2 THE BIRDS OF OUR RAMBLES. 



of all the Birds that flit to and fro around us, 

 or make our wanderings in the wilderness glad 

 with their song. Books on Birds are plentiful 

 enough, some of them reliable, the work of men 

 famous for their knowledge ; others the com- 

 pilations of writers whose Ornithology is weak. 

 Most of these works are too large and too 

 cumbersome to make outdoor companions of; 

 none are handy enough for ready reference at 

 the moment when some possibly unknown bird 

 appears, and the ignorant observer is anxious to 

 identify it at once, and learn some particulars of 

 its habits and economy. Many are the fascinating 

 volumes dealing with the fauna of the woods and 

 fields, and the wonders of the shore ; yet in all 

 the Birds only receive passing notice, and just the 

 information required is either omitted altogether, 

 or becomes useless because it is not easy of 

 reference. 



Now, with regard to Birds. I am often asked 

 by would-be observers what birds are to be met 

 with in such and such a locality. " I expect to 

 visit the moors : " "I am going for a stroll in the 

 woods;" or "We are off to the coast"- just as 

 the case may be " Now what birds am I likely 

 to meet with there ? " are remarks I have had 

 addressed to me times without number by friends 

 and acquaintances, whose knowledge of Ornitho- 

 logy has been nil, although they have been fired 

 with the wish to know the birds they might meet 

 with, and were anxious not only to name them, 

 but to learn all about them. Or, on the other 

 hand, I have been repeatedly buttonholed by some 

 aspiring bird-lover, who having been his rambles 

 among the birds comes back full of information 



