6o The House-martin, or Window-swallow.. 



sad to say, on the morning of the i8th of July, again, during a 

 great storm of wind and rain, the upper wall fell, carrying with 

 it one of the eggs. The old birds again fluttered about, 

 uttering the most plaintive cries, and early the next morning 

 began to repair the damage, though it rained heavily all day. 

 Part of the lining hanging over the side was incorporated with 

 the new layers of mud. The urgency of the case was such, 

 that they were obliged to work during the bad weather. 

 Throughout the day one bird sat on the nest, whilst the other 

 laboured assiduously. Kindly was he welcomed by his mate, 

 who sometimes, during his absence, nibbled and retouched the 

 materials which he had just deposited. In a few days it was 

 finished, the weather became settled, the young were hatched, 

 and all went well with them. 



" Sometimes when the nests are destroyed, the birds, instead 

 of attempting to repair the damage, forsake the neighbourhood, 

 as if wholly disheartened. Nothing can be more distressing to 

 them than to lose their young. In the storm of which I have 

 just spoken, another martin's nest was washed down with 

 unfledged young in it. These were placed on some cotton wool 

 in a basket, covered with a sheet of brown paper, in an open 

 window, facing the wall. During that day and the following, 

 the parents took no notice of them, and their kind human 

 protector fed them with house-flies. That. evening he tried an 

 experiment. He gently placed the young ones in a nest of that 

 same window, where were other young. It was then about 

 eight o'clock in the evening ; the rain was falling heavily, and no 

 sound was heard save the cheep, cheep., of the young birds, and the 

 dashingofthe storm againstthe window-glass. A minute elapsed. 



