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open one eye. He then took it up ; its head fell, its legs hung 

 loose, and it appeared again quite dead. He then put it in his 

 pocket, and before long he felt it all alive, and struggHng to escape. 

 He took it out, and it was lifeless as before. Having laid it again 

 upon the ground, and retired to some distance, the bird in about 

 five minutes warily raised its head, looked round, and decamped 

 at full speed." 



There is no doubt some of these birds remain to winter with 

 us, as I have known birds shot at Christmas time, but in a very 

 emaciated condition ; probably wounded birds in the autumn. 

 Numbers have been known to remain in Ireland all the year 

 through. 



I cannot close this account of our Summer Visitors without 

 mentioning another favourite bird of mine — 



The Common Sandpiper, Totaims hypoleiuus. 



Known to country people as the Summer Snipe; the "Willy 

 Wicket" of our boyhood. It generally arrives here about April 

 20th, invariably in pairs. This is the only summer migrant, during 

 the whole course of my observation, which does so, at least in this 

 district ; possibly they may pair on the coast line before making 

 up to their breeding haunts. This pretty little wader is fairly 

 numerous on all our rivers, and some of their tributaries. You will 

 find it breeding from the Esk, where it empties into the Solway, 

 right up into the heart of the fells. I have found it nesting on the 

 following rivers — Esk, Eden, Lyne, Irthing, Caldew, Petterill, 

 Croglin, Ive, Roe, in the upper and the lower reaches of the Gelt, 

 and also in many of our fell becks. 



I love to see this Sandpiper flying about our rivers in its 

 somewhat rapid and tortuous flight, just skimming the surface of 

 the water with its beautiful arched wings, now and then sailing in 

 the air without moving those organs, then a stroke or two and 

 away again to some retired part, where they alight with their wings 

 held up above their back, and go some little distance in this 



