceded our 

 stone structures. 



The problem becomes thornier with the 

 second species. The Domestic Swallow, 

 who has much more confidence in our hos- 

 pitality and is also perhaps more susceptible 

 to cold, establishes himself as often as pos- 

 sible inside our houses. The embrasure of 

 a window, the under surface of a balcony 

 will satisfy his requirements at need; but 

 he prefers the shed, the loft, the stable 

 or an empty room. His familiarity even 

 reaches the point of cohabitation with man 

 in the same apartment. No more timid 

 than the Pelopaeus in taking possession of 

 the premises, he installs himself in the farm- 

 kitchen and builds upon the peasant's 

 smoke-blacked rafters; more venturesome 

 even than the pot-making insect, he ap- 

 propriates the drawing-room, the study, 



the bedroom or any well-kept chamber 

 144 



