268 MR. T. SOUTHWELL ON THE ST. HELEN’S SWAN-PIT. 
centre in which they are deposited, nor does his assiduity then 
cease, for in addition to guarding his mate when upon her nest, he 
is always ready to take her place should she desire to leave it for a 
time. An old male Swan never shows to greater advantage than 
when proudly sailing up and down keeping guard over his nest, 
with neck thrown back and wings arched, every feather on his 
body seeming to stand apart from its fellow and to bristle with 
excitement as he surges through the water to drive away the 
intruder. And this is not mere display ; there is plenty of 
evidence of the old male’s ferocity, even to his boldly boarding 
a boat and attacking its occupants. The onslaught of an old male 
Swan, although not so dreadful as it has often been depicted, is by 
no means devoid of danger, and some of the broadmen tell of 
serious inconvenience arising from the blows administered by the 
stump of the pinioned wing of an infuriated bird. The number of 
eggs laid by the Mute Swan varies considerably. It often happens 
that an adult bird is paired with a young mate, say of the second 
year : in this case the produce would be greater than that resulting 
from two young birds ; for should both birds be only two years of 
age, they will probably not produce more than three or four eggs 
the first year. They will, however, in each successive year become 
more and more productive, till the full complement of nine to 
twelve eggs are produced. Mr. Stevenson, the author of the 
‘Birds of Norfolk,’ in a paper on the Mute Swan as observed in 
that county, printed for private circulation, gives a table of the 
produce of a pair of Swans which bred on Surlinghatn Broad. In 
eight years they produced eighty-five eggs and reared eighty-two 
cygnets. The writer has known several instances in which the 
same bird has laid twelve eggs, and more than one in which she 
has hatched that number of cygnets. 
“ In due time — that is, in about five weeks — the eggs hatch into 
little balls of dusky down, which are conveyed to the water, and 
assiduously tended by their proud parents ; and what a beautiful 
sight is the snow-white mother, surrounded by or attending her 
dusky little ones, or perhaps, with arched wings, bearing them 
upon her back, their queer little heads peeping from beneath her 
sheltering plumage — fit emblem of peace. Then is heard the 
gentle crooning note of the female before referred to, whilst the 
proud father is sailing protectingly round in all his warlike pomp, 
