142 Wild Life in a Southern County 



search of food, but alight on the trees as if to view their 

 property. They are strong on the wing, and fly direct to 

 their object : there is something decided, courageous, and, 

 as one might say, manly in their character. 



The bark of some of the apple-trees peels of itself — that 

 is, the thin outer skin — and insects creep under these brown 

 scales curled at the edges. If you sit down on the elm 

 butt placed here as a seat and watch quietly, before long 

 the little tree-climber will come. He flies to the trunk of 

 the apple tree (other birds fly to the branches), and then 

 proceeds to ascend it, going round it as he rises in a spiral. 

 His claws cling tenaciously to the bark, his tail touches the 

 tree, and seems to act as a support — like what I think the 

 carpenters call a ' knee ' — and his head is thrown back so as 

 to enable him to spy into every cranny he passes. After a 

 few turns round the trunk he is off to another tree, to resume 

 the same restless spiral ascent there ; and in a minute or so 

 off again to a third ; for he never apparently examines one 

 half of the trunk, though, probably, his eyes, accustomed 

 to the work, see farther than we may imagine. The orchard 

 is never long without a tree-climber : it seems a favourite 

 resort of these birds. They have a habit of rushing quickly 

 a little way up ; then pausing, and again creeping swiftly 

 another foot, or so, and are so absorbed in their pursuit that 

 they are easily approached and observed. 



Who can stay indoors when the goldfinches are busy 

 among the bloom on the apple trees ? A flood of sunshine 

 falling through a roof of rosy pink and delicate white 

 blossom overhead ; underneath, grass deeply green with the 

 vigour of spring, dotted with yellow buttercups, and strewn 

 with bloom shaken by the wind from the trees : is not this 

 better than formal-patterned carpets, and the white flat 

 ceilings that weigh so heavily upon the sight ? Listen how 



