260 THE WATER-HEN. 



that element in which it is destined they should after- 

 wards remain. 



The water-hen forms her nest upon shrubs and low 

 trees, and composes them of fibres and very small 

 sticks ; her eggs are sharp at one end, green and red 

 spotted, and she generally has two or three broods in 

 the year : her food consists of insects, or the slimy 

 green weed that floats upon the surface of standing 

 pools ; and, as soon as the young ones are hatched, 

 she points out their subsistence, and then leaves them 

 to shift for themselves. 



To these birds, with long legs and finny toes, we shall 

 add one that has short, but with toes just the same: 

 the grebe is much larger than the former two, with 

 beautiful glossy feathers of black and white : the legs 

 are short, and made for swimming ; and from the knee, 

 upwards, they seem hid in the belly of the bird. 



As neither legs or wings are calculated for flying or 

 walking, the grebe of course seldom leaves the stream ; 

 they chiefly frequent the meres of Shropshire and 

 Cheshire, and breed among the flags and weeds. The 

 female is allowed to be an excellent mother, and feeds 

 her young with small eels, and when they are fatigued 

 with swimming, has frequently been seen to carry them 

 upon her back : the feathers upon their breast are re- 

 markably beautiful, and the ladies formerly made use 

 of them for tippets in dress ; but it is so great an adept 

 in the art of diving, that, comparatively speaking, 

 very few of them are killed. 



