342 OUR Ts^ATIVE SONGSTERS. 



too, it may find the portions of moist clay wMch 

 are brought from the borders of tlie stream, or 

 sometimes from the puddles in the street, or road, 

 and which, moulded into small pellets, are mixed 

 with straw and bents for the ■ framework of its 

 dwelling. This is saucer-shaped in form, and is 

 lined with feathers. The process of making the 

 nest is gradual, one layer only being laid on at a 

 time, and then left for hours to dry, before the 

 work progresses. The name of chimney swallow, 

 applied to our common species in several European 

 countries, indicates the spots most frequently 

 chosen; and the bird, taking possession in May or 

 June of some sleeping room or other unused 

 chimney, makes its nest in any nook or angle which 

 it can find. Sometimes an old wall offers a hole 

 in which the nest can be placed, sheltered from the 

 elements, and sometimes an empty room presents 

 a temptation too great to be resisted; while the 

 roof of an open barn or shed occasionally forms a 

 covering, or it is built among the rafters of some 

 outhouse, where the thatch is a protection from 

 rain and wind. 



That the swallow is often a capricious architect, 

 might be proved by various anecdotes recorded by 



