240 THE CHAFFINCH. 



is common in the Voigtland. At a distance it sounds like the 

 Bridegroom's Song, but the preliminary passages are louder, 

 sharper, and more distinctly separated, while the concluding 

 syllables are an exact repetition of the words Weidmann, zieh 

 am (Sportsman, march out). The Wood Song is neither so 

 long nor so full, and is only occasionally heard in the forests of 

 Franconia. 



5. The Wine Song, of which there are five varieties : First. 

 The Good or Langsfeld Song, which is an exceedingly beauti- 

 ful strain, and heard to perfection only in a few villages of 

 Thuringia, especially in Buhl. The genuine song consists of 

 four short phrases, warbled in a tone resembling that of the 

 hautboy, and ending in the syllables Weingeh, or Wiengeh. As 

 this song also is one which has been accidentally acquired in 

 the aviary, and thence propagated by careful training, it is 

 never perfectly heard from a wild bird. Second. The Bad 

 Wine Song, so called only when compared with the preceding, 

 consists of three passages, of which the second is composed of 

 the syllable Tzap, five times repeated, and the last is the word 

 Weingeh. This is a natural song, and birds which possess it 

 are much sought after by the bird-catchers. Third. The Straight 

 or Even Wine Song is a strain compounded of the Bad and the 

 Sharp Wine Song, of which the last syllable is uttered in a 

 shrill decided tone. It is by no means unpleasant, and is fre- 

 quently heard from wild birds in Franconia, especially in the 

 neighbourhood of Meiningen. Fourth. The Sharp Wine Song, 

 which never terminates in Weingeh, but in a distinct and 

 elongated Weingeh. It is divided into (a), The Common, which 

 is a wild song, and when genuine, consists of the syllables 

 Fritz, Fritz, Fritz ! willst du mit zum Wein gelien ? (Fred, Fred, 

 Fred ! wilt thou go with (us) to the wine ?) and (J), The Buhl 

 Sharp Wine Song, an artificial strain, common in Buhl and the 

 neighbouring villages of Thuringia. This consists of three 

 phrases ; the first of which is given in a very high note, and 

 on the last, or two last of which, a decided accent is laid. The 

 connoisseurs of Buhl distinguish two varieties of this song, 

 named, from villages in the neighbourhood, the Langsfeld and 

 the Winshauser songs. Both of these are very good songs ; 

 the last especially being very sonorous, and having two strongly 

 accented syllables before the concluding Weingeh. The filth 

 variety of the Wine Song is the Oberland Wine Song, which 



