208 Pictures of Bird Life.


of a flight of Golden Plover, a little formal. No 17, an old male

Grouse looking as if he sighted beaters and was relieving his

feelings by grumbling at the intrusion. No. 18, " Marsh Harrier —

Hickliug Broad." Would that we might see Marsh Harriers on

Hickling or any other Broad for that matter, or anywhere else in

Britain, but that treat is for very few of us. This again is a

painting of a particular place, and the landscape part is more

pleasing, to me at any rate, than any other study in the series.

The Harrier is shown beating over the reed-grown surface with

its watchful eyes looking for any luckless Snipe that might be

feeding or vainly trying to conceal itself. No. 19, another large

Falcon subject, surpassing the Peregrine in excellence. The

Peewits, No. 20, should be looked at carefully, if only at the largest

bird, to see how carefully the feathers are painted. Few people

would, I think, care for the cock Partridge calling, (No. 21) but

we doubt not that Mr. I,odge has seen the bird like that. No.

24, of Ptarmigan crouching from a Falcon, shows the remarkable

gift of concealment these birds have. The Kites, No. 25, the

principal bird is fine, but the others look over-coloured for the

distance. The Raven (No. 26) might have had a little more blue

on his sable plumage. No. 27 is, we believe, a study of Iceland

Falcons that has been reproduced in a popular magazine. The

two Pheasant subjects (Nos. 28 and 34) are each rather stiff in

pose and lack the grace a Pheasant often has. No. 29 is a very

original view of a Greenland Falcon flying. No. 30 is of a

Buzzard just alighting and is an unconventional study. The

next is a painting of Red Deer, the only Mammalian subject in

the room, and is about the sunniest subject there. Of three

studies of Golden Eagles, two are soaring and are as good as the

Falcons, but the one perching — an immature bird — is rather hard

and a little dull in colouring. A second study of an adult Pere-

grine (No. 37) like the first (No. 23) is rather heavy in its spotting

and colouring. The Blackcock subject, like some of the Grouse

shown flying look rather stiff, as if " set," perhaps through

detail being shown which can really only be seen in a bird that

is still.


The last fifteen subjects are of less importance than the

first ones and rather suffer by comparison. The Teal and Snipe



