PREFACE 



IN the autumn of 1899 I came to live at Icklingham 

 in Suffolk, and remained there, with occasional in- 

 tervals of absence, for the next three years. During 

 the greater part of that period I kept a day-to-day 

 journal of field observation and reflection, and the 

 following pages represent, for the most part, a portion 

 of this. They are the work of one who professes 

 nothing except to have used his eyes and ears to the 

 best of his ability, and to give only, both in regard 

 to fact and theory, the result of this method com- 

 bined, of course, in the latter case, with such illustra- 

 tions and fortifications as his reading may have 

 allowed him to make use of, and without taking 

 into account some passing reference or allusion. 

 That my notes relate almost entirely to birds, is 

 not because I am less interested in other animals, 

 but because, with the exception of rabbits, there are, 

 practically, no wild quadrupeds in England. I am 

 quite aware that a list can be made out, but let any 

 one sit for a morning or afternoon in a wood, field, 



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