496 NATURAL JlISTOny UF BIRDS. 



There shall we dwell in love, 

 AVitli the lark and the dove, 

 Cuckoo and corn rail; 

 Feast on the banded suail. 



Worm, and gilded fly; 

 Drink of the crj-stal rill, 

 Winding adown the hill, 



Xever to dry. 



" ' With glee, with glee, with glee, 



Cheer up, cheer up, cheer up; here 

 Nothing to harm us ; then sing merrily. 

 Sing to the loved one whose nest is near. 

 Qui, qui, qui, kween, quip, 

 Tiunu, tiurni, cliipiwi. 

 Too-tee, too-tee. chiu choo, 

 Chirri. cliini. cliooee, 

 Quin. qui, qui.' 



"No Tiiore, pray: the thrush's song is iiiiinit;ihk' ami iiidoscribable. It is heard at 

 all seasons in fine weather, hut especially in spi-iiig and sutnnicr, particularly in the 

 early morning aiul about sunset. But it is not in sunshine only tiiat this gentle 

 songster warbles its wild notes ; for often in the midst of the thick rain it takes its 

 stand in some sheltered s|iot, under the cover of a jirojectiiig er.iu' or stone, and for 

 hours, jierliaps, amuses itself with re]ieating its never-tiring modulations." 



The other sjiecies, the ring-ouzel ( T. torqiiatus) is more confined to mountainous 

 regions, and is one of the largest and finest thrushes, black, with a cons]>icuous white 

 collar. On account of its black color it is gener.illy believed to be closely allied to 

 the European blackbird (Jferitla merii/a). This is a great mistake, liowever, as it 

 does not even belong to the same genus, ami its nearest relative is the s|>otted missel- 

 thrush {T. viscivoriis). The blackbird, on the other hand, is congeneric witli our 

 American robin (J/, miijni(oria), which it is e.\tremely like in form and habits; but, as 

 the name indicates, it is black ail over. The English robin {Krithaciis ruberiila), again, 

 is much smaller, being not larger than our l>luebiril, and has longer legs, but is not 

 otlierwise very different from its American namesake. Through this form we are led 

 to the subjects of our ne.\t illustration, the two famous s|)eeies of nightingales, the 

 western (Luscima luscinia) to the left, and the larger and eastern species {L. pliilo- 

 niela) to the right, both iidiabiting Europe, and nearly pecidiar to that region. lie- 

 specting the former, Mr. Seebohm says: "The nightingale is a very skulking bird, 

 frequenting the dense undergrowth, hopping restlessly about the cover, and, when 

 alarmed, it instantly finds shelter amongst the tangled vegetation. The song of the 

 nightingale has possibly been over-praiseil. Its beauties have i)eeii the poet's theme 

 for ages; and men have immortalized it who have probably mver listened to its strains. 

 Fiction lias described the bird as leaning against a thorn, .-iikI has thus explained tlie 

 cause of its singularlv melancholy notes. The nightingale's .song, nevertheless, is not 

 equalled by that of any other bird; and the volume, quality, and variety of its notes 

 are certainly unriv.alled. It is impossible in words to convey its delightful strains to 

 the reader ; the bird's haunts must be visited, and its sweetness listened to there. The 

 nightingale does not always sing in the hours of night, as is very poj)ularly believed 

 to be the case, and it may be heard warbling at all liours of the day. Neither is the 

 nightingale the only bird that sings under a starlight sky." The nightingale is dull 

 brownish above, shading into whitish or grayish underneath, and in the exterior has 



