LABOUR OF BIRDS. 197 



ruminating, feeding, or reposing too : but birds, 

 the young of which remain in their nests, as most 

 of them do, excepting the gallinaceous and aquatic 

 tribes, have no cessation of labour from early 

 morning till the close of eve, till the brood can pro- 

 vide for themselves. What unceasing toil and 

 perseverance are manifest in the rooks, and what 

 distances do they travel to obtain nourishment for 

 their clamorous brood ! It is a very amusing oc- 

 cupation, for a short time, to attend to the actions 

 of a pair of swallows or martens, the family of 

 which have left the nest, and settled upon some 

 naked spray, or low bush in the field, the parents 

 cruising around, and then returning with their cap- 

 tures to their young: the constant supply which 

 they bring, the celerity with which it is given and 

 received, and the activity and evolutions of the 

 elder birds, present a pleasing example of industry 

 and affection. I have observed a pair of starlings 

 for several days in constant progress before me, 

 having young ones in the hole of a neighbouring 

 poplar tree, and they have been probably this way 

 in action from the opening of the morning thus 

 persisting in this labour of love for twelve or thir- 

 teen hours in the day ! The space they pass over 

 in their various transits and returns must be very 

 great, and the calculation vague ; yet, from some 

 rude observations, it appears probable that this pair 

 in conjunction do not travel less than fifty miles in 

 the day, visiting and feeding their young about a 

 hundred and forty times, which, consisting of five 



