WHEATEAR ON SOUTH DOWNS 29 



plausible enough, though it is far from the truth, 

 the fact being that our Saxon forefathers gave it a 

 name (as they did to the Redstart, i.e., Red-tail ; and 

 Wagtail, of which Wag-start is the older form) from 

 a very noticeable peculiarity, namely its white rump, 

 which is so conspicuous when the bird is in motion. 

 It is, in fact, a corrupted form of the older word 

 " wheatears " for "white-ears" (from the Anglo- 

 Saxon hvit and ears, the tail, or rump), which was 

 mistaken for a plural. That this is the true ex- 

 planation, as long ago pointed out by the present 

 writer {Field, April i, 1871), there can be no doubt. 



In the third letter of Smollett's Travels through 

 France and Italy (1766) we find the remark : — 



"There is . . . great plenty of the birds so 

 much admired at Tunbridge under the name of 

 ' Wheatears.' By the bye, this is a pleasant 

 corruption of the translation of their French name 

 Cul-blanc, taken from their colour, for they are 

 actually white towards the tail." 



Bishop Mant, also, in his British Months, 



writes : — 



" Fain would I see the Wheatear show 

 On the dark sward his rump of snow 

 Of spotless brightness." 



Thus we have excellent authority for this inter- 

 pretation, which is confirmed by the names "White- 

 rump " and " White-tail," which are still applied to 

 this bird in different parts of the country. 



The abundance of Wheatears at certain seasons 

 on the downs of Hampshire and Sussex was noticed 

 by Gilbert White in a letter to the Hon. Daines 



