WHISTLING SWAN 75 



about to go away to the god whose ministers they are. But men, because 

 they are themselves afraid of death, slanderously affirm of the swans 

 that they sing a lament .... I do not believe this to be true .... they 

 sing and rejoice in that day more than they ever did before." 



On the other hand, Dr. Elliott Coues, famed ornithologist, in his 

 "Key to North American Birds" (1887), says of swans: ". . . . it is 

 hardly necessary to add, that their fancied musical ability, either in 

 health or at the approach of death, is feigned by poets but not confirmed 

 by examination of their vocal apparatus .... there are no .... 

 muscles nor other apparatus for modulating the voice musically." 



Finally, in confirmation of the claims of the ancients and the 

 poets, Dr. D. G. Elliot (1898), reliable observer and celebrated natural- 

 ist, relates: "I had killed many swan and never heard aught from them 

 at any time, save the familiar notes that reach the ears of everyone in 

 their vicinity. But once, when shooting in Currituck Sound over water 

 belonging to a club of which I am a member, in company with a friend, 

 Mr. F. W. Leggett, of New York, a number of swan passed over us at 

 a considerable height. We fired at them, and one splendid bird was 

 mortally hurt. On receiving his wound the wings became fixed and he 

 commenced at once his song, which was continued until the water was 

 reached, nearly half a mile away. I am perfectly familiar with every 

 note a swan is accustomed to utter, but never before nor since have I 

 heard any like those sung by this stricken bird. Most plaintive in char- 

 acter and musical in tone, it sounded at times like the soft running of 

 the notes in an octave, and as the sound was borne to us, mellowed by 

 the distance, we stood astonished and could only exclaim, 'We have heard 

 the song of the dying swan'." 



"As game birds, swans have never held a prominent place. They 

 are not abundant anywhere except in a few favored spots, as migrants 

 or winter sojourners. They have always been so wary and shy that at- 

 tempts to shoot them in any considerable numbers generally resulted in 

 making them wilder than ever or in driving them away altogether. The 

 flesh of the younger birds in comparatively tender and palatable, but the 

 older birds are very tough. Swans always have been attractive marks 

 for sportsmen on account of their large size and spectacular appearance, 

 but comparatively few have ever enjoyed the privilege of shooting at 

 them .... formerly they were shot in considerable numbers in the 

 vicinity of Chesapeake Bay and Currituck Sound. They were shot mainly 

 from the marshy points where blinds were built for duck shooting; the 

 swans were wont to feed along the shores of the marshy coves and bays; 

 and in passing . . . around or over these points, offered tempting shots. 

 It was an exciting moment for the sportsman when he saw a flock of 

 these great white birds approaching and few could resist the temptation 

 to shoot at them." (Bent, 1925.) 



