THE SWALLOW. 259 



Kalm, in his travels in America, tells a pretty anecdote of 

 the Swallow, which, he says, was related to him by a lady of 

 great respectability, who was a witness of the fact. 



" A couple of Swallows built their nest in a stable belonging 

 to the lady in question, and the female laid eggs in the nest, 

 and was about to sit upon them. Some days after, the male 

 was seen flying about the nest, sometimes sitting on a nail 

 near it, and uttering a very plaintive note, which betrayed his 

 uneasiness. On a nearer examination, the female was found 

 dead in the nest, from which she was removed, and her body 

 was thrown away. The male then went to sit upon the eggs, 

 but after being about two hours on them, and perhaps finding 

 the business too troublesome, he went out, and returned in 

 the afternoon with another female, who sat upon the nest, 

 and afterwards fed the young ones, till they were able to 

 provide for themselves." 



I have frequently noticed how apt Swallows are to settle 

 on the ground, in a row, or perfect line. I have no doubt but 

 that many persons must have observed this, while they have 

 been walking during a fine autumnal day. The birds, after 

 hawking for flies upon the surface of the water, will all at 

 once settle on the path which extends across the head of the 

 river in so perfect a line, that one looks at it with astonish- 

 ment as the simultaneous act of the birds. Their flight is 

 equally sudden and regular on the approach of an intruder. 

 I have also noticed this regularity of line in young birds, 

 while waiting for food from their parents. 



I observed a curious departure from the usual mode of 

 building, in the martin. The circumstance occurred at the 

 Virginia Water, in Windsor Great Park. Near the fishing 

 temple on that beautiful lake, there is a cottage, part of which 

 is covered with a treillage, against which a pair of Swallows 

 had endeavored to build their clayey nest, the spot they had 

 chosen being protected from the weather by the large and 

 projecting wooden eaves of the cottage. Whether they found 

 any difficulty in fixing the earth for their nest, in the peculiar 

 spot they had selected, or from some other cause, the vacancy 



