SJ VALLO l VS. 
5 21 
much elongated, and comparatively narrow, consisting of only nine primaries, of 
which the two outer ones are about equal in length, although the inner ones 
decrease, while the secondaries are very short. The feet are small and weak, and 
very imperfectly adapted for progression ; while the tail consists of twelve feathers, 
and is generally forked. As a family, the swallows are cosmopolitan, some species 
entering the Arctic Circle; the common swallow having strayed to Spitzbergen and 
Novaia Zemlia. 
„ The true swallows ( Hirundo) have a short, depressed bill; 
their wings and tail are very long, and the outer tail-feathers of 
the adult enormously elongated. The plumage is of a purplish blue above, 
correlated with a more or less perfect zone on the breast. The swallows con¬ 
struct their nests of tine clay, carefully welded into a compact mass, and lined 
with feathers. 
Africa is the home of many remarkable swallows, and it is in that continent 
that the members of the genus seem to reach their largest dimensions, the great 
African mosque swallow (H. senegalensis ) measuring upwards of nine inches in 
length, and Monteiro’s swallow (H. monteiri ) being nearly as large. The elonga¬ 
tion of the outer tail-feathers is most marked in the wire-tailed swallow ( H. 
smithi), which have their shafts produced as much as seven inches, this species 
inhabiting India and some parts of Africa. Sclater’s swallow is a lovely green 
and white bird, lately discovered in San Domingo. 
chimney The migrations of the chimney or house-swallow (H . rustical) 
Swallow. and its allies, have long excited the interest of mankind ; and we 
confess to sharing in the sentiment which welcomes the return of the swallows 
to their home in the rafters of the old barn or the cornice of their favourite 
porch. The 6th of April is the earliest date on which we have observed the 
swallow migrating through Great Britain, but some forward individuals gener¬ 
ally contrive to report themselves at a lighthouse or other haven of safety a 
week or two before the arrival of the majority of their fellows. Even in the 
autumn months we have seen a good deal of the migration of the swallows, 
although the movements of the birds are less generally noticed at that season, 
because their departure is extended over so many weeks. A few springs ago 
we left the North of England, and it was only when we reached Abbeville, on the 
14th of April, that we fell in with the first bird flying north alone. Early on the 
following morning at Bordeaux, we saw a flock of swallows evidently newly 
waking up from a night of slumber; and south of that town we continued to see 
occasional stragglers, but never met with the species in pairs except in one or two 
exceptional instances. On our return through France, swallows were to be 
counted by thousands migrating between Bayonne and Bordeaux; the actual 
passage of these and other migrating birds being much more prolonged even in 
the spring than is generally admitted. Whilst we were staying at the village of 
Burguete, small parties of swallows passed very frequently; we generally saw 
them flying over the hills to the right and left of the Ronceveaux Pass. There 
was no hesitation as to what they should do, at least with the great majority; 
although we witnessed one solitary straggler approach the cloud-capped hills only 
to swerve from its course and come flying back in a southerly direction, mani- 
