ORTOLANS ABUND^\A'T IN HOLLAND. 185 



birds leaving the table. The price there of au ortolan, 

 when fat, is one franc, so that this may be considered a 

 very expensive dish. 



Smollett remarks that the best way of dressing these 

 ortolans is to stuff them into a roll scooped of its crumb, 

 to baste them well with butter, and roast them until 

 they are browm and crisp.* The note of the ortolan is 

 particularly sweet, and like the nightingale, they sing 

 both in the night and day. 



They are found in several parts of Em-ope, but very 

 rarely in England. In Italy they are very nvimerous, 

 and are found in some parts of Grermany and Sweden, 

 migrating from one to the other in spring and autumn, 

 and in their passage are caught in great numbers. 



In some parts the ortolans make their nest in a Ioav 

 hedge, and on the ground. It is carelessly constructed, 

 much like that of the lark. The female lays four or 

 five eggs, greyish, and in general has two broods in 

 the year. They frequent much the oat fields, are 

 very partial to this grain, and become very fat soon, 

 and are deemed sufficiently so for the table, though 

 the preference in point of flavour is always given 

 to those that are fattened artificially. In India they 

 make their appearance in the beginning of March, 

 and arrive in vast flights. 



The ortolans are also found in considerable numbers 

 in the neighbourhood of Maestricht. When fat, they 

 are sent to Brussels for sale. 



* The modern Italians are fond of small birds, which they eat under 

 the name of Beceaficos, which fatten on figs. The prodigious price paid 

 by tlie Roman tragedian for one dish of singing birds is well known. 

 The price of this expensive dish, according to Pliny, was about 

 684:3^. 10s. according to Arbuthnot's tables. This enormous expense 

 perhaps arose more from ostentation than epicurism. 



