August 
secluded places, on the ground or perching on 
the lower branches, and in the night, insect- 
ivorous like its congener the night-hawk, it 
sallies forth in quest of prey upon the wing; 
but whereas the night-hawk roams about far up 
in the sky, the whippoorwill remains near the 
ground, and is besides strictly a nocturnal bird 
like the owls. Audubon, in his account of this 
bird, says, ‘‘ Its flight is so light and noiseless, 
that while it is passing within a few feet of a 
person, the motion of its wings is not heard by 
him, and merely produces a gentle undulation 
in the air. During all this time it utters a low 
murmuring sound, by which alone it can be dis- 
covered in the dark when passing within a few 
yards of one, and which I have often heard 
when walking or riding through the barrens at 
night.’’ 
One of these birds was in the woods opposite 
my house: possibly there were two, but as I 
could never find them, and as they never inter- 
rupted each other in conversation, I had no 
means of proving the duality. 
A writer, in speaking of the chimes of a cer- 
tain town in Europe, says—‘‘ Day and night are 
set to music.’’ It is equally true that in nature 
day and night are set to music, but with a more 
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