THE COMMON SPARROW. 



course of the day. When the female is sitting, the 

 male bird seems to be particularly assiduous in 

 searching them out, and I believe he feeds his mate 

 during that period, having frequently seen him 

 flying to the nest with food, long before the eggs 

 were hatched ; after this time the united labours of 

 the pair destroy numbers of these injurious creatures. 

 That he will regale himself frequently with a 

 tempting gooseberry, or bunch of currants, is well 

 known, but his services entitle him to a very ample 

 reward. The blackbird associates with these 

 thrushes in our gardens, but makes no compensation 

 for our indulgences after his song ceases, as he does 

 not feed upon the snail ; but the thrush benefits us 

 through the year by his propensities for this par- 

 ticular food, and every grove resounds with his 

 harmony in the season ; and probably if this race 

 suffered less from the gun of the Christmas popper, 

 the gardener might find much benefit in his ensuing 

 crop of fruit, from the forbearance. 



We have no bird, I believe, more generally 

 known, thought of, or mentioned with greater in- 

 difference, perhaps contempt, than the common 

 sparrow (fringilla domestica), '* that sitteth alone 

 on the house-top ;" yet it is an animal that nature 

 seems to have endowed with peculiar charac- 

 teristics, having ordained for it a very marked pro- 

 vision, manifested in its increase and maintenance, 

 notwithstanding the hostile attacks to which it is 



