H untuning- Birds. 
213 
same way, for even in the most windy districts they 
never appear to learn to guide themselves ; and I 
have often seen a butterfly endeavouring to reach 
an isolated flower blown from it a dozen times 
before it finally succeeded or gave up the contest. 
Birds when shaping their coursej unless young and 
inexperiencedj always make allowance for the force 
of the wind. Humming-birds often fly into open 
rooms, impelled apparently by a fearless curiosity, 
and may then be chased about until they drop ex- 
hausted or are beaten down and caught, and, as 
Gould says, if then taken into the hand, they 
almost immediately feed on any sweet, or pump up 
any liquid that may be offered to them, without 
betraying either fear or resentment at the previous 
treatment.” Wasps and bees taken in the same 
way endeavour to sting their captor, as most people 
know from experience, nor do they cease struggling 
violently to free themselves ; but the dragon-fly is 
like the humming-bird, and is no sooner caught 
after much ill-treatment, than it will greedily devour 
as many flies and mosquitoes as one likes to offer 
it. Only in beings very low in the scale of nature 
do we see the instinct of self-preservation in this 
extremely simple condition, un mixed with reason or 
feeling, and so transient in its effects. The same 
insensibility to danger is seen when humming-birds 
are captured and confined in a room, and when, 
before a day is over, they will flutter about their 
captor’s face and even take nectar from his lips. 
Some observers have thought that’ humming- 
birds come nearest to humble-bees in their actions. 
I do not think so. Mr. Bates writes : ‘^fThey do 
