74 Summer Studies of Birds and Books CHAP. 



bird. The books did not give me much hope of 

 distinguishing the two by external appearance ; but 

 they all agreed that the song of the Marsh Warbler 

 is far finer, sweeter, and more varied than that of 

 the Eeed Warbler. Now, this bird again sang with 

 such force that even the gardeners in the Botanic 

 Garden had been struck with it ; and I determined 

 to do all I could to solve the mystery. I hid myself 

 inside the privet hedge while the children were safe 

 in school, and spent a long time in scrutinising the 

 bird and his song, while the murmur of lessons went 

 on outside, and walkers and talkers passed up and 

 down within a yard or two, neither seeing me, nor 

 noticing the song. I continued to pass stray half- 

 hours here for a day or two, until again the bird 

 departed ; not frightened, I think, by the silent 

 human figure that kept lurking beneath the bush, 

 but finding the place too lively at times for him to 

 hear his own voice in comfort. 



The result of my perseverance was practically 

 nil. I had never heard or seen an undoubted Marsh 

 Warbler, and I could not have attested in a court 

 of justice my conviction that this was a bird of that 

 species. This is a misfortune which must often 

 befall the ornithologist, who cannot seize on a bird 

 as a botanist gathers a plant ; even if he has a gun 

 in his hand he is probably most unwilling to use it, 

 and in the public places of a town he fortunately 



