84 THE HEDGE SPAEEOW. 



February.^ During the fearful snow-storm of the 2nd and 

 3rd of March 1886, when everything was covered up with 

 drifting snow, and the roads blown up in some places to 

 to the depth of eight or ten feet, a pair of Hedge Sparrows 

 sheltered themselves in my greenhouse for several days. 

 As soon as the weather moderated, they left the shelter 

 which they had enjoyed, and on the afternoon of the 5th of 

 March I heard the male singing sweetly to his mate on an 

 ash tree close by, although the snow-drifts still lay all over 

 the district to the depth of four or five feet. The food of 

 this bird consists of insects, worms, and seeds. 



It generally commences to build its nest about the 

 beginning of April, in some bush or hedge-row in the 

 vicinity of our farm-steadings and villages. A Hempie's 

 nest, with its five bright blue eggs, is a great attraction to 

 boys, who love to look at and handle the eggs. It is 

 often one of the first nests of the season which they dis- 

 cover. The Cuckoo sometimes selects the nest of this 

 species in which to deposit an egg, with the result alluded 

 to by Grahame in the lines above quoted ; and Shake- 

 speare, referring to this, says, in King Lear — 



The Hedge Sparrow fed the Cuckoo so long, 

 That it had its head bit off by its young. 



1 Mr. Hardy records : — " 1874, Feb. 16th — Hedge Sparrow singing." — Hist. 

 Ber. Nat. Club, vol. vii. p. 277. 





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