72 BRITISH BIRDS. 



effect knew also Sir James Emerson Tennent while listening to the " soft 

 melodious notes of the Pigeon of Ceylon " (^Chalcophaps indicus, Linn.) ; for 

 when " irritated by the perverseness of his native followers, the feeling almost 

 instantly subsided by hearing suddenly the loving tones of these beautiful 

 birds " (book on Ceylon, p. 174). 



To understand the delight in ornithology which animates many persons, 

 I quote the account of Wilson's end from ' Men who have risen,' p. 219 : — 

 " Wilson, the ornithologist, met his early death thus. Sitting one day con- 

 versing with a friend, a rare bird which he had long desired to have flew past 

 the window. Wilson seized his gun, and after an arduous pursuit, during 

 which he swam across a river, killed it. A severe cold, followed by an attack 

 of dysentery, came on and after ten days ended his mortal career, August 23, 

 1813." John Wolley had a like enthusiasm. 



To return to the Dartford Warbler. This species catches gnats in 

 summer ; in winter it remains at the same place, and, I think, sometimes digs 

 in the ground under the bushes. On April 6, 1859, 1 examined one with the 

 feathers worn off the mandibles. The spring plumage is much darker than 

 the autumn one. The hen is smaller and rather lighter in colour (vide ' The 

 Ibis,' vol. i. 1859, p. 329, where I have described this bird). 



The winter of 1874-75 was very destructive to the Dartford Warbler; 

 and, in consequence, the bird is scarce on the Brighton downs. I fancy this 

 came about thus : the snow fell heavily from the south-east and at night 

 suddenly changed to the north ; thus the little birds were shut in a trap at 

 their roosting-places under the furze. A sudden chop of this sort kills the 

 ditch-seeking birds also, by filling both sides. As the Dartford Warbler is 

 local, it will take several years to recover. There are not above half the usual 

 number of Stonechats this season. 



