2 STRA Y FEA THERS FROM MANY BIRDS. 



trained to distinguish the low sweet voices and subdued 

 sounds of the woods ; and their eyes are unable to give 

 those rapid glances which must see everything with no 

 conscious effort. I firmly believe that it is this want of 

 training in woodcraft which prevents many people from 

 acquiring tastes for natural history. They do not go 

 the right way to work in making their observations ; 

 the result of their open-air studies is a failure ; they 

 think there is nothing of interest round them, and they 

 give up the search in despair. Now, every field, and 

 wood, and hedgerow contains abundant objects of 

 interest ; but they must be sought for and watched with 

 method. Here is the secret of Nature's confidence. 



I must commence by saying that Patience, Quietness, 

 and Stillness are the three cardinal virtues of successful 

 observation. The young naturalist must learn to pass 

 along with noiseless tread, examining the ground as he 

 goes, for a stumble over a stone or root, or an unlucky 

 step on a dead stick may cost him the sight of some 

 interesting bird or animal, and cause him to miss the 

 discovery of an unrecorded fact in their economy. 

 Again, as he wanders on he must so train his eyes that 

 they take in everything not a movement in the foliage 

 or amongst the grass must escape them. He must train 

 them to work simultaneously with his ears, so that at 

 the least sound in any direction the eyes instinctively 

 turn towards it. He must also cultivate a keen obser- 



