206 EVERYDAY ADVENTURES 



ings, which are so sensitive that they are instantly 

 aware of the presence of any body met in flight, by 

 the difference in the air-pressure. 



As early as 1793 an Italian naturalist found that 

 a blinded bat could fly as well as one with sight. 

 They were able to avoid all parts of a room, and even 

 to fly through silken threads stretched in such a 

 manner as to leave just space enough for them to 

 pass with their wings expanded. When the threads 

 were placed closer together, the blind bats would 

 contract their wings in order to pass between them 

 without touching. 



An English naturalist put wax over a bat's closed 

 eyes and then let it loose in a room. It flew under 

 chairs, of which there were twelve in the room, 

 without touching anything, even with the tips of its 

 wings. When he attempted to catch it, the bat 

 dodged; nor could it be taken even when resting, as 

 it seemed to feel with its wings the approach of the 

 hand stretched out to seize it. 



When it comes to flying, the bat is the swallow of 

 the night. Sometimes it may be confused with a 

 chimney-swift at twilight, but it can always be told 

 by its dodging, lonely flight, while the swifts fly in 

 companies and without zigzagging through the air. 

 It is doubtful whether even the swallow or the 

 swiftest of the hawks, such as the sharp-shinned or 

 the duck hawk, perhaps the fastest bird that flies, 

 can equal the speed of the great hoary bat. More- 

 over, the flight of the bat is absolutely silent. He 

 may dart and turn a foot away from you, but you 



