JANUARY IN THE SUSSEX WOODS. 113 



Birds and animals do occasionally breed at later 

 periods than is usual for the generality of their species. 

 Exceptionally prolific individuals among birds con- 

 tinue to breed into the winter. They are not egre- 

 giously deceived any more than we are by a mild 

 interval ; the nesting is caused by their individual 

 temperament. 



The daylight has lingered on longer than expected, 

 but now the gloom of the short January evening is 

 settling down fast in the wood. The silent and motion- 

 less trees rise out of a mysterious shadow, which fills 

 up the spaces between their trunks. Only above, where 

 their delicate outer branches are shown against the 

 dark sky, is there any separation between them. Some- 

 where in the deep shadow of the underwood a black- 

 bird calls " ching, ching " before he finally settles himselt 

 to roost. In the yew the lesser birds are already quiet, 

 sheltered by the evergreen spray; they have also 

 sought the ivy-grown trunks. "Twit, twit," sounds 

 high overhead as one or two belated little creatures, 

 scarcely visible, pass quickly for the cover of the furze 

 on the hill. The short January evening is of but a 

 few minutes' duration ; just now it was only dusky, 

 and already the interior of the wood is impenetrable 

 to the glance. There rises a loud though distant 

 clamour of rooks and daws, who have restlessly moved 

 in their roost-trees. Darkness is almost on them, yet 

 they cannot quite settle. The cawing and dawing 

 rises to a pitch, and then declines; the wood is silent, 

 and it is suddenly night. 



