496 NIGHTINGALE. Class II. 



air during the whole year: neither is it found 

 in Ireland. Sibbald places nightingales in his 

 list of Scotch birds ; but they certainly are un- 

 known in that part of Great Britain, probably 

 from the scarcity and the recent introduction of 

 hedges there; yet they visit Sweden, a much 

 more severe climate. With us they frequent 

 thick hedges, and low coppices, and generally 

 keep in the middle of the bush, so that they are 

 very rarely seen. They form their nest of oak 

 leaves, a few bents and reeds. The eggs are of 

 a deep brown. When the young first come 

 abroad, and are helpless, the old birds make a 

 plaintive and jarring noise with a sort of snap- 

 ping as if in menace, pursuing the passengers 

 along the hedge. 



They begin their song in the evening, and con- 

 tinue it the whole night. These, their vigils, 

 did not pass unnoticed by the antients : the 

 slumbers of these birds were proverbial ; and not 

 to rest as much as the nightingale, expressed a 

 very bad sleeper *. This was the favorite bird of 

 the British poet, who omits no opportunity of 

 introducing it, and almost constantly noting its 

 love of solitude and night. How finely does it 



* Mlian var. hist. 577- both in the text and note. It must 

 be remarked, that nightingales sing also in the day. 



