NATURE NEAR LONDON 



parted, till only three or four could be seen. Such 

 a sortie from cover is the standing risk of the game- 

 preserver. Towards the end of September, on 

 passing a barley-field, still partly uncut, and with 

 some spread, there was a loud, confused, murmur- 

 ing sound up in the trees, like that caused by the 

 immense flocks of starlings which collect in winter. 

 The sound, however, did not seem quite the same, 

 and upon investigation it turned out to be an in- 

 credible number of sparrows, whose voices were 

 audible across the field. 



They presently flew out from the hedge, and 

 alighted on one of the rows of cut barley, making 

 it suddenly brown from one end to the other. 

 There must have been thousands; they continually 

 flew up, swept round with a whirring of wings, 

 and settled, again darkening the spot they chose. 

 Now, as the sparrow eats from morning to night 

 without ceasing, say for about twelve hours, and 

 picks up a grain of corn in the twinkling of an 

 eye, it would be a moderate calculation to allow 

 this vast flock two sacks a week. Among them 

 there was one white sparrow his white wings 

 showed distinctly among the brown flock. In the 

 most remote country I never observed so great a 

 number of these birds at once ; the loss to the 

 farmers must be considerable. 



There were a few fine days at the end of the 

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