388 DIVISION I. VEKTEBRAL ANIMALS. — CLASS II. AVES. 



noted to return to the same bo.\ for several successive years. Even the soli- 

 tary Indian seems to have a particular respect for this bird. Tiie Choctavvs 

 and C'liickasaws cut oil' all the top branches from a sapling near their cabins, 

 leaving the prongs a foot oi- two in Icngtii, on each of wiiicli they lian<T a 

 gourd or calabash, properly hollowed out, for their convenience. On the 

 banks of tlie Mississippi the negroes stick up long canes, with tiie same 

 species of apartment fixed to their tops, in which the martins regularly 

 breed. AVherever I have travelled in this country, I have seen with pleas- 

 ure the hospitality of the inhabitants to this favorite bird. 



''About the middle or liOih of April, the martins first begin to prepare 

 their nest. The last of tliese w liicli 1 examined was formed of dry leaves 

 of the weejiing willow, slender straws, hay, and feathers in considerable 

 quantity. The eggs were four, very small for the size of the bird, and pure 

 white, without any spots. The first brood appears in May, the second late 

 in July. During the period in which the female is laying, and before she 

 connnenccs incubation, tiiey arc both from home the greater part of the day. 

 "When the female is sitting, she is frequently visited by the male, who also 

 occupies her jilacc while she takes a short recreation abroad. lie also often 

 passes a quarter of an hour in the apartment beside her, and has become 

 quite domesticated since her confinement. lie sits on the outside, dressing 

 and arranging his plumage, occasionally passing to the door of the apart- 

 ment, as if to inquire how she does. His notes, at this time, seem to have 

 assumed a peculiar softness ; and his gratulations are expressive of much 

 tenderness. Conjugal fidelity, even where tiiere is a number togetiier, 

 seems to Ijc faitlifully preserved by these birds. On the '2')th of May, a 

 male and female martin took possession of a box in ^Ir. Bartram's garden. 

 A day or two after a second female made her appearance, and staid for 

 several days ; but from the cold reception she met with, being frequently 

 beat off by the male, she finally abandoned the place, and set off, no doubt, 

 to seek for a more sociable companion. 



"The pur[)le martin, like his half-cousin the kingbird, is the terror of 

 crows, hawks, and eagles. These he attacks whenever they make their 

 appearance, and with such vigor and rapidity that they instantly have re- 

 course to fliglit. So well known is this to the lesser birds, and to the 

 domestic poultry, that, as soon as they hear the martin's voice engaged in 

 fight, all is alarm and consternation. To observe witli what spirit and 

 audacity this bird dives and sweeps iqion and around the hawk or the eagle 

 is astonishing. He also bestows an occasional Ijnstinading on the kingljird 

 when lie finds him too near his premises ; thi:)Ugh he will, at any time, 

 instantly coiiperate with him in attacking the common enemy. 



" The martin diti'ers from all the rest of our swallows in the particular 



