THE BLACKBIRD. .jI 



Natural History, which foniis a proof of tlieir 

 usefuhicss to man. " In the month of August 

 hist," says tliis <;entleman, ** I was struck with 

 the rather iniusually large assemblage of hlack- 

 hinls wljieh frequented my garden; eight or ten 

 were frerpiently to be seen together ; and one morn- 

 ing 1 counted thirteen at the same time, hopping 

 about, and chattering on the grass plot before the 

 house. Their visits were usually paid about eight 

 o'clock in the morning, and continued to arrest 

 my attention for perhaps ten days or a fortnight. 

 The l)irds directed their operations more especially 

 to particular spots on the grass plot, which they 

 stacked U]) with their bills, till the turf, which 

 changed coh)ur, jukI was supposed to be dying, 

 became almost bare in patches, and was fpiite dis- 

 figured by the refuse of gi'ass &c. which was left 

 littered on the surface. Indeed, such was the rough 

 and unsightly appearance which the grass plot pre- 

 sented in consefjuence, that hints were even thrown 

 out that the V)hiekbirds ought to be destroyed ; for 

 they had been repeatedly seen in the very act of 

 disticfuriu!^ the turf, and the whole mischief was 

 of course, from lirst to last, attributed to them. 

 Suspecting what might l)e the object of the bird's 



