SWALLOWS: BARN SWALLOW 
461 
over the fields with the marvelously rapid, graceful flight made possible 
by its long slender wings and deeply forked tail; at other times it is 
heard twittering softly on roadside telephone wires to which its tiny 
feet hold fast; or is found making itself at home about friendly adobes 
and in Mexican villages. A pair that Mr. Ligon found on the Chama 
River were nesting in an occupied adobe, both families using the same 
doorway. In the Pecos Valley, he writes, “ I noticed that these Swallows 
often play along by the side of a flying auto, following it far out in the 
open country, and dipping back and forth, catching insects disturbed 
by the car.” 
At Roswell, Mr. Bailey found a nest of nearly full grown young 
under the porch of the Central Hotel just above the heads of people 
constantly passing on the sidewalk, and instead of showing fear the 
young birds would open their mouths when spoken to. Most remark¬ 
able of all, a nesting colony was found on the piazzas of the Harvey 
House, the- depot hotel of Deming. Two tiers of piazzas ran the full 
length of the long building on north and south sides, and their rafters 
afforded unusual nesting opportunities. These the Swallows took 
advantage of in spite of the fact that the piazzas were paralleled on one 
side by the Santa Fe tracks and on the other by the Southern Pacific 
tracks and that trains were constantly shifting back and forth, overlands 
thundering in, bells ringing, and engines puffing up great clouds of steam 
and smoke! But popular prejudice pursued the poor birds even here, 
and regardless of their good offices in destroying multitudes of flies 
and other insects that would have annoyed the passerby, at our first 
visit so many of their nests had been thrown down that it was impossible 
to tell the size of the original colony. At our second visit, while the 
hotel boys with long sticks were knocking down many of the old nests, 
the Swallows, compelled by their strong home instinct, were actually 
building new ones. 
In striking contrast to this railroad nesting site was one of a pair 
Mr. Ligon found completing their nest inside the dark recesses of 
an old dugout! Another pair that preferred peace and quietness to 
clamor was seen feeding its young on a rock on the bank of the tranquil 
Pecos. Still another pair had a nest under a wharf at Coronado, Cali¬ 
fornia, Mr. Gander relates. Frightened by the too close approach of 
interested bathers, one of the nestlings jumped out and fell into the 
water. But it quickly swam to one of the wharf pilings, where it clung 
to a bunch of barnacles. Splashed by every wave, it was in need of help, 
and was finally rescued by two Boy Scouts, who, “ after much effort, 
succeeded in placing it near the nest on one of the girders” (1927, p. 574). 
In the fall migration, on August 11, 1904, in going down from the 
mountains into the Hondo Valley, we found Barn Swallows flying high 
over the cultivated fields in company with Cliff and Tree Swallows. 
