570 



at 



distinguished by a peculiar quick shake of 

 its tail from side to side, when it alights 

 These birds feed on flies, spiders, ants' eggs, 

 soft fruits, berries, &c. 



The AMERICAN REDSTART (Setophaga 

 ruticUla), which belongs to the family Mus- 

 cicapic/cK, is dcsciibed by Wilson as one of 

 the most expert flycatchers of its tribe. 

 lie says, " it is almost perpetually in motion; 

 and will pursue a retreating party of flies 

 from the tops of the tallest trees, in an al- 

 most perpendicular, but zig-zag direction, 

 to the ground, where the clicking of its bill 

 is distinctly heard ; and I doubt not but it 

 often secures ten or twelve of these in a 

 descent of three or four seconds." Where- 

 ever flying insects abound, there this little 

 bird is sure to be seen. It builds frequently 

 in low bushes, or on the drooping branches 

 of the elm, within a few feet of the ground, 

 fastening its nest to two twigs ; outwardly it 

 is formed of flax, well wound together, and 

 moistened with its saliva, interspersed here 

 and there with pieces of lichen, and lined 

 with a very soft downy substance. The 

 female lays five white eggs, sprinkled with 

 gray and blackish specks. The general 

 colour of the plumage above is black, which 

 covers the whole head and neck, and spreads 

 on the upper parts of the breast in a round- 

 ing form ; where, as well as on the head and 

 neck, it is glossed with steel blue ; sides of 

 the breast below this, black ; the inside of 

 the wings, and upper half of the wing-quills, 

 are of a fine orange colour ; belly and vent, 

 white, slightly streaked with pale orange ; 

 legs black. This species has the constant 

 habit of flirting its extended tail from side 

 to side, as it runs along the branches, occa- 

 sionally shooting off after winged insects. Its 

 notes are few and feeble, repeated at short 

 intervals, as it darts among the foliage. 



REIN-DEER. (Cervus tarandus.) The 

 Rein-deer is an inhabitant of the most 

 northerly regions. In Europe its chief re- 

 sidence is in Lapland and Norway ; in Asia 

 it frequents the north coast as far as Kamt- 

 schatka, and the inland parts as far as 

 Siberia ; and in America it is common in 



REIN-DEER. (C 



Greenland, but docs not extend farther south 

 than Canada. They have long been domes- 

 cated, and their appearance and habits have 

 been minutely described by many travellers 

 and naturalists. : hey are about four feet six 

 inches in height. Their horns are remarkably 

 long and slender, and they have branched, 

 recurved, round antlers, the summits of which 

 are palmated. The body is of a thick aud 



square form ; and the legs shorter in pro- 

 portion than those of the stag ; but it should 

 be observed that the size varies according 

 to the climate, those in the Arctic regions 

 being the largest. The colour of the Rein- 

 deer is brown above and white beneath ; 

 but as it advances in age, it often becomes of 

 a grayish-white, and sometimes almost en- 

 tirely white : the space about the eyes is 

 always black : the under part of the neck 

 is much longer than the rest, and forms a 

 kind of hanging beard. Both sexes have 

 horns, but those of the male are much larger 

 and longer than those of the female. The 

 hoofs are long, large, and black, as are also 

 the false or secondary hoofs behind ; and 

 these latter, while the animal is running, 

 make by their collision a remarkable clat- 

 tering sound, which may be heard at a con- 

 siderable distance. 



It is an observation no less true than trite, 

 that to the Laplanders this animal is the sub- 

 stitute for the horse, the cow, and the sheep : 

 harnessed to the sledge, the Rein-deer bounds ' 

 over the frozen lakes and rivers, or the 

 equally hardened surface of the snow ; of its 

 milk they make their cheese ; its flesh sup- 

 plies them with food ; and the skins furnish 

 them not only with clothing, but with 

 their tents and bedding. In short, this ani- 

 mal is deservedly celebrated for its services 

 to the simple and harmless inhabitants of 

 Lapland, who, undisturbed by the sound of 

 war, or the anxieties which commerce brings, | 

 lead a kind of pastoral life, even within the 

 frozen limits of the arctic circle, and have 

 no other cares than those of providing for 

 the rigours of their long winter, and of 

 rearing and supporting their numerous herds 

 of Rein-deer, which may be said to consti- 

 tute almost their whole wealth. Some writers, 

 indeed, have eulogized the great happiness \ 

 of the Laplanders in terms too extravagant | 

 for the sober pen of truth, and, quitting de- 

 scriptive prose, have indulged in the pleasant 

 reveries of poetical fiction : thus 



" Here stands secure, beneath the northern zone, 

 O sacred Innocence, thy turf-built throne : 

 'Tis here thou wav'st alofi thy snowy vt&XS, 

 Far from the pride of courts and pomp of kings." 



But, in fact, if the poor Laplander be 

 really so happy, it arises from his being 

 ignorant of the wants of luxury, occasioned 

 by the sterility of his native land, and his 

 non-intercourse with highly civilized and 

 polished nations. Their state of felicity has, 

 indeed, some serious drawbacks. The winter 

 may be said to continue nearly nine months, 

 and is of a rigour unknown in the more 

 southern regions of the world ; the sun is 

 invisible for a certain period, and the moon 

 and stars, with the frequent coruscations 

 of the aurora borealis, and the reflection 

 from the snow, constitute the only light 

 afforded by nature. The short summer, on 

 the contrary, when once fairly commenced, 

 is scarcely less oppressive, from the innumer- 

 able legions of musquitoes, which abound to 

 such a degree in the marshy districts, as to 

 oblige the inhabitants, in order to walk 

 abroad with common comfort, to anoint their 

 faces with a mixture of tar and milk ! 



