Preface 



The undertaking of a sequel to Wild Spam, we are warned, is 

 dangerous. The implication gratifies, but the forecast alarms 

 not. Admittedly, in the first instance, we occupied a virgin 

 field, and naturally the almost boyish enthusiasm that character- 

 ised the earlier book — and probably assured its success — has in 

 some degree abated. But it's not all gone yet ; and any such 

 lack is compensated by longer experience (an aggregate, between 

 us, of eighty years) of a land we love, and the sounder apprecia- 

 tion that arises therefrom. Our own resources, moreover, have 

 been supplemented and reinforced by friends in Spain who repre- 

 sent the fountain-heads of special knowledge in that country. 



No foreigners could have enjoyed greater opportunity, and 

 we have done our best to exploit the advantage — so far, at least, 

 as steady plodding work will avail ; for we have spent more than 

 two years in analysing, checking and sorting, selecting and 

 eliminating from voluminous notes accumulated during forty 

 years. The concentrated result represents, we are convinced, 

 an accurate — though not, of course, a complete — exposition of 

 the wild-life of one of the wildest of European countries. 



No, for this book and its thoroughness neither doubt 

 nor fear intrudes ; but we admit to being, in two respects, out 

 of touch with modern treatment of natural -history subjects. 

 Possibly we are wrong in both ; but it has not yet been demons- 

 trated, by Euclid or other, that a minority even of two is neces- 

 sarily so? Nature it is nowadays customary to portray in 

 somewhat lurid and sensational colours — presumably to humour 

 a "popular taste." Reflection might suggest that nothing in 

 Nature is, in fact, sensational, loud, or extravagant ; but the 



lay public possess no such technical training as would enable 



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