THE MARTIN'S NEST. 17 



were always to be seen gliding to and from their 

 nests, beneath the summit of a stupendous basaltic 

 arch that rises at the base of the isolated rock in 

 which the ruin of a castle is situated. Undis- 

 mayed by the war of the waves of the Atlantic 

 which thunder with indescribable fury upon the 

 north-east coast of Ireland, these birds may be seen 

 playing around the high basaltic rocks in whose 

 recesses their nests are contained. Swifts have a 

 great love for antiquity, and delight to select as 

 the situation for their nest the " rents of ruin " 

 made by time in old towers, houses, and castles. 

 They also love the shelter of the old-fashioned 

 straw thatch. 



The Frontispiece to this part represents a very 

 pretty scene, drawn in the exquisite work of Mr. 

 Gould on Australian Birds, and affords an interest- 

 ing illustration of the situation of the nests of birds. 

 He remarks: " One of the most interesting points 

 connected with the history of this species (the 

 yellow-throated Sericornis) is the situation chosen 

 for its nest. All those who have rambled in the 

 Australian forests must have observed, that, in 

 their more dense and humid parts, an atmosphere 

 peculiarly adapted for the rapid and abundant 



