308 



V EUTKliUATA, 



and otlior vo<ri>tal»Io substances. The niicrations of these, as well as many other birds, have alike 

 exciteil the adujiration of the i)hiiosoplier and the poet. Bryant expresses the thoughts they sug- 

 gest in the following beautiful stanzits : 



'• WhitluT. 'midst fallini; ili'w, 

 Wliilo nlow till- li.iivens with tlio last stops of day, 

 Fur, tliioiiuli ih.ir losv do]>tlis, dost thou pursue 

 Thy solitary way? 



" Vainly the fowler's eye 

 Miiihf mark thy distant llij,'ht to do thee wrong, 

 As, darkly painted on the crimson sky, 

 Thy lijture floats along. 



" Seokcst thon the plashy brink 

 Of weedy lake, or niarire of river wide, 

 Or where the rockiuir billows rise and sink 

 On the chafed ocean-side '? 



" There is a Power whose care 

 Teaches thy way along the pathless coast, 

 The desert and illimitable air — 



Lone wandering, but not lost. 



" All day thy wings have fanned. 

 At that far height, the cold, thin atmosphere, 

 Yet stoop not, weary, to the welcome land, 

 Though the dark night is near. 



" And soon that toil shall end. 

 Soon shall thou find a summer-home, and rest 

 And scream among thy fellows ; reeds shall bend 

 Soon o'er thy sheltered nest. 



" Thou'rt gone — the abyss of heaven 

 Hath swallowed up thy form ; yet on my heart 

 Deeply hath sunk the lesson thou hast given. 

 And shall not soon depart. 



" He who, from zone to zone, 

 Guides through the boundless sky thy certain flight. 

 In the long way that I must tread alone, 

 Will lead my steps aright." 



never have reason to alight for rest on ships. After having passed the winter amid the warm marshes of the White 

 Nile, or those of the Tigris and Euphrates, they traverse the scented valleys of Syria, and move in spring along the 

 picturesque shores of Asia Minor. A learned traveler has an extremely interesting passage on their migration north- 

 ward. A company of crsuies, returning from their winter-quarters, flew in orderly array over Smyrna, ou the 'jth of 

 March, northward. Another soon followed, and then many ; some by day, when they were seen changing their figure 

 and leader ; some by moonlight, when they were heard, high in air, repeating their noisy signals. The same writer, sail- 

 ing in autumn southward from the Hellespont, again saw his old friends ou their way to their winter-quarters. Being 

 near Tenedos, he says he was amused by vast caravans or companies of cranes passing high in the air from Thrace, 

 to winter, as he supposed, in Egypt. He admired the number and array of their squadrons, their extent, orderly 

 appearance, and apparently good discipline. 



"Other migratorv birds of strong wing scorn the aid of man in their flight, and dart from one continent to another, 

 depending exclusively on the force of their own pinions. Thus the pelicans, though birds of great weight, ascend 

 into the atmosphere, and forming themselves into one compact wedge, cleave the air like an arrow, and traverse the 

 whole Mediterranean at one flight. They present a sight of rare beauty when preparing for their departure. Difter- 

 ing in this from many other birds, they commence their journey in the morning, collecting in myriads on the marshes 

 of the Nile, and soaring aloft with a scream, they form a vast canopy overhead, while the sun, playing on their white 

 feathers, delicately tipped with pink, reminds the traveler of the snows of the higher Alps, which are often rendered 

 rosy by the touch of dawn. 



" These jiowerful birds, as we have said, need no other resting-places in their migrations than such as have been 

 supplied them by nature. It is otherwise with the smaller winged tribes. These, when caught by the foremast blast 

 of high winds, in their attempt to cross the sea, invariably take refuge in ships. A Swedish naturalist, entering the 

 Mediterranean early in the morning, observed that the mot<icilIa /lispanica — a beautiful species of wagtail — almost im- 

 mediately came on board. It had become conscious of the approach of a storm, and endeavored to escape from it by 

 flight. Observing beneath it the white sail of a vessel, while Africa was a long way off, it descended boldly, to make 

 friends, and demand hospitality of the Swedish mariners. They seem, however, to have thought more of the high 

 winds, which the arrival of these little pilgrims portended, than of the beauty or habits of their visitors. The wind 

 which brought these aerial voyagers was a strong northeaster, and it came accompanied by thunder and lightning, 

 things little familiar to Scandinavians, in the month of October. But it being the migratory season, the birds would 

 not defer their journey on account of stress of weather; but mounting amid atmospheric and electric currents, undis- 

 mayed by the thunder's roar or the lightning's flash, they sought to fulfill faithfully the behests of nature. In the 

 morning, however, the waves were covered with the bodies of larks and wagtails, which had been killed by the fury 

 of the elements during the night. Two only of these species reached the ship in safety. 



"Sometimes birds seem to be induced by mere curiosity or love of mankind, to put out from their native shore and 

 alight on ships at sea. The sparrow, it is well known, has an inveterate fondness for hopping and chirping about 

 human beings, whether on land or water. It will even cling to the dwellings, long after the dwellers therein have 

 passed away, and sit sadly on the eaves at dawn, as if expecting the appearance of some new inhabitant. We are not 

 at all surprised, therefore, to find the African sparrow, on beholding a vessel, flying out to it, in order to take a crumb 

 with its inmates. Sicily abounds with sparrows, which, during winter, sun themselves in large troops upon the 

 beautiful old ruins of Grecian temples, where they will go round with you, as if they were quite interested in the an- 

 tiquities. As soon as they see a ship, they fly away to it in great multitudes, as if delighted to examine any thing 

 new ; and on reaching it, flit about the sails, perch upon the yards, masts, and rigging, descending frequently to 

 share the meals of the sailors, in whose rough humanity they place the most complete confidence. 



" Many species of birds love to construct what Shakspeare calls ' procreant cradles' on the islands of the Mediter- 

 ranean, ^gina is a favorite spot, where, but for the policy of the inhabitants, they would multiply so as fast to 

 produce a famine. Accordingly, as soon as the breeding season sets in, the worthy natives disperse themselves over 

 the island, peer into every nook and cranny of the rocks, in search of the nests of doves, pigeons, and partridges, 



