THE Woop-LaRK. 181 
and it certainly does sing well into the ‘“gloaming,”’ which has led rustics at 
times to confound it with the Nightingale; but, by careless observers, it is 
much more generally confused with the Tree-Pipit. 
Although this bird sometimes soars quite as high as the Sky-Lark this is 
not its general habit; moreover it flies more in circles and descends to the 
earth in a wide spiral, instead of obliquely or by jerky drops. 
As a cage-bird, the Wood-Lark is a great favourite, and yet I have never 
possessed an adult specimen. On one occasion when driving through a country 
road in Kent, with woods on either side, a young bird was seen scampering 
and leaping to get out of our way. ‘The driver pulled up and succeeded in 
catching it for me; but although it soon fed itself and to repletion, it quickly 
got cramp and died. Later on, in June 1887 my son and I caught sight of 
a slightly older example of this species in a somewhat similar situation and 
exerted ourselves to catch it, but it made for a tall hawthorn hedge, up which 
it escaped with such rapidity, that before we could come up with it, the bird 
was out of our reach. About September, 1894, I was beautifully taken in by 
an unprincipled bird-catcher: he had told me of a lovely Wood-Lark which he 
had, and which he described as singing splendidly. One dark night he knocked 
at my front door and told me he had brought this bird, which I could have 
for three shillings. I put my hand through the opening at the top of the 
cage, and took the bird out; it had a short tail, but (even in the dark) looked 
somewhat uncanny; however he told me he was quite certain that it was a 
Wood-Lark, so I gave him the money: he hurried off so quickly that I doubted 
again; and, taking it indoors to the light, I discovered that the bird was a 
hen Sky-Lark whose tail had been pulled out and had half grown again. I 
could not help laughing, but I have never bought a bird from that man since. 
The egg figured on the plate is from Mr. A. B. Farn’s collection. 
Vou. 1. 26 
