368 Al'PENDIX. VI. 



And here I must again repeat, that what I 

 describe is from a caged nightingale, because 

 those which we hear in the spring are so rank, 

 that they seldom sing any thing but short and 

 loud jerks, which consequently cannot be com- 

 pared to the notes of a caged bird, as the instru- 

 ment is overstrained. 



%I must also here observe, that my nightingale 

 was a very capital bird; for some of them are 

 so vastly inferior, that the bird-fanciers will not 

 keep them, branding them with the name of 

 Frenchmen. * 



"'^^^^^But it is not only in tone and variety that the 

 nightingale excells; the bird also sings (if I may 



I have made no mention of the bulfinch in this table, which 

 .is commonly considered as a singing bird ; because its wild note, 

 without instructions, is a most jarring and disagreeable noise. 

 . - I have likewise omitted f the redstart (which is called by the 



French Rossignol de Muraille), as I am not sufficiently acquaint- 

 ed with its song, though it is admired by manyj I should rather 

 conceive, however, with Zinanni, that there is no very extraor- 

 dinary merit in the notes. " "^ 

 The London bird-catchers also sell sometimes the yellow ham- 

 mer, twite and brambling X as singing birds ; but none of these 

 will come within my definition of what may be deemed so, 



* One should suppose from this, that the nightingale-catcher 

 had heard much of the French music ; which is possibly the case, 

 as some of them live in Spittal-Jields. 



f II culo ranzo i un ucello, (per quanto dicono) molto canoro, ma io tale 

 non lo stimo. Delle uovaddel nidi, p. 53. 

 X They call this bird a kpte. 



