MOOR-HENS IN HYDE PARK 163 



sight of many people going to and fro 4 Are there no 

 silent green retreats left where the conditions are 

 better suited to their shy and delicate natures t 

 Yet no sooner is the spring come again than the 

 birds are with us* Not always apparent to the eye, 

 but everywhere their irrepressible gladness betrays 

 their proximity; and all London is ringed round 

 with a mist of melody, which presses on us, ambitious 

 of winning its way even to the central heart of our 

 citadel, creeping in, mist-like, along gardens and 

 tree-planted roads, clinging to the greenery of parks 

 and squares, and floating above the dull noises of 

 the town as clouds fleecy and ethereal float above 

 the earth* 



Among our spring visitors there is one which is 

 neither aerial in habits nor a melodist, yet is emin- 

 ently attractive on account of its graceful form, 

 pretty plumage, and amusing manners ; nor must 

 it be omitted as a point in its favour that it is not 

 afraid to make itself very much at home with us in 

 London* 1 This is the little moor-hen, a bird possess- 

 ing some strange customs, for which those who are 

 curious about such matters may consult its numerous 

 biographies* Every spring a few individuals of this 

 species make their appearance in Hyde Park, and 



1 Note that when this was written in 1893 the moor-hen was 

 never known to winter in London ; his habits have changed in this 

 respect during the last two decades; he is now a permanent 

 resident. 

 L 



