August 



secluded places, on the ground or perching on 

 the lower branches, and in the night, insect- 

 ivorous like its congener the night-hawk, it 

 sallies forth in quest of prey upon the wing; 

 but whereas the night-hawk roams about far up 

 in the sky, the whippoorwill remains near the 

 ground, and is besides strictly a nocturnal bird 

 like the owls. Audubon, in his account of this 

 bird, says, " Its flight is so light and noiseless, 

 that while it is passing within a few feet of a 

 person, the motion of its wings is not heard by 

 him, and merely produces a gentle undulation 

 in the air. During all this time it utters a low 

 murmuring sound, by which alone it can be dis- 

 covered in the dark when passing within a few 

 yards of one, and which I have often heard 

 when walking or riding through the barrens at 

 night. ' ' 



One of these birds was in the woods opposite 

 my house : possibly there were two, but as I 

 could never find them, and as they never inter- 

 rupted each other in conversation, I had no 

 means of proving the duality. 



A writer, in speaking of the chimes of a cer- 

 tain town in Europe, says ' ' Day and night are 

 set to music." It is equally true that in nature 

 day and night are set to music, but with a more 

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