58 NATURAL HISTORY OF SELBORNE. 



on such a restless tribe; and when once the young begin to appear 



it is all confusion : there is no distinction of genus, species, or sex. 



In breeding-time snipes play over the moors, piping and hum- 



NUTHATCH. 



ming ; they always hum as they are descending. Is not their hum 

 ventriloquous like that of the turkey? Some suspect it is made 

 by their wings. 



This morning I saw the golden-crowned wren, whose crown 

 glitters like burnished gold. 3 It often hangs like a titmouse, with 

 its back downwards. 



Yours, etc., etc. 



NOTES TO LETTER XVI. 



1 White probably means the willow-wren and chiff-chaff which are common, 

 and the wood-wren which is rare. 



2 The nuthatch builds in holes in trees, and if the opening is too large, it 

 builds it up with mud, leaving only sufficient room for its own egress and 

 ingress. 



