'73 TowNSEND on a Hybrid Sparrow. 



[April 



upon the Eagle's broad back, rose gayly over his head, repeating 

 the maneuver as often as the baffled "King" attempted to get 

 above him. Ever afterward the Eagle was properly respectful 

 in the presence of the mite of a Wren that had outwitted his 

 majesty. Many forms of this myth appear, and sometimes the 

 statements are given as facts. Thus it is hard to tell whether or 

 not DuPratz believes the story he tells in his " History" to ac- 

 count for the Kingship of Le Roitelet in Louisiana. In America 

 we do not regard the Wren with special kindness ; but in Great 

 Britain, it is scarcely ever spoken of without some gentle, loving 

 epithet; and the word "poor," "little," "tiny," or "dear" is con- 

 stantly joined to the prefix Jenny, Kitt}^, Titty (c/". anth Tit). 

 Jintie, or Chitty when naming it. 



In Titlark {Anthus hidoviciaizzis) we again have the prefix 

 "small." Lark is a condensation of two ancient woi'ds in Anglo 

 Saxon {Icew., "craft," and werca^ " a worker") which meant a 

 worker of guile ; and the etymologists tell us " the name points 

 to some superstition which regarded the bird as of ill omen." In 

 the Scotch form Lavrock or Laverock a near resemblance to the 

 old Icelandic Iceviriki (meaning the same as above) is to be seen. 

 As for Pipit or Pipit Lark., common terms, the word is derived 

 from the same root as the verb to peep (like a young bird's cry) 

 and hence a word describing its somewhat feeble chirp. In my 

 long list of local American names for this species occur the fol- 

 lowing : Titlark^ Prairie Titlark., Lark., Skylark (Dist. of 

 Col.), Loziisiafia Lark (and many other old book-names) ; 

 Proivn Larki, Red Lark ; Wagtail., America?i Pipits Alouette 

 Pipe., etc., etc. 



DESCRIPTION OF A HYBRID SPARROW {ZONO- 

 TRICHIA ALBLCOLLLS -\- yUNCO HLEMALIS). 



BY CHARLES H. TOWNSEND. 



On December 12, 1882, Mr. William L. Baily shot the bird 

 here described near Haverford College, Montgomer} Countv, 

 Pa. Mr. Baily suspected it to be a cross between the White- 

 throated Sparrow (yZ. albicollis) and the Snowbird {y. hiema- 



