B I R 



any portion of their prey, except what the matter was 

 plsafod to return to thcr.i for ciicouragcineiil and food. T'ne 

 boat ufed by thtfe lithermen is of a remirkable light make ; 

 and is often carried to t!ie lake, together witli the fiilv.ng 

 bird5, by the men who are there to be fiipported by it. 

 Tlie bird trained for this pnrpcjfe is a fp.-cics of pelican, 

 dtfcribed by Dr. Shaw, from a fpecimen fubmittcd to his 

 infpeclion, as " the brown pelican or corvorant, with white 

 throat, the body whitifli beneath and fpotted with brown, 

 the tail rounded, the iiides blue, the b:U yellow." Staun- 

 toii'5 cmbaffy to Chi:;a, vol, ii. p. 388. 



BiRD-/''«i", avifcid fubftance, prepand various ways, and 

 from various materials, for the catching of birds, mice, and 

 other vermin. 



The bird-lime ordinarily ufcd among us, is made from 

 hoUy-bark, boiled ten or twelve hours. When the green 

 coat is feparated from the other, it is covered up a fortnight 

 in a moill place, then pounded into a rough palle, fo that 

 no fibres of the wood be left, and ivadicd in a running ftream 

 till no motes appear, put up to ferment four or five days, 

 Ikimmed as often as any thing arifcs, and laid up for ufe. 

 To ufe it, a third part of nut oil, or any thin greafe, is 

 incorporated with it over the fire. 



The mifletoe affords a juice, even fuperior to tiiat of the 

 holly ; and if a young (hoot of the common elder be cut 

 through, a ilringy juice will driw out in threads, and follow 

 the knife like bird-lime, or the juice of holly. It ftems 

 in this tree to be lodged, not in the bark, but in certain 

 veins juft within the circle of the wood. The roots of all 

 the hyacinths alfo afford a tough and Ilringy juice of the 

 fame kind, and fo do the afpliodel, the narciflus, and the 

 black bryony root, in a furprifing quantity. 



The bird-lime brought from D.iniafcus is fuppofed to be 

 made of fcbeltins, tiuir kernels being frequently found in it : 

 but this does not endure either froll or wet. That brought 

 from Spain is of an ill fmell : that of the Italians is made of 

 the berries of mifletoe, heated, mixed with oil, as before ; 

 to make it bear the water, they add turpentine. It is faid, 

 the bark of our viburnum or wayfaring flirub makes bird-lime 

 as good as the bell. 



Bird-lime is a fnbllancc very apt to be congealed, and 

 rendered unferviccable by frolls ; to prevent which it is pro- 

 per, at the cold fcafons, to incorporate fome petroleum with 

 it, before it is ufed. The method of iifing it is to make it 

 hot, and dip the ends of a bundle of rods in it ; then to 

 turn them about and play them together, till a fufficient 

 quantity is extended over them all. If llrinirs or cords are 

 to be limed, they are to be dipped into tho bird-lime, while 

 vei-y hot. The cords may be put L/i col^'. but the rods 

 fhould be warmed a little. Straws are ti ye limed while 

 the matter is very hot : a large bundle of them fhould be 

 put in at one , and worked about in it, till ihey are well 

 befmeared. When thus prepared, they fhould be prefei-vcd 

 in a leather bag, till they are ufed. When the twigs or 

 cords are to be put in places fnbjecl to wet, the common 

 bird-limc is apt to have its force loon taken away : it is ne- 

 ceffary, therefore, to have rtcourfe to a particular fort, 

 which, from its property of bearing water unhurt, is called 

 viater-lird-liine ; and is prepared thus : Take a pound of 

 ftrong and good bird-lime, wafli it thoroughly in fpring- 

 water, till the hardnefs is entirely removed ; and then beat 

 it well, tliat the water miy be feparated from it ; then dry 

 it well, and put it into an earthen pot ; add to it as much 

 capon's greale as will make it run. Then add two fpoon- 

 fuU cif llroiig vinegar, one fpoonful of oil, and a fmall 

 quantity of Venice turpentine. Let the whole boil for fome 

 minutes over a moderate fire, ftirring it all the time. Then 



B I R 



take it off; and when there is occafion to ufe it, warm it, 

 and cover the flicks well with it. This is the beft fort of 

 biidlime for fnines, and other birds that love wet pla^res. 



In order to ufe the common bird lime, cut down the main 

 branch or boogh of any bufhy tree, whofc twigs are thick, 

 ftr.iight, long, and fniootli, and have neither knots nor 

 prickles. The willow and the birch trees will bcfl anfwer 

 the purpofe. Trim off all the fupcrfiioiis {hoots ; and when 

 the twigs are made neat and clean, let them be well covered 

 with the blrd-iime, willim four inches of the bottom, but 

 without toui-hin J the main bough from which they proceed. 

 Some art is necefTary to lay on the bird-lime properly ; fo 

 that it be neither too thick, which would give the birds a 

 di'.laile, and prevent their approaching it ; nor too thin, 

 fo that it would not hold them when they touch it. Hav- 

 ing prepared the bulh, let it be placed in fome dead hedge, 

 or among growing buflies, near the outflviits of a town, a 

 farmer's yard, or fuch litiution, if it be in the fpring, when 

 the birds rcfort to fuch places. If it be ufed in fummer, let 

 the bufh be fixed in the midll of a quick fet hedge, or in 

 groves, bv.lhes, or white thorn trees, near fields of corn, 

 hemp, flax, and the like ; and in the winter, near flacks of 

 corn, hovels, barn?, and I'uch places. When the linie-bufh 

 is thus planted, the fportfman m.uft fland as near it as he 

 can, without being difcovered, and contrive to make fuch 

 forts of notes as tlie birds do when they call to one another. 

 Bird-calls may be ufed for this purpofe ; but the moft ex- 

 pert method is to imitate with the voice the notes of call of 

 the feveral birds. Wiien a fingle bird is thus enticed to the 

 bufh, and faflened to it, the fportfman is to wait till, by 

 flruggling to releafe itfelf, it becomes more fecurely at- 

 taclied, and by its fluttering it has brought other birds to 

 the bulh ; fo that in this way feveral may be caught at once. 

 The time of the day for this fport is from iun-rife to 10 

 o'clock, and from i till fun-fet. Another mode of bringing 

 the birds together is by a ftale ; fuch as, a bat faflened in 

 fight at a dillance, or an owl, which is followed by feveral 

 fmall birds, which, alighting on the lime-bufli, will be en- 

 tangled. The Ikin of an owl fluffed, or even the image of 

 an owl carved on wood and painted in its natural colours, 

 has been fuccefsfuUy ufed for the fame purpofe. 



M. Barrcra, phyfician at Perpignan, difcovered an animal 

 bird-lime, prepared of the bolls of a fort of caterpillars, 

 by putrefying them in the earth, ileeping them in water, 

 and then pounding and mixing them with olive oil. Fontenel. 

 Hill. Acad. Scienc. J 720, p. 12. 



Birds, mi\;ral!on of, See Migration. 

 Birds' ne/h, in Cooiery, the neils of a fmnll Indian 

 fw?.llow, very delicately tailed, and frequently mixed among 

 foups. Mr. Marfden in his account of Sumatra, fir George 

 Staunton in his embafTy to China, and many other travellers 

 of more ancient and modern date, have recited feveral par- 

 ticulars concerning thefe edible nefls. But we have a more 

 minute and ample defcription of them, as well as of the 

 birds by which they are formed, in the ihirti volume of the 

 " Tranfattions of the Batavian Society in the ifland of 

 Java, for promoting the arts and fciences." The birds that 

 conflruft them are of a blackifh grey colour, fomewhat in- 

 clining to green, but gradually changing on the back to the 

 tail, and on the belly, into a moufc colour. The length of 

 the bird, from the bill to the tail, is about 4! inches ; and 

 its height, from the bill to the extremity of the middle toe, 

 3 J inches. The diflance from the tip of one wing to that 

 of the other, when extended, is IC5 inches ; the largefl 

 feathers of the wings are about 4 inches in length. The 

 head is flat ; but, on account of the thicknefs of the feathers, 

 appears roiyid, and large in proportion to the fizc cf the 

 6 reft 



