58



Mrs. Gurrey — Birds in a Garden near London



in an enclosure under yews and an old walnut-tree. They called

the others, and there were evidently Owl-parties at night to judge by the

hooting and screeching and whistling that went on. I must close the

list of our birds by a mention of the little Hedge-sparrow, who comes

always in the wake of the other Sparrows, not with them, and the

contrast he forms to them is striking, the little refined, shy bird with

his delicate beak and pretty legs and jerking movements intent on

picking up the remains of the feast gobbled up by the greedy House-

sparrows with their strong beaks and assertive manners, as they pounce

on the best morsels and afterwards on each other in ferocious combat

and jealousy. The bonne bouche comes last, in the shape of the never-

failing Redbreast, most fascinating winter songster and friend of man,

so easily tamed ! “ and such a ferocious villain ! ” 1 hear someone


say apropos of the accusation that young Robins tear out their parents’

tongues. But in spite of all, I for one cannot give him up.


Some years ago a pair of Swallows came and built under a roof

adjoining our house, below one of the rafters. Swallows had often

visited the spot, but after flying in and out had always gone away

again. Now we hoped they had come to stay. When the wonderful

little nest was half-made 1 heard from a room, the window of which

looked out upon the roof, the cries of a bird in distress. So loud and

continuous were they that I hastened out to see what was the matter.

As soon as I appeared the male Swallow flew up to me and circled

round me several times, screaming evidently in great grief. There,

under the half-finished nest, stabbed all over by cruel beaks, lay his

little mate, dead, while a concourse of House-sparrows sat on an ilex-

tree near chattering. There was no doubt who were the culprits, for

I had repeatedly seen them chasing the Swallows, and some time

previously the wretched “ avian rats ” had effectually routed a colony

of Swallows from an ancient archway below part of the house, and had

torn their nests to pieces. Alas ! no Swallow lias since come to stay

with us again. The Swallows that used, in years gone by, to build

and rear their young under the same arch, came year after year, at the

same time, before the Sparrows were so numerous, and the young

birds used to sit in a row on the lattice window that opened outward

over the arch, where the parent birds' fed them, quite fearless of the



