Birds. 3141 



Whilst " Dick's " offspring are unfledged and unable to leave their 

 nest, she carries the bread and butter up to their dormitory. When 

 they can fly a little, she places them on the string-course of the house 

 in Tavistock-place, and carries their food to them there. So soon as 

 they are strong enough on the wing to compass the distance between 

 the chimney-stack and the ground, she then conducts her young ones 

 to within " a respectful distance " of the coffee-shop, where she and 

 Patrick together help them to their morning meal. Once upon a 

 time she brought down three young ones, one of which was so weak 

 that it could not rise again, and Patrick, in pure compassion, took the 

 little sparrow away to his home. Unfortunately, however, it died in 

 the course of the day. A complete change now took place in the 

 conduct and demeanour of "Dick" towards old Patrick. She alighted 

 from her perch in the plane tree, but not, as before, under the domes- 

 tic roof of the coffee-shop. She alighted in the street, and kept at 

 some yards aloof from Patrick. In vain he called, " Dickey, Dickey, 

 Dick, Dick," to come to him. In vain he coaxed and cozened ; in 

 vain he threw lumps of soft crumb, buttered on both sides ; " Dick" 

 spurned all entreaty, and all offers of reconciliation. The former 

 sweet chirp of affectionate confidence was changed to a harsh note of 

 remonstrance and reproach. 



" You need not ask Jean Jacques Rousseau, 

 Whether birds confabulate or no." 



Patrick knew and felt the force of everything that poor " Dick " 

 uttered, and he quite despaired, as he told me, of ever regaining the 

 lost esteem of his bird. But time is said to be a cure for the heaviest 

 griefs ; and, by and bye, " Dick " produced another brood of young 

 ones. The new joys of a mother caused her to forget her former loss, 

 and to forgive the kidnapping delinquency of old Patrick. The alien- 

 ated friends now again embraced one another, and any Londoner who 

 will get up betimes in a morning, may, by repairing to Tavistock- 

 square, see what a happy breakfast party is there composed of old 

 Patrick Corbett and the Cockney House Sparrow ! 



I am, Dear Gough, 



Yours faithfully, 



Cornelius Nicholson. 

 55, Bernard-street, Russell-square, 

 London, April 3, 1850. 



