164 NATURE IN DOWNLAND 



the listener to hear any of its lower, harsh, or guttural 

 notes. But if the listener is near a corn-field, or if any 

 birds are singing near him, these guttural notes will be 

 audible, and the effect of the music will not be quite 

 the same. 



The song of the lark is a continuous torrent of con- 

 trasted guttural and clear shrill sounds and trills, so 

 rapidly emitted that the notes, so different in character, 

 yet seem to interpenetrate or to overlap each other ; and 

 the effect on the ear is similar to that on the eye of 

 sober or dull and brilliant colours mixed and running 

 into one another in a confused pattern. The acutest 

 note of all, a clear piercing sound like a cry several 

 times repeated, is like a chance patch of most brilliant 

 colour occurring at intervals in the pattern. As the 

 distance between listener and bird increases the throat- 

 notes cease to be audible; beginning with the lowest 

 they are one by one sifted out, and are followed by the 

 trills ; and finally, at a very great distance — as far, in 

 fact, as anything of the song is left — the occasional 

 shrill reiterated notes I have described alone can 

 be heard. 



Let the reader, then, who has not been on these 

 downs in summer on a brightest, windless day, and 

 listened alone to this sound — alone, since a companion's 

 talk or even his silent presence would in most cases 

 mar the efltect — let him imagine if he can the effect 

 of a great number of birds all round the sky pouring 

 out their highest, shrillest notes, so clarified and 



