IX 

 The Dartford Warbler 



IN my wanderings over this country while studying 

 bird life, I have seen a great variety of scenery, 

 ranging from wild, treeless hills, to marshy plains, but 

 I think that of all views I ever looked upon the 

 commons of Surrey have been to me the most 

 charming. In a day's walk over some of these large 

 tracts we come across ever-changing scenes. Surrey 

 landscapes are some of the most beautiful in the 

 country, and are teeming with bird life. One of 

 these commons is favoured by the presence of that 

 rare bird the Dartford warbler. My friend Mr. 

 Norman Gilroy found this species breeding there 

 during the early spring of 1902, and I went down 

 with him to photograph the nest on April 26th. He 

 discovered two nests the week before this ; one 

 contained one egg, the other was not quite finished. 

 The day we visited this common was somewhat 

 unfavourable for photography, owing to a strong 

 wind which was blowing. Such a wind is the bird- 

 photographer's chief disadvantage. It is next to 



