74 WOODLANDERS AND FIELD FOLK 



deep, the constituent grasses being wonderfully 

 intertwined. The actual nest is always surmounted 

 by a mass of decayed vegetation, rather loosely 

 arranged. Five, six, or seven eggs are laid, large 

 for the size of the bird, and covered with brownish 

 red spots at the larger end. These differ in colour, 

 many specimens nearly approaching to whiteness. 

 The birds of which we have spoken the sedge, 

 reed, and grasshopper warblers are essentially 

 aquatic, haunting the marshlands where grow the 

 bog plants. Clinging to the sedges, the reeds, and 

 the rushes, it may be that Nature has some subtle 

 economy in rounding off their tails as she does, and 

 that in this way she fits them more closely to their 

 environment than if she had left them with square 

 tails, like the rest of the Sylviadcz. For it is a 

 remarkable fact that each of the birds mentioned has 

 the rounded form of tail possessed by none other of 

 the warblers, and that each has the insects of bosky 

 situations for its food. The tails of our sedge-birds 

 are not rounded in vain; some wise purpose lies 

 beyond. Strange are the means of Nature to her 

 various ends. The science of evolution is not yet 

 old enough to solve our present problem. Assuredly 

 it will do so. The peculiarities we have pointed out 

 are not so prominent in the grasshopper-warbler 

 as in the sedge and reed warblers, but the possession 

 of similar characteristics has induced a distinct 

 generic name for the three species. 



