MIGRATION. 259 



appearance of torpidity or even lethargy ; in ten hours 

 more, they were all found dead. That they had not 

 died in consequence of want of food he further proved 

 by keeping other swallows without food in his study, 

 when he found they could support life from three to 

 five days without any thing to eat*. 



A still more convincing proof that swallows do not 

 become torpid in winter, may be derived from those 

 which have been successfully kept in cages. Dr. 

 Reeve says he has known several attempts made to 

 keep swallows in a warm room during winter without 

 success t; but M. Natterer, a celebrated continental 

 naturalist, kept a number of swallows in ca^es for 

 eight or nine years together J; and in this country 

 they have been successfully reared by Mr. Pearson. 



" Five or six of these birds," says Bewick, " were 

 taken about the latter end of August, 1784, in a bat 

 fovvling-net at night ; they were put separately into 

 small cages, and fed with nightingale's food ; in about 

 a week or ten days they took food of themselves, and 

 seemed much strengthened by it; they were then 

 put all together into a deep cage, four feet long', with 

 gravel at the bottom ; a broad shallow pan was placed 

 in it, in which they sometimes washed themselves. 

 One day Mr. Pearson observed that they went into 

 the water with unusual eagerness, hurrying in and 

 out again repeatedly with such swiftness as if they 

 had been suddenly seized with a frenzy. Being 

 anxious to see the result, he left them to themselves 

 about half an hour, and going to the cage, found 

 them all huddled together in a corner apparently dead ; 

 the cage was then placed at a proper distance from 

 the fire, when only two of them recovered, and were 

 as healthy as before ; the rest died. The two remain- 

 ing were allowed to wash themselves occasionally for 



* Dissertations. 



f On Torpidity. p,47. J Temminck, Man, i, 426, 2d edit. 



2 c 



