40 love's meinie. 



With finch, with lark, and with archangel. 



He seemed as he were an angell, 



That down were comen from Heaven clear. 



Now, when I first read this bit of Chaucer, 

 without referring to the original, I was greatly 

 delighted to find that there was a bird in his 

 time called an archangel, and set to work, 

 with brightly hopeful industry, to find out 

 what it was. I was a little discomfited by 

 finding that in old botany the word only meant 

 "dead-nettle," but was still sanguine about 

 my bird, till I found the French form descend, 

 as you have seen, into a mesangel, and finally 

 into mesange, which is a provincialism from 

 fxeLov, and means, the smallest of birds — or, 

 specially here,— a titmouse. I have seldom 

 had a less expected or more ignominious fall 

 from the clouds. 



37. The other birds, named here and in the 

 previous description of the garden, are intro- 

 duced, as far as I can judge, nearly at random, 

 and with no precision of imagination like that 

 of Aristophanes ; but with a sweet childish 

 delight in crowding as many birds as possible 

 into the smallest space. The popinjay is 

 always prominent ; and I want some of you to 



