THE SECRET OF THE WILLOW WREN 129 



more than one that ranks high, according to the 

 accepted standard, it remains to ask why it should 

 be so. Why, I mean, should the mere likeness 

 to a human tone in a little singing-bird impart so 

 great a pleasure to the mind, when the undoubtedly 

 human-like voices of many non-passerine species 

 do not as a rule affect us in the same way ? As 

 a matter of fact, we find in the multitude of species 

 that resemble us in their voices a few, outside of 

 the order of singers, that do give us a pleasure 

 similar to that imparted by the willow wren, 

 swallow, and tree-pipit. Thus, among British 

 birds we have the wood-pigeon, and the stock- 

 dove ; the green woodpecker, with his laugh-like 

 cry ; the cuckoo, a universal favourite on account 

 of his double fluty call ; and (to those who are not 

 inclined to be superstitious) the wood-owl, a most 

 musical night- singer ; and the curlew, with, in a 

 less degree, various other shore birds. But in a 

 majority of the larger birds of all orders the effect 

 produced is different, and often the reverse of 

 pleasant. Or if such sounds delight us, the feeling 

 differs in character from that produced by the 

 melodious singer, and is mainly due to that wild- 

 ness with which we are in sympathy expressed by 

 such sounds. Human-like voices are found among 



