70 BRITISH BIRDS. 



SO doing, their ingenuity, as well as their concern for the 

 safety of their broods. 



A youth, named Smellie, who in after life wrote a 

 valuable work, " The Philosophy of Natural History," 

 carried off a nest of young sparrows, about a mile from 

 his place of residence. As he was marching home with 

 his prize, he saw, with some degree of astonishment, 

 both the parents following him at some distance, and 

 silently observing his motions. It then struck him that 

 they might follow him home, and feed the young in 

 their usual way. When just entering the door, he held 

 up the nest, and made the young ones utter their usual 

 cry expressive of a desire for food, and putting the nest 

 and the young in the corner of a wire cage on the out- 

 side of a window, he chose a situation in the room 

 where he could perceive all that would happen, without 

 being himself observed. The young birds soon cried 

 for food ; in a short time both parents, having their bills 

 filled with small caterpillars, came to the cage, and, 

 after chattering a little, gave one to each. This parental 

 intercourse continued regularly for some time, till the 

 young ones were completely fledged, and had acquired a 

 considerable degree of strength. 



Young Smellie now determined to try an experiment : 

 he took one of the strongest of the young birds, and 



