I. THE ROBIN. 41 



help me (for I have not time at present for the 

 chase) in hunting the parrot down on his first 

 appearance in Europe. Just at this particular 

 J'ime. he contested favour even with the falcon ; 

 and I think it a piece of good fortune that I 

 chanced to draw for you, thinking only of its 

 brilliant colour, the popinjay, which Carpaccio 

 allows to be present on the grave occasion of 

 St George's baptizing the princess and her 

 fatl^r. 



38. And, indeed, as soon as the Christian 

 poets begin to speak of the singing of the 

 birds, they show themselves in quite a diffe- 

 rent mood from any that ever occurs to a 

 Greek. Aristophanes, with infinitely more 

 skill, describes, and partly imitates, the sing- 

 ing of the nightingale ; but simply as beautiful 

 sound. It " fills the thickets with honey ; " 

 and if in the often-quoted — ^just because it 

 is not characteristic of Greek literature — 

 passage of the Coloneus, a deeper sentiment 

 is shown, that feeling is dependent on associa- 

 tion of the bird-voices with deeply pathetic 

 circumstances. But this troubadour finds his 

 heart in heaven by the power of the singing 

 only : — 



