THE RING-DOVE. 177 



that we rarely see it, though its soft, gentle coo, 

 may be heard in fine mild weather, by those 

 who dwell in the neighbourhood of woods, or 

 wander beneath their shade ; and we know no 

 sound more expressive of tranquil enjoyment 

 than this soft wood-note, coming out of the depths 

 of the grove or the forest, when the air is calm 

 and the skies are blue, and the fields are arrayed 

 in their summer loveliness. The greater part 

 of the ring-doves are supposed to leave England 

 in November : they pass over to the continents of 

 Asia and Africa, and do not return till March. 

 The cones of the pine, the fir, and the larch, 

 furnish their favourite food ; they likewise feed 

 on beech-nuts, acorns, herbs, wild fruits and 

 grains. In countries where the myrtle abounds, 

 myrtle-berries seem their chosen dainties ; and 

 when thus fed, their flesh is said to acquire a par- 

 ticularly fine flavour. The ring-dove builds its 

 nest on the tops of the highest trees. It rears 

 two broods in the year, the first in April, the 

 second in July. The eggs are rarely more than 

 two. The male and female birds divide the la- 

 bour of hatching them, and in sixteen or eighteen 

 days the young birds make their appearance. 

 This bird is found in most of the countries of 

 Europe. 



We need scarcely refer to the emblematic use 



i 5 



