21 
of being used only as the plaything of anhour. The study of Oology 
at the present day may fairly claim an important place amongst the 
sciences; and, to speak more specially on the subject, I could name 
several men, whose studies have taken this direction, who follow 
their taste with such ardour that neither distance nor expense 
suffice to deter them. One of the most enthusiastic of these was 
the late Mr. John Wolley, who immured himself in the heart of 
Lapland for two or three winters for the sole purpose of being 
sufficiently early on the breeding-grounds to procure such rare eggs 
as those of the Gyrfalcon, Pine-Grosbeak, Waxen Chatterer, and 
Smew. To enhance still further the interest attaching to the study of 
Oology, I have only to refer to the beautiful form, colour, and mark- 
ings of most eggs, and to the difference in the number that are laid by 
various species. ‘The Common Guillemot and the Razorbill lay but 
one, and that very large in comparison with the bird; on the other hand 
the Grouse will lay nearly a dozen; the Swift lays invariably two, and 
the Swallow four, while some of our Tits deposit from twelve to 
fourteen. Those eggs which are white are frequently placed in dark 
situations ; but this is by no means a constant rule, since in the case 
of the Wood-Pigeon and Turtle-Dove the eggs are not only fully ex- 
posed to light, but owing to the slight structure of the nest, may be 
frequently descried through it. Their allies the Stock-Dove and 
Rock-Pigeon, however, lay theirs in the dark, as does also the Wry- 
neck, all three having white eggs. On the other hand the Nuthatch, 
Creeper, and many of the Tits, producing speckled eggs, deposit them 
in holes of trees and other places inaccessible to the light of day. 
From the egg to the chick is a natural sequence; and here com- 
mences a stage in the life of birds which has been regarded by my- 
self with more than ordinary interest. If any one feature in my 
illustrations to the ‘ Birds of Great Britain’ has special claims to 
originality, it is the representation of the young or infantine state of 
many of the species ; and this, I trust, will be duly appreciated by 
those who possess the work. In the imagination of most people 
young birds are blind, callow, helpless creatures, depending in every 
way on the fostering care of their parents, and instinctively opening 
their gaping bills to receive the food assiduously brought to them. 
Such a helpless condition as this undoubtedly prevails amongst 
the young of nearly all, if not all, the Jnsessorial birds; but com- 
pare these with those of other forms, and what vast differences are 
seen! The tiny offspring of the Grebe, emerging from its burst- 
ing shell in all the vigour and activity of a fully organized being, is 
immediately capable of clambering, should danger approach, upon its 
mother’s back, or of seeking security and concealment by diving 
under a floating leaf. Who is not familiar with the Duckling, which, 
from birth, equals, if it does not surpass, its parents in the quick- 
ness of its movements, and in the skill with which it darts over the 
surface of the water in pursuit of flies or other insects? As ameans 
to an end (that of continuing its existence unaided), the young Duck 
is as perfect as the old bird, though destitute of the power of flight, 
