90 THE CHAFFINCH 



of weeds that the Chaffinch consumes, in the course of a year, 

 more particularly of groundsel, chickweed, and buttercup, that 

 he, without doubt, more than compensates for all his misdeeds ; 

 and as his summer food partially, and that of his young family 

 exclusively, consists of caterpillars and other noxious insects, he 

 is in reality among the gardener's best friends, who should be 

 scared away at the seasons when his visits are not welcome, and 

 encouraged at all other times. The Chaffinch, though a wary bird, 

 does not stand greatly in fear of man ; for if disturbed at a meal, he 

 is generally satisfied with the protection afforded by the branches of 

 the nearest tree, on which he hops about until the danger is past, utter- 

 ing his simple but not unpleasing note, ' twink ' or ' pink ' or ' spink, 

 spink, spink ' as it is variously translated. To this cry it adds the 

 syllable ' tweet ', frequently repeated in an anxious tone and with a 

 peculiar restlessness of manner, which always indicate that its 

 nest is somewhere very near at hand, and by which indeed it is 

 very often betrayed. 



Its proper song commences very early in spring, and is continued 

 until June or later. This must be the song which the poet had in 

 view when he sang : — 



Then as a little helpless innocent bird. 

 That has but one plain passage of few notes. 

 Will sing the simple passage o'er and o'er, 

 For all one April morning, till the ear 

 Wearies to hear it. — Tennyson. 



It consists of from ten to twelve notes of the same tone, and 

 about the same length, with the last but one elevated and accented, 

 uttered rapidly at short intervals, and without the least variation. 



In Germany, this bird is so great a favourite that not a single 

 tone of its voice has escaped the experienced ears of bird-fanciers. 

 In some parts of Holland and the north of France, the passion 

 for song Chaffinches amounts to a frenzy. Philharmonic societies 

 are formed, whose exclusive object is to educate Chaffinches, and 

 to organize vocal combats. The combatants, each in his cage, are 

 placed a few yards from each other. One of them utters his strain, 

 which is replied to by the other ; strict silence is imposed on the 

 spectators, lest the attention of the birds should be distracted by 

 their remarks or applause. The contest proceeds as long as the 

 birds continue to utter their notes of defiance, and the victory is 

 adjudged to the one who has the last word. The price paid for a 

 bird of mark, and the pains bestowed on the capture of any bird 

 which in its wild state holds out promise of being an apt pupil, are 

 past belief, and the cruelty practised in producing a perfect songster 

 I cannot bring myself to describe. After all, Bechstein's tran- 

 slator says that the notes of the wild Chaffinches in England are 

 finer than any cage ones he has heard in Germany. English bird- 



