THE SPARROW. 71 



Nor are cities a necessity for his existence ; in New 

 Zealand, where he is now the commonest bird, he 

 has pushed his way into the wilds, and thrives far 

 away from civihzation, having even learnt to burrow 

 nest-holes like a sand-martin in some cases. Neither 

 New Zealand nor Australia, however, regard him as 

 a desirable colonist, and in fact it is his long tale 

 of virtues and his strong and independent character 

 which make him so objectionable. His readiness 

 to be accommodated with food and lodging make 

 him an economic pest and an obtrusive co-tenant 

 of our roofs ; his courage degenerates constantly 

 into vulgar bullying, while such philoprogenitive- 

 ness as his would probably in course of time make 

 any, even the mildest mannered and least obtrusive, 

 bird into a nuisance. It is the fact that insect-eating 

 birds cannot, however prolific, increase beyond a 

 certain limit obviously imposed by their food, that 

 makes it reasonable to' recommend the continual 

 suppression of Philip to give them more scope. 



