132 Bi7'ds of the Farmhouse. 



CHAPTER VIII. 



BIRDS OF THE FARMHOUSE SPEECH OF A STARLING 



POPULATION OF A GABLE THE KING OF THE HEDGE 



THE thrushes' ANVIL. 



Wick farmhonse^is thatched, and has many gables 

 hidden with ivy. In these broad expanses of thatch, 

 on the great ' chimney-tuns ' as countr}^ folk call 

 them, and in the ivy, tribes of birds have taken up 

 their residence. The thatch has grown so thick in 

 the course of years b}' the addition of fresh coats 

 that it projects far from the walls and forms wide, 

 far-reaching eaves. Over the cellar the roof de- 

 scends within three or four feet of the ground, the 

 wall being low, and the eaves here cast a shadow 

 with the sun nearly at the zenith. 



On the higher parts of the roof, especially" round 

 the chimne3's, the starlings have made their holes, 

 and in the earl}^ summer are continuously flying to 

 and fro their 3'^oung, who never cease crying for food 

 the whole day through. A tall ash tree stands in the 

 hedgerow, about fifty yards from the house. On 

 this tree, which is detached, so that they can see 

 all round, the starhngs perch before they come to 

 the roof, as if to reconnoitre and to exchange pour- 

 parlers with their friends already on the roof ; for if 

 ever birds talk together starlings do. Many birds 



