WAGTAILS, FLYCATCHERS, ETC. 55 



yet made their real home with us, but during 

 the latter part of the summer they come in 

 crowds to the garden, and there are among 

 them many only just able to fly, who spend 

 most of their time on the roof of the house, 

 waiting to be fed. 



Two house-martins fell down a bedroom 

 chimney here, and when I opened the window 

 to let them out, whilst one took advantage of 

 it at once the other kept flying round and 

 round quite close up to the ceiling and resting 

 on a bell-wire that ran across. It was a long 

 time, more than half an hour, before I could 

 persuade him that he was looking in the 

 wrong place for a way of escape. 



At one time after the Ship Canal had been 

 begun and traffic had ceased on the river, a 

 large colony of sand-martins established 

 themselves under the disused towing-path 

 almost opposite, and naturally they were then 

 plentiful enough. Now, as far as we are 

 concerned, the river with all its belongings is 

 a thing of the past, and it is only occasionally 

 that we see the little brown birds hawking 

 for flies in the garden. 



I was surprised not long ago to find in a 

 field-sandpit, a mile away from any other 

 sand-martins' nests that I knew of, a solitary 

 nest in a hole within easy reach of my hand. 

 The young must have been hatched, for I 

 watched the birds go in with food. 



Sand-martins have a peculiar interest as 



