HISTORY 



OF 



BIRDS. 



PART I. 

 OF BIRDS IN GENERAL. 



CHAPTER I, 



INTRODUCTION. 



WE are now come to a beautiful and loquacious 

 race of animals, that embellish our forests, amuse 

 our walks, and exclude solitude from our most 

 shady retirements. From these man has nothing 

 to fear : their pleasures, their desires, and even 

 their animosities, only serve to enliven the gene- 

 ral picture of nature, and give harmony to medi* 

 tation. 



No part of nature appears destitute of inhabi- 

 tants. The woods, the waters, the depths of the 

 earth, have their respective tenants ; while the 

 yielding air, and those tracts of seeming space 

 where man never can ascend, are also passed 

 through by multitudes of the most beautiful 

 beings of the creation. 



VOL. IV. A 



