394 THE HOUSE SPARROW. 



running off with it, when the sparrow at once after the mouse, and attacked 

 it so fiercely with its bill that the mouse bolted, and made for a hole in the 

 wall to escape from the fury of the enraged bird, but the hole being too 

 small, the poor mouse stuck fast for a short time, when the sparrow punished 

 it severely. In self-defence the mouse returned to the charge, and was 

 again so milled that he tried to escape by scrambling up the wall, but 

 falling down through weakness the relentless sparrow flew at him again, 

 and had the best of the fight. The mouse, equally plucky, and determined 

 to have the bread, made a desperate effort to carry it off, but the vicious 

 cock-sparrow pecked and struck him so fast and furiously that the mouse 

 left the court with the speed of a race-horse, and only escaped by tumbling 

 down an area, the sparrow pursuing until he lost sight of him, cocking his 

 little ogles down the area after him, and strutting with all the pride of a 

 bantam or game cook, as if chuckling to himself — ' I've given it to you, my 

 mousey, for your impudence,' then returned and finished the crumbs, 

 amidst the laughter of the surrounding spectators." 



Allusion is made here to a race-horse, but a sparrow can hop 

 nearly thrice his own length. Can a race-horse do that 1 But 

 he does not always beat the mouse, for another interesting 

 combat was seen between them in Palace Yard, Westminster. 

 A sparrow was picking up the corn fallen from the horses' nose- 

 bags. A mouse appeared, and disputed his right, when another 

 desperate fight ensued, which lasted several minutes, till the 

 sparrow beat a retreat, evidently injured in the tussle, as he 

 could not fly for some time. It was curious to see the sparrow 

 dodging between the cab wheels and the horses' legs, and the 

 mouse after him. At last he flew up, and the cabmen unfairly 

 finished the fight by killing the mouse with a whip. But the 

 sparrow does not always get sympathisers like these cabmen, for 

 on July 28th, 1885, as I stood in my garden, I saw an old cock 

 sparrow fall down and flutter helplessly on the ground ; it was 

 seized by a cat which had been pursuing it. I ran after the 

 cat and got the poor bird, but dead, with its legs and tail so 

 firmly tied together with a bit rosetty twine it could never have 

 broken, and although its wings were purposely free it could 

 neither stand nor fly far — the essence of studied cruelty, to 

 slowly starve or be helplessly killed, as it was. I am sure no 

 bird or beast of prey would have acted so heartlessly as the 

 human hands which did it; and if it is true that "not a sparrow 

 falls without the knowledge of God," or, rather, that " there is 

 a special providence in the fall of a sparrow," an act like that 

 should make us blush for humanity, and make churchmen think 

 there are other sins than those in the Decalogue. 



I saw it flutter, but it could not stand, 

 And ere I caught it with my eager hand, 

 A prowling cat, with cruel, snake-like eyes, 

 Sprang in before me and her panting prize. 



