152 Midland Village: Railway and Woodland. 



and close to the up-line. This bridge is a good 

 place from which to watch the Tree-pipit, and 

 listen to its charming song. All down the line, 

 wherever it passes a wood or a succession of 

 tall elms and ashes, these little grayish-brown 

 birds build their nest on or close to the grassy 

 banks, and take their station on the trees or the 

 telegraph-wires to watch, to sing, and to enjoy 

 themselves. A favourite plan of theirs is to utter 

 their bright canary-like song from the very top 

 twig of an elm, then to rise in the air, higher 

 and higher, keeping up their energies by a quick 

 succession of sweet shrill notes, till they begin to 

 descend in a beautiful curve, the legs hanging 

 down, the tail expanded and inclined upwards, 

 and the notes getting quicker and quicker as they 

 near the telegraph-wires or the next tree-top. 

 When they reach the perching-place, it ceases 

 altogether. So far as I have noticed, the one 

 part of the song is given when the bird is on 

 the tree, the other when it is on the wing. The 

 perching-song, if I may call it so, is possessed by 

 no other kind of Pipit ; but the notes uttered on 

 the wing are much the same with all the species. 



