SHORT TOUR IN SUTHERLAND. 



FIELD-NOTES FOR THE YEAR — CONTINUED. 



CHAPTER XXI. 



OCTOBER. PART I. 



Migration of Birds — Quails — Arrival of Wild-geese — White- 

 fronted Goose — Arrival of Wild-swans ; decrease of — Feast- 

 ings of our Ancestors — Food of Ducks, etc. — Field-mice — 

 Roe feeding — Hawks — Peregrine and Wild-duck — Train- 

 ing of Hawks — Migration of Eagles. 



October is, in this country, one of the finest months 



of the whole year. The cold cutting winds of 



November are frequently preceded by bright, clear, 



sunshiny weather, most enjoyable and invigorating 



to all whose avocations and amusements keep them 



much in the open air. The birds, both migratory 



and stationary, begin now to establish themselves 



in their winter quarters ; and scarcely a clay passes 



which is not marked by the arrival or departure, or 



the winter preparations of some of the feathered 



races in this country. 



VOL. II. B 



