36 THE RETURN OF THE BIRDS. 



our deepest sense of the beauty and harmony 

 of the world. 



The wood-thrush is worthy of all, and 

 more than all, the praises he has received ; 

 and considering the number of his apprecia- 

 tive listeners, it is not a little surprising that 

 his relative and equal, the hermit-thrush, 

 should have received so little notice. Both 

 the great ornithologists, Wilson and Audu- 

 bon, are lavish in their praises of the former, 

 but have little or nothing to say of the song 

 of the latter. Audubon says it is sometimes 

 agreeable, but evidently has never heard it. 

 Nuttall, I am glad to find, is more discrim- 

 inating, and does the bird fuller justice. 



It is quite a rare bird, of very shy and 

 secluded habits, being found in the Middle 

 and Eastern States, during the period of 

 song, only in the deepest and most remote 

 forests, usually in damp and swampy lo- 

 calities. On this account the people in 

 the Adirondac region call it the " Swamp 

 Angel." Its being so much of a recluse ac- 

 counts for the comparative ignorance that 

 prevails in regard to it. 



The cast of its song is very much like 

 that of the wood-thnish, and a good observer 

 might easily confound the two. But hear 



