1 66 Qftober 1748. 



number of thefe beautiful and agreeable little 

 birds before his windows all the fummer long, if 

 he takes care to plant a bed with all forts of fine 

 flowers under them. It is indeed a diverting 

 fpeclacle to fee thefe little adHve creatures flying 

 about the flowers like bees, and fucking their 

 juices with their long and narrow bills. The 

 flowers of the above-mentioned Monarda grow 

 vertici Hated, that is, at different diftances they 

 furround the ftalk ? as the flowers of our mint 

 (Mentba) baftard hemp (Galeopfis) mother-wort 

 (LeonurusJ and dead nettle (Lamtttm). It is 

 therefore diverting to fee them putting their bills 

 into every flower in the circle. As foon as they 

 have lucked the juice of one flower, they flutter 

 to the next. One that has not feen them would 

 hardly believe in how ihort a fpace of time they 

 have had their tongues in all the flowers of a 

 plant, which when large, and with a long tube, 

 the little bird, by putting its head into them, 

 looks as if it crept with half its body into them. 



DURING their fucking the juice out of the 

 flowers, they never fettle on it, but flutter con- 

 tinually like bees, bend their feet backwards, 

 and move their wings fo quick, that they are 

 hardly viftble. During this fluttering, they make 

 a humming like bees, or like that which is oc- 

 cafioned by the turning of a little wheel. After 

 they have thus, without refting, fluttered for a 

 while, they fly to a neighbouring tree or pcft, 

 and refume their vigour again. They then re- 

 turn to their humming and fucking. They are 

 not very my ; and I, in company with feveraj 

 ther people, have not been full two yards fr#m 



the 



