yb THE SWAN AND HER 'CREW. 



Jimmy joined them, and asked what kind of a bird it was. 

 It was a bird of about eight inches in length, grey in colour, 

 plump, and with a shape which reminded them of the guinea- 

 fowl. They looked at the poor trembling bird, and at its 

 eggs, and came to the conclusion that it was a quail, a 

 supposition which turned out to be right. Quails, though 

 rare generally, were very common that year in Norfolk and 

 Suffolk, and many nests were found, two more by the boys 

 themselves. The nest is simply a collection of dry grass in 

 a hollow in the ground. 



Morris says of the quail : 



" Quails migrate north and south in spring and autumn, and 

 vast numbers are taken by bird-catchers. As many as one 

 hundred thousand are said to have been taken in one day 

 in the kingdom of Naples. Three thousand dozen are re- 

 ported to have been purchased in one year by the London 

 dealers alone. They migrate in flocks, and the males are 

 said to precede the females. They are believed to travel 

 at night. They arrive here at the end of April or beginning 

 of May, and depart again early in September. Not being 

 strong on the wing, yet obliged to cross the sea to seek a 

 warmer climate in the winter, thousands are picked up by 

 the shores on their arrival in an exhausted state ; many are 

 drowned on the passage, and some are frequently captured on 

 board of vessels met with in transitu" 



I have seen them in poulterers' shops kept in large 

 cages, until they are wanted for the table, and they seemed 

 to be quite unconcerned at their captivity, feeding away 

 busily. 



Frank said, 



" What shall we do with the bird ? I've broken her wing, 

 but I don't think she's much hurt anywhere else." 



"Here's some thin twine," said Dick. "Let us tie 

 the bone to a splint of wood with it, and the wing may 

 heal." 



They carried the suggestion out with great care, and the 

 quail, on being allowed to go, ran away with a drooping wing, 

 but otherwise little the worse. 



"I suppose we must take all the eggs," said Frank, "for 

 she will not come back to her nest now, as it is all wet with 

 squashed egg." 



