THE SWALLOWS, 289 



mitted to fly about one of the cabins. It became 

 in a short time after its capture, very tame, perch- 

 ing on the head of the person in whose cabin it 

 had taken refuge, eating food also from the 

 mouth. The following morning, however, it flew 

 away. 



In the evening several of the common swallow, 

 {Hirundo rustica, Linn.) and also, from a speci- 

 men which I caught and examined, the martin 

 {Hirundo urbica, Linn.) were flying about the 

 ship, occasionally seeking refuge in the cuddy : 

 they appeared strong on the wing, in excellent 

 plumage, and plump condition. They no doubt 

 formed part of a flock migrating to the British 

 shores, where the latter are said to arrive about 

 the 16th of April ; but the computation of the 

 time of their arrival cannot be mentioned with 

 any degree of certainty. Now their passage has 

 probably been retarded by the long prevalence 

 of easterly winds ; and the cold, rainy weather, 

 may have caused the little emigrants to seek 

 refuge on board the ship. From calculation at 

 noon, we were in north latitude 50'^ 14' ; north 

 and west longitude 12° 40'. 



The swallow is found an inhabitant of the tro- 

 pical regions of the globe, visits the northern 

 climates during the warm months of the year, 

 and is regarded as the harbinger of summer ; 



VOL. II. u 



