420 RAIL. 
arid, in his own and his yegroes’ opinion, 1t looked like nothing in this 
world but a real Sora changing into a frog! What farther confirms 
this grand discovery is the well-known circumstance of the frogs 
ceasing to hollow as soon as the Sora comes in the fall. 
This sagacious discoverer, however, like many others renowned in 
history, has found but few supporters, and, except his own negroes, 
has not, as far as I can learn, made a single convert. to his opinion. 
Matters being so circumstanced, and some explanation necessary, I 
shall endeavor to throw a little more light on the subject by a simple 
detail of facts, leaving the reader to form his own theory as he pleases. 
The Rail, or Sora, belongs to a genus of birds of which about thirty 
different species are enumerated by naturalists ; and those are dis- 
tributed over almost every region of the habitable parts of the earth. 
The general character of these is every where the same. They run 
swiftly, fly slowly, and usually with the legs hanging down; become 
extremely fat; are fond of concealment ; and, wherever it is practica- 
ble, prefer running to flying. Most of them are migratory, and abound, 
during the summer, in certain countries, the inhabitants of which have 
very rarely an opportunity of seeing them. Of this last the Land Rail 
of Britain is a striking example. This bird, which during the summer 
months may be heard in almost every grass and clover field in the 
kingdom, uttering its common note crek, crek, from sunset to a late 
hour in the night, is yet unknown by sight to more than nine-tenths 
of the inhabitants. “Its well-known cry,” says Bewick, “is first heard 
as soon as the grass becomes long enough to shelter it, and continues 
till the grass is cut; bnt the bird is seldom seen, for it constantly 
skulks among the thickest part of the herbage, and runs so nimbly 
through it, winding and doubling in every direction, that it is difficult 
to come near it; when hard pushed by the dog, it sometimes stops 
short, and squats down, by which means its too eager pursuer over- 
shoots the spot, and loses the trace. It seldom springs but when 
driven to extremity, and generally flies with its legs hanging down, 
but never to a great distance ; as soon as it alights, it runs off, and, 
before the fowler has reached the spot, the bird is at a considerable 
distance.”* The Water Crake, or Spotted Rail, of the same country, 
which in its plumage approaches nearer to our Rail, is another notable 
example of the same general habit of the genus. “Its common abode,” 
gays the same writer, “is in low, swampy grounds, in which are pools 
or streamlets overgrown with willows, reeds, and rushes, where it lurks 
and hides itself with great circumspection ; it is wild, solitary, and shy, 
and will swim, dive, or skulk under any cover, and sometimes suffer 
itself to be knocked on the head, rather than rise before the sportsman 
and his dog.” The Water Rail of the same country is equally noted 
for the like habits. In short, the whole genus possess this strong 
family character in a very remarkable degree. 7 
These three species are well known to migrate into Britain early in 
spring, and to leave it for the more southern parts of Europe in autumn. 
Yet they are rarely or never seen on their passage to or from the 
countries where they are regularly found at different seasons of the 
year; and this for the very same reasons that they are so rarely seen 
even in the places where they inhabit. 
a 
* Bewicx’s British Birds, vol. i. p. 308. 
