IMPRESSIONS OF SOME ENGLISH BIRDS. 149 



British Islands at least. I refer to the willow war- 

 bler, or willow wren, as it is also called, a little 

 brown bird, that builds a dome-shaped nest upon the 

 ground and lines it with feathers. White says it has 

 a " sweet, plaintive note," which is but half the 

 truth. It has a long, tender, delicious warble, not 

 wanting in strength and volume, but eminently pure 

 and sweet, the song of the chaffinch refined and 

 idealized. The famous blackcap, which I heard in 

 the south of England, and again in France, falls far 

 short of it in these respects, and only surpasses it in 

 strength and brilliancy. The song is, perhaps, in the 

 minor key, feminine and not masculine, but it touches 



the heart. 



" That strain again ; it had a dying fall." 



The song of the willow warbler has a dying fall ; no 

 other bird song is so touching in this respect. It 

 mounts up round and full, then runs down the scale, 

 and expires upon the air in a gentle murmur. I 

 heard the bird everywhere ; next to the chaffinch its 

 voice greeted my ear oftenest ; yet many country 

 people of whom I inquired did not know the bird, or 

 confounded it with some other. It is too fine a song 

 for the ordinary English ear; there is not noise 

 enough in it. The white-throat is much more fa- 

 mous ; it has a louder, coarser voice ; it sings with 

 great emphasis and assurance, and is a much better 

 John Bull than the little willow warbler. 



I could well understand, after being in England a 

 few days, why, to English travelers, our songsters 



