YIKING' 173 



May 3, 1893. 



I saw the other day in a paper by ' A Son of 

 the Marshes,' an expression that was new to me. 

 Speaking of the songs of the different birds then 

 going on, he says, ' the yaffle yikes.' (Enter 

 Kobin fluttering round niy head with a large piece 

 of bacon in his beak, startled by something out- 

 side, I think.) To ' yike ' is Norfolk, I suppose ; 

 did you ever hear it ? We used to call its very 

 peculiar cry ' laughing ' a very appropriate name 

 for it. The yaffle used to be much more common 

 here than it is now ; I have seen three feeding 

 together on my lawn in the very early morning, 

 eating ants. 



A pair of nuthatches used to come constantly 

 at one time, and brought a young one sometimes. 

 But I do not encourage them now, for I find that 

 the smaller birds are afraid of their large strong 

 beaks and rough ways. Sometimes a nuthatch 

 looks very funny from the window, hanging up- 

 side-down on the edge of the verandah, its tail 

 pointing skywards : one wonders what it is. 

 There is a squat reptilian look about the bird 

 that one does not like ; nor does one quite like its 



relation to the butcher-bird. 



September 10, 1893. 



Bobinette came down to my feet to-day, but 

 a male Bob was singing iidly, and came down 



