54 
THE LADIES’ MAGAZINE OF GARDENING. 
asylums for the whole of the swallow tribe, are now shut up. The swallow 
arrives in this country about the 13th of April in ordinary years, and 
remains with us till the 10th of October following. As swallows live 
entirely on flies, and especially on those which are mostly bred in cold 
humid regions, they must shift to this and other northern European 
countries, as well for food as for chimneys to build in, neither of which 
they can have in central Africa, where it is supposed they live during our 
winter. They require a narrow shelf to form their nest on, which is 
composed of slender straws bound together with clay; the inside is lined 
with feathers, wool, and hair. The eggs, five or six in number, are white, 
the shell being thin, and almost transparent. They usually breed twice in 
the summer, if they have time. The swallow, of all birds, has the 
greatest antipathy to hawks, and other birds and beasts of prey, and no 
one is a more sharp-sighted and noisy alarmist. Soon as a hawk appears 
within half-a-mile of the swallow’s station, he immediately sounds his 
shrill chee , chee ; other alarmists among the birds join their notes of fear ; 
the dunghill-cock gives his scream of “ beware” to his attendants, who, 
with the other small birds, fly to cover, while the swallow, with all his 
tribe, mount boldly up in the air to meet the foe ; follow him with loud 
taunts and upbraidings, and even attempt to buffet him away from the 
village. When the pursuit is ended, the pursuers return in a body, all 
joining in a song of congratulation, to resume their ordinary affairs. 
Even as a song-bird, the swallow is not to be despised ; his regular air 
which he gives with so much glee while sitting on the chimney-top early 
in the morning, has agreeable variations, and some very sweet tones ending 
with a very pleasant trill. In general, it is a talkative, cheerful bird, 
except in very wet weather, when it is compelled to work hard for 
food, skimming over the damp meadows and pools to capture the very few 
flies which are then in motion. In fine weather, when flies are plentiful 
at all times of the day, the swallows can afford to take a good deal of 
recreation; and this they do towards sunset, when the whole fraternity 
assemble high in the air and perform various graceful evolutions, as if they 
felt a pride in exercising their powers of wing. These assemblies are 
very frequent after all the broods are flown, and when the time ap¬ 
proaches for their leaving us for the summer. 
H. urbica. —The Martinet or Martin is a constant companion of the 
swallow, arriving about a week after and remaining about a week later, 
say from the twentieth of April till the twentieth of October. The martin 
is much more a town bird than the swallow, as its nest is generally built 
in the upper corners of windows, or any similar situation. The exterior 
of the nest is hemispheric, and it is composed of slender straws and clay 
