CORRESPONDENCE 201 



" Wild Nature " may be, as she expresses it, " won 

 by kindness " : 



" I see, in your book on ' British Birds/ you state 

 that the Kestrel is easily tamed. Our bird was 

 taken from a nest last year, and put into a cage out 

 of doors, for a few days only, until fledged. He 

 was then turned out, and flew across the park into 

 the woods, and was seen no more for some days, 

 when he returned, found his way into the house, 

 and has never voluntarily left it since. We often 

 turn him out, and see him a mile or more from the 

 house, but soon after find him searching for an 

 open window by which he may reach the dining- 

 room, where he lives by preference, perching on a 

 picture-frame, but always coming on to my hus- 

 band's arm when called, even though with thirty 

 people at dinner, and through the glare of lamps 

 and candles. He invariably twitters a sort of soft 

 song when we speak to him. He is a grand bird, 

 in perfect plumage. ... I have a white rat, who 

 lives, as all our pets do, entirely loose in the house 

 or garden, perfectly free to leave us if they choose. 

 The rat was given to me as old and worthless two 

 years ago, then quite wild. He gradually became 

 extremely tame, and during a severe illness I had 

 last year he took it into his head to sit on my 

 pillow to guard me. Ever since then he has con- 

 tinued to sleep there ; he runs upstairs with me, 

 and follows me to bed, sleeping always on the 

 bolster or pillow by my head. He is very plucky, 

 and defended himself during one whole night when 



