MAY. 85 



change about, like a couple of rustics in an ancient 

 village dance, thrush combatants dash at each other, 

 and then flutter straight up in the air together, 

 slowly ascending, beak to beak, ten feet high or 

 more, and as slowly descending. Like the black- 

 birds, however, they seldem come quite to blows. 



THE RETURN OF THE HOUSE-MARTINS. 



May 29. With a favourable change of wind 

 nature's aspect has completely altered. Last week 

 we were lamenting the fates of many swallows, which 

 had come so far from over-sea only to die of hardship 

 in an English spring. This week we have rejoiced 

 over the safe return of our belated house-martins. 

 They are due to arrive each year before the swifts ; 

 but these had been with us for some time, while only 

 a few stray martins had been seen travelling singly 

 up the coast with the later flights of swallows. So 

 we feared that the main body of the martins might 

 have met with disaster by the way, and that the 

 remains of last year's mud nests under our eaves 

 might remain unrepaired and empty, save for the 

 untidy wisps of hay mixed with feathers which the 

 sparrows insist upon stuffing into them. But just in 

 advance of the south-west wind one of the rightful 

 owners arrived, and commenced an excited skirmish 

 with the sparrows for his old nest. In this he was 

 defeated, so he appropriated another one close by, 

 where, a few hours later, he was joined by his mate, 

 with much glad twittering on both sides. 



