THE MOTH S HOUR 177 



certain species of moth that desire to find themselves 

 some forty feet nearer the stars than such commoner sorts 

 as are attracted, say, to those humble posts of cork 

 that are sugared by the professional moth-ers in the 

 open rides which divide the sedge-groves in Wicken Fen. 

 In the churches and the garage the chief victim is the 

 underwing. The light bands of yellow and orange 

 announce the identity and prevail over all other markings. 

 The movements of the bats are timed, doubtless, to agree 

 with the crowded hours of their favourite moths. It 

 seems not improbable that midnight (like midday in 

 respect of birds) is not a very active hour, that creatures 

 of the night are really creatures of the twilight. It may 

 be so (as I have sometimes thought) with mice and 

 badgers and others, and such avoiders of daylight, as well 

 as with the moths and bats. Conjecture is perhaps out 

 of place now that our research students, especially at 

 Rothamsted, are set on this particular trail, and will 

 doubtless, after their manner, soon substitute fact for 

 theory. 



5- 



In the very old and very lovely park of a country house 

 (it was built in the days of Henry VIII) two players of a 

 foolish game were taking a short-cut home over the 

 rough grass, when they were stopped by a sight they will 

 not soon forget. In a tussock of grass almost at their 

 feet sat two partridges side by side, the head of each 

 alongside the head of the other, the wings half spread 

 out ; and though they thus covered a wide space, it was 

 hardly large enough for the numerous family that the 

 pair were brooding. The babies poked their heads 

 through the feathers and looked out round the edge of 

 the wings like &quot; beeded bubbles winking at the brim.&quot; 



M T.V.E. 



