122 THE NATURAL HISTORY 



advance this obvious remark, because my brother has 

 always found that some of his birds, and particularly the 

 swallow kind, are very sparing of their pains in crossing 

 the Mediterranean : for when arrived at Gibraltar, they 

 do not 



" Rang'd in figure wedge their way, 



— And set forth 



Their airy caravan high over seas 



Flying, and over lands with mutual wing 



Easing their flight : " Milton. 



but scout and hurry along in little detached parties of six 

 or seven in a company ; and sweeping low, just over the 

 surface of the land and water, direct their course to the 

 opposite continent at the narrowest passage they can find. 

 They usually slope across the bay to the south-west, and 

 so pass over opposite to Tangier, which, it seems, is the 

 narrowest space. 



In former letters we have considered whether it was 

 probable that woodcocks in moon-shiny nights cross the 

 German ocean from Scandinavia. As a proof that birds 

 of less speed may pass that sea, considerable as it is, I shall 

 relate the following incident, which, though mentioned to 

 have happened so many years ago, was strictly matter of 

 fact : — As some people were shooting in the parish of 

 Trotton, in the county of Sussex, they killed a duck in 

 that dreadful winter 1708-9, with a silver collar about its 

 neck,^ on which were engraven the arms of the king 

 of Denmark. This anecdote the rector of Trotton at that 

 time has often told to a near relation of mine ; and, to 

 the best of my remembrance, the collar was in the posses- 

 sion of the rector. 



At present I do not know any body near the sea-side 

 that will take the trouble to remark at what time of the 

 moon woodcocks first come : if I lived near the sea myselt 

 I would soon teU you more of the matter. One thing I 

 used to observe when I was a sportsman, that there were 

 times in which woodcocks were so sluggish and sleepy 

 that they would drop again when flushed just before the 

 1 I have r jad a like anecdote of n swan. 



