B ook If. O^WjlT HO L Oqr. 231 



fhouldnot hear and fee it, could eafily be perfwaded, could poffibly proceed from fo 

 frriall a body. Marggravius affirms, that they do not fing, but cry, Screp,fcrep,fcrep i 

 with one tone, and that almoft continually, like Sparrows. 



Marggravim defcribes nine forts of this bird in the fifth Book of his Natural Hijiory 

 of Brafd, Chap.4. 



1. The length of the whole body of tKisfirfi kind from the beginning of the Head 

 ( where the Bill is inferted ) to the rife of the Tail is two inches. The Head, toge- 

 ther with the feathers, is or the bignefs of a mean-iized fweet Cherry : The Neck is 

 three quarters of an inch long 5 the body an inch and a quarter. The body, toge- 

 ther with the feathers, is fcarce equal in bignefs to a Spanijh Olive . It hath a (lender, 

 and very {harp, round, even, (height Bill, yet toward the end a little inclining 

 downward, an inch and half long. The colour of this Bill is black, excepting the 

 lower Chap toward the rife, where it is reddifh. It hath a double or cloven 

 Tongue, very fmall or f lender, like a fine filken thread, white, long, lo that it cart 

 thruft it forth far beyond the Bill : Small black Eyes 5 very fmall and fhort Legs and 

 Feet, of a black colour : Four Toes in each foot, three (tending forward, and one 

 backward, armed with long femilunar, very (harp, black Claws. It hath a (freight 

 Tail, an inch long, confifting for themoft part of four feathers. The Wings, which 

 are of two inches length, reach almoft to the end of the Tail. Nature hath (hewn a 

 lingular Art in the compofure of the Wing-feathers. From the rife of the Wings for 

 about three quarters of an inch there is a double row of feathers one longer than the 

 other, and the feathers are put one upon another, as it were fhort wings upon long 

 ones. Then after thefe feathers come the Wing-feathers ( which are about ten ) the 

 fubfequent interiour being ftill longer than the precedent exteriour, fo that the in- 

 moft, determining the end of the Wing, is the longeft of all. Thefe Wings being 

 fpread it can fly a long time, and reft in the fame place, as it were hanging in the air. 

 As it flies it makes anoife like a Bruchmpr more truly, like a linnen Spinning-wheel, 

 Hur, far, hur. The feathers of the Wings fpread appear very thin and tranfparent. 

 The colour of the feathers of the whole Head, the upper fide of the Neck, the fides* 

 the whole Back, and the beginning of the Wings is wonderfully refplenderit, fo that 

 it cannot be well reprefented by any Painter, for with a green, fuch as is feeninthe 

 Necks of Peacocks and Mallards, a golden, flame-colour, and yellow are ftrangely 

 mixt, fb that being expofed to the Sun-beams itfhines admirably. In the Throat, the 

 lower fide of the Neck, the breaft, and all the lower Belly, and the upper Legs are 

 white feathers, wherewith underneath the Neck are feathers of an excellent colour, 

 difperfedly intermixt. In the Belly beneath the white feathers lie black ones. The 

 beginning of the Wings was, aslfaid, of an admirable rare colour, all the reft of 

 the Wing brown, and of a fhining fpadiceous. The Tail confifts of feathers of a blue 

 colour, likepolifned Steel. They make their Nefts in the boughs of trees, of the 

 bignefs of a Holland Schilling. They lay very white Eggs, two for the moft part, of 

 an oval figure, not bigger than aPeafe. 



2. The fecond fort is more beautiful than the fir ft, of the fame bignefs and figure. 

 Yet is its Bill fhorter, viz,. \ of an inch long, of the fame colour and figure with that 

 of the former. The Tongue is the fame, as alfb the Eyes, Legs, Feet, and figure of 

 the Wings and Tail. The colour of the feathers in the Head, upper fide of the Neck, 

 Back, Wings, and Tail like to that of the former : But in the Throat or underfidc of 

 the Neck, the whole Breaft, and lower Belly, to the very end of the body of fb ele- 

 gant and fhining a green, with a golden colour, enterchangeably mixt, that they gli- 

 fter wonderfully. Near the Vent is a (pot of a good bignefs, in reipecf of the bulk 

 of the bird, confifting of pure white feathers. 



3. The third is lefler than all the reft. From the beginning of the Head, or infer- 

 tion of the Bill to the rife of the Tail two inches and anhalf long : The Neck is almoft 

 one inch long : The Head not great : The Body an inch and half long. The Bill a 

 little more than an inch long, black, round, (harp, and almoft ftreight. The Legs 

 and Feet like thofe of the reft. The feathers alfb of the Body and Wings are alike 

 difpofed, but differently coloured. It hath a Tail longer than any of the reft, fome- 

 what more than three inches, confifting of feathers, of which that which is nearer to 

 its rife is fhorter, the fecond always longer : The Tail alfo is forked, and the bird 

 flying fpreads it into two large horns, fo that the tips of the horns are an inch and half 

 diftant one from the other. The whole Head and Neck of this bird is of a fhining 

 filken black colour, inclining to, or interchanging with blue, as in the Necks of Mai- 

 lards. The whole Back and Breaft are green, fhining enterchangeably with golden 



and 



