BIRDS OF LONDON'. 77 



strongly attached to all animals whatsoever, and of course 

 used them kindly. 



The Swallow, Swift, and Martin, seem to have almost 

 deserted London, although they are occasionally, though 

 not very plentifully, to be seen in the suburbs. Two reasons 

 may be assigned for this relative to the Swallow: flies are 

 not there so plentiful as in the open country ; and most of 

 the chimneys have conical or other contracted tops to them, 

 which, if they do not preclude, are certainly no temptation 

 to their building in such places; the top of a chimney 

 being, as is well known, its favourite site for its nest. The 

 Martin is also scarce in London. But, during the summer 

 of 1825, I observed a Martin's nest against a blind window 

 in Goswell Street Road, on the construction of which the 

 Martins were extremely busy in the early part of the 

 month of August. I have since seen many Martins, 

 (August, 1826,) busily engaged in skimming over a pool in 

 the Fields, to the south of Islington : most of these 

 were, I conjecture, young birds, as they were brown, 

 not black ; but they had the ivhite on the rump, which 

 is characteristic of the species. A few days afterwards 

 I observed several Martins' nests in a blind window on 

 Islington green. And, Sept. 20, of the same year, I eaw 

 from the window of my present residence, in Dalby Terrace, 

 City Road, many similar birds actively on the wing. 



The Redbreast has been, I am told, occasionally seen in 

 the neighbourhood of Fleet-market and Ludgate-hill. I 

 saw it myself before the window of my present residence, 

 Dalby Terrace, in November, 1825; and in November, 

 1826, the Wren, (Sylvia Troglodytes,) was seen on the 

 shrubs in the garden before the house at Dalby Terrace; it 

 was very lively and active, and uttered its peculiar chit, 

 chit. 



