218 The Chimney Swift 
to the nocturnal habits of the swifts and also to popular 
fables, written fifty years ago, concerning certain birds 
whose habits were at that time little known. It was, 
for a long time, believed that in the autumn swifts col- 
lected by hundreds in hollow trees, together with bats, 
snakes, and toads, and that at the appointed time all 
fell into a deep sleep, lasting until spring was well 
advanced. Others went still farther beyond the bounds 
of reason in declaring that the swifts descended to the 
bottom of rivers, ponds, and lakes, where, during cold 
weather, they buried themselves in the mud with the 
catfish, the eels, and the snapping turtles. It is sur- 
prising how long such fairy tales cling to a species, for 
less than a year ago an old lady told me, that when she 
was a girl the “chimney swallows” from all the sur- 
rounding country collected at her father’s mill pond, 
and then at night, when no one knew it, “they dove to 
the bottom of the pond and remained there until the 
cowslips came up.” 
Our chimney swift, in common: with the other 
species of the family, has remarkable powers of flight, 
the estimated speed being from eighty to one hundred 
and ten miles an hour. This wonderful speed is 
attained by only a few of our birds. The swift is 
more often seen flying in the morning or late after- 
noon, and it apparently enjoys wet and gloomy 
