218 WILD BIRDS THROUGH THE YEAR 



are no longer divided. They are inseparably blended 

 sometimes for days and weeks together. It often 

 happens that the night is, if not lighter, far purer 

 than the day ; we may see blue sky one night, where 

 the next day we can see and breathe only murk. 

 It is vain to think of dodges for " saving " the light 

 before we have divided it from the night. 



The daylight saving we need so greatly has to do 

 with smoke, not the timepiece. I think few people 

 realise how far these City fogs travel. Over fifty 

 miles from London I noticed for years a blackness 

 in the air, high overhead, on days when wind came 

 from the north-east. This blight blotted out the 

 sun during hours that should have been clear and 

 fair. It was city fog. I doubt whether places 

 sixty or seventy miles from London are always safe 

 from this hateful miasma. Before allotting ourselves 

 more daylight, we should take care that the share we 

 get now is of good quality. 



