156 WHIP-POOR-WILL. 



day. In rainy or very cloudy weather, it sleeps less, and is more on the 

 alert. Its eyes are then kept open for hours at a time, and it flies off as soon 

 as it discovers an enemy approaching, which it can do, at such times, at a 

 distance of twenty or thirty yards. It always appears with its body parallel 

 to the direction of the branch or trunk on which it sits, and, I believe, never 

 alights across a branch or a fence-rail. 



No sooner has the sun disappeared beneath the horizon, than this bird 

 bestirs itself, and sets out in pursuit of insects. It passes low over the bushes, 

 moves to the right or left, alights on the ground to secure its prey, passes 

 repeatedly and in different directions over the same field, skims along the 

 skirts of the woods, and settles occasionally on the tops of the fence-stakes 

 or on stumps of trees, from whence it sallies, like a Fly-catcher, after insects, 

 and, on seizing them, returns to the same spot. When thus situated, it 

 frequently alights on the ground, to pick up a beetle. Like the Chuck- 

 will's-widow, it also balances itself in the air, in front of the trunks of trees, 

 or against the sides of banks, to discover ants, and other small insects that 

 may be lurking there. Its flight is so light and noiseless, that whilst it is 

 passing within a few feet of a person, the motion of its wings is not heard 

 by him, and merely produces a gentle undulation in the air. During all this 

 time, it utters a low murmuring sound, by which alone it can be discovered 

 in the dark, when passing within a few yards of one, and which I have often 

 heard when walking or riding throuo;h the barrens at night. 



Immediately after the arrival of these birds, their notes are heard in the 

 dusk and through the evening, in every part of the thickets, and along the 

 skirts of the woods. They are clear and loud, and to me are more interesting 

 than those of the Nightingale. This taste I have probably acquired, by 

 listening to the Whip-poor-will in parts where Nature exhibited all her lone 

 grandeur, and where no discordant din interrupted the repose of all around. 

 Only think, kind reader, how grateful to me must have been the cheering 

 voice of this my only companion, when, fatigued and hungry, after a day of 

 unremitted toil, I have planted my camp in the wilderness, as the darkness 

 of night put a stop to my labours! I have often listened to the Nightingale, 

 but never under such circumstances, and therefore its sweetest notes have 

 never awakened the same feeling;. 



The Whip-poor-will continues its lively song for several hours after sunset, 

 and then remains silent until the first dawn of day, when its notes echo 

 through every vale, and along the declivities of the mountains, until the 

 beams of the rising sun scatter the darkness that overhung the face of nature. 

 Hundreds are often heard at the same time in different parts of the woods, 

 each trying to out-do the others; and when you are told that the notes of 

 this bird may be heard at the distance of several hundred yards, you may 



