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neft is wa fried away — “ generis lapjl farcire ruinas 
Thus is inftind a mod; wonderful, but unequal fa- 
culty ; in fome inftances fo much above reafon, in 
other refpeds fo far below it ! 
Martins love to frequent towns, efpecially if there 
are great lakes and rivers at hand : nay, they even 
a freed the dole air of London. And I have not 
only feen them nefring in the Borough, but even in 
the Strand and Fleet-ftreet ; but then it was obvious, 
from the dinginefs of their afped, that their fea- 
thers partook of the tilth of that footy atmofphere. 
Martins are by far the lead; agile of the four fpe- 
cies. Their wings and tails are fhort \ and there- 
fore they are not capable of fuch furprizing Abort 
turns, and quick and glancing evolutions, as the 
fwallow. Accordingly they make ufe of a placid 
eafy motion, leldom mounting to any great height, and 
never fweeping long together over the furface of the 
ground or water. They do not wander far for food, 
O J J 
but afred fheltered diftrids over fome lake, or under 
fome hanging wood, or in fome hollow vale, efpe- 
cially in windy weather. They breed the lateft of 
all the fwallow genus : in 1772 they had neftlings 
on to Odober 21ft, and are never without un- 
fledged young, as late as Michaelmas. As the fum- 
mer declines, the congregating flocks increafe in 
number daily, by the conftant accefiion of the fe- 
cond broods j till at laid they fwarra, in myriads upon 
myriads, round the villages on the Thames, darken- 
ing the face of the fky, whilft they frequent the eyetts 
of that river, where they They retire, for 
the bulk of them, in vaid flocks together about the 
beginning 
