OUR PETS. 141 



drawing away our once regular summer visitants ; the 

 blackcap and redstart are more rarely seen and heard in 

 the garden, and the larks have been long gone from the 

 fields around. The fly-catcher, though not valued for his 

 song, is always welcome from his fearless ways ; he will 

 perch close beside you on a paling or pole, darting off after 

 flies and returning to his perch incessantly ; and wdien these 

 birds have a nest, they are very bold in its defence. A 

 l^air who built in the ivy at the side of the house, upon 

 one occasion when a tame jackdaw was carried past their 

 nest on the hand of its mistress, darted down and struck 

 at the bird w4th loud, angry cries. In the autumn the 

 long-tailed titmouse and the beautiful little gold-crested 

 wren used occasionally to visit us, but the suburban 

 character now prevailing in what used to be a rural 

 neighbourhood, will, no doubt, deter these rarer birds from 

 even a casual visit. It is curious to observe how even 

 small changes, within a limited space, affect the habits of 

 the more common birds. Some years ago, green linnets 

 were so abundant in the garden that their nests were to be 

 found in every bush and hedge. By degrees, hedges and 

 bushes were removed from the immediate neighbourhood 

 of the house, so as to obtain more air and space, and for 

 years after, hardly a green linnet was to be seen, and their 

 nests were never to be found. Indeed, there is no doubt 

 that the clearing out thickets, and allowing shrubs to grow 

 freely, though essential to the neatness and order of a small 

 place, is an operation by no means favourable to the build- 

 ino- of nests and the secure inhabitation of small birds. If 



