WILES OF BIRDS. 
119 
ducement to our idle bat-fowling boys to bring baskets 
of poor toms’ heads to our church-warden’s door. 
The wiles and stratagems of every creature are de- 
serving of attention, because they are, for the most part, 
the impulse of the weak and feeble, instinctive efforts 
to preserve their own existence, or more generally to 
secure or defend that of their offspring. Few are able 
to effect these objects by bodily power ; but all crea- 
tures probably exert a faculty of some kind, to ward 
off injury from their young, though not observed by, or 
manifested to us. This poor little blue tom-tit, which has 
neither beak, claws, nor any portion of strength to de- 
fend itself from the weakest assailant, will nevertheless 
make trial by menace to scare the intruder from its 
nest. It builds almost universally in the hole of a wall, 
or a tree ; and its size enables it to creep through so 
small a crevice, that it is pretty well secured from all 
annoyances, but those of birdnesting boys ; and these 
little plunderers the sitting bird endeavors to scare 
away, by hissing and puffing in a very extraordinary 
manner from the bottom of the hole, as soon as a finger 
is introduced, and so perfectly unlike the usual voice 
j of a bird, that many a young intruder is deterred 
from prosecuting any farther search, lest he should rouse 
the vengeance of some lurking snake or adder. 
They who have seen much of birds, and attended to 
their actions, will in general be certain of the creature 
that flits past, by the manner of its flight ; or that utters 
its note unseen by the peculiarity of voice ; but the 
tribe of titmice (parus), especially in the spring of the 
year, emit such a variety of sounds, that they will oc 
casionally surprise and disappoint us. Hearing an un- 
usual voice, and creeping with caution to observe the 
stranger from which it proceeds, we perceive only our 
old acquaintance, the large tom-tit (parus major), search- 
ing for food amid the lichens on the bough of an apple- 
tree. This bird, and that little dark species the 46 coal,” 
or “colemouse” (parus ater), in particular, will often 
: acquire or compound a note, become delighted with it, 
I and repeat it incessantly while sporting about the cat- 
