ANNIVERSARY ADDRESS 19 



twee.^' The yellow hammer never asks for more than 

 " a little hit o' bread and no cheese." The chaffinch 

 "fink fink's " a deal, and often reminds his mate that 

 she is " a wee-wee, wee-wee drucken sooie." 



The linnet speaks well out to his mate on the matter 

 of food, and she is ever ready in response : — 



He : Beetle-run, beetle-run ! 



She : Seek-it-oot ! Seek-it-oot I 



He : Caterpillar I Caterpillar I 



She : Pick it up ! Pick it up ! 



He : Hairyoohit ! Hairyoohit ! 



She : To me w'it, to me w'it ! • 



Jenny Wren's song :- 



merry, grab-a-cherry, 

 Peck a hairy-fairy berry, 



Scurrie-urrie-it. 



Thomas Pringle of Roxburghshire and South African 

 fame, early in the century, wrote an amusing honey- 

 bird song, too long to be read at present. I give you a 

 verse or two of how the birds speak in South Africa : — ■ 



The Honey-bird sat on the yellow-wood tree, 



And aye he was singing Cherr-cherr-a, cu-coo-la ! 

 A-watching the hive of the blythe honey-bee, 



Cherr-a-cherr, Cherr-a-Cherr, cherr-a, cu-coo-la. 

 The bees they flew in, and the bees they flew out, 



Poom-a-boo, fioom-a-boo, boom-a-buzz-zoola ! 

 And they seemed to buzz round with a jerk and a flout, 



Boom-a-boo, foom-a-boo, boom-boom-a-foo-la. 

 Ha ! ha ! cried the woodpecker, here's a strong plea, 



Tic-a-tac, tic-a-tac, chop-at-a-hoola ! 

 I now see the justice of robbing the bee, 



Tic-a-tac, tic-a-tac, snap-at-a-snoola. 



