198 NATURE IN DOWNLAND 



dying tones, and the sound is in itself beautiful and 

 very natural. It closely resembles that most musical 

 and human-like sound of insect life, which may be 

 heard in many spots on the high downs in July and 

 August ; a sound of innumerable bees and honey- 

 eating flies in the flowering heather, their individual 

 small voices blended into one loud continuous hum 

 that rises, too, and falls with the wind. A man led 

 blindfolded over the downs to one of these flowery 

 places, and standing there in the hot breeze, would 

 probably think that he was listening to the harp of 

 the tall wooden pole and suspended wires. 



I noticed that in some of the villages in the downs 

 there were no swifts ; in other villages and in the coast 

 towns they were abundant. It was not uncommon 

 to see as many as thirty or forty swifts rushing about 

 in the air together, and the downs district generally 

 appeared to be as favourable to these birds as to 

 the swallows. At one village, one morning, I was 

 standing in a garden watching the numbers of swifts, 

 swallows, and martins, peopling the air overhead. 

 When my host came out to me I called his attention 

 to the birds. " I call them all swallows," he said, 

 and in spite of all I could say on the subject he 

 assured me that he could see no difierence between 

 swift, chimney-swallow, and house-martin. " Are you 

 a native of this place ? " I asked. " Oh no, I was 



