THE CUCKOO. 137 



rows and house martins, that have been deprived of 

 their own eggs. The anatomical incapacity for sitting 

 upon its eggs, with which the older naturalists fur- 

 nished the cuckoo, vanished the moment that John 

 Hunter brought science to bear on the structure of the 

 bird ; and it is possible that the only interference of 

 the cuckoo with other birds may be taking possession 

 of their deserted nests or sometimes eating their eggs. 



The manners of the bird are not very easily observed, 

 as, though it frequents hedges and cultivated fields, 

 and even the close neighbourhood of houses and vil- 

 lages, it is both retired and restless, and two cuckoos 

 are not often seen in company, until near the time of 

 their departure from this country, at which time they 

 are silent and not much heeded, though they fly in 

 small flocks. 





The Cuckoo is a bird of considerable size, the spread 

 of the wings being more than two feet, the length about 

 fourteen inches, and the weight from four and a half 



N 2 



