MARSH. 



LEVEL, unpicturesque, dreary and monotonous to the ordi- 

 nary observer, is that long stretch of marshes extending 

 along the banks of Father Thames between Gravesend and 

 Sheerness ; bat it offers a perfectly peaceful haven, a quiet, 

 aye, an almost sacred nook to the naturalist who seeks to 

 discover its hidden treasures, and to unravel the mysteries 

 they contain, and who, " far from the madding crowd," finds 

 never-ending pleasure in this lonely, yet interesting spot. 



Miles upon miles of level land are here, intersected in 

 every direction by ditches which carry off the surplus water, 

 and thus render the marshes, at least in part, an excellent 

 pasturage for hundreds of cattle and sheep. Here, too, arex 

 reed-beds innumerable, among which the wild duck, coop 

 and water-hen delight to make their nests ; great patches of 

 the giant bulrush tower above its less striking neighbours ;i 

 through these the water-vole skilfully forces his way, and 

 among them the silent dabchick successfully resists the 

 attacks of its numerous enemies, whilst on the confines of 

 the district at the Edge of Grayne, the beautiful tern carries 

 on those aerial gambols by which it has earned the name of 

 sea-swallow from the unscientific but observant natives. 



Here, too, the sedge-warbler is to be seen and heard, its 



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