aa: THE NATURAL HISTORY OF SELBORNE., aes. A 
before in conversation, yet you will, I trust, pardon the repeti- 
tion for the sake of the illustration. 
The fly-catcher builds every year in the vines that grow on 
the walls of my house. A pair of these little birds had one 
year inadvertently placed their nest on a naked bough, perhaps 
in a shady time, not being aware of the inconvenience that 
followed. But a hot sunny season coming on before the brood 
was half fledged, the reflection of the wall became insupport- 
able, and must inevitably have destroyed the tender young, 
had not affection suggested an expedient, and prompted the 
parent birds to hover over the nest all the hotter hours, while 
with wings expanded, and mouths gaping for breath, they 
screened off the heat from their suffering offspring. 
A farther instance I once saw of notable sagacity in a willow- 
wren, which had built in a bank in my fields. This bird a 
friend and myself had observed as she sat in her nest; but 
were particularly careful not to disturb her, though we saw 
that she eyed us with some degree of jealousy. Some days 
after, as we passed that way, we were desirous of remarking 
how this brood went on; but no nest could be found, till I 
happened to take a large bundle of long green moss, as it were, 
carelessly thrown over the nest in order to dodge the eye of 
any impertinent intruder. 
A still more remarkable mixture of sagacity and instinct 
occurred to me one day as my people were pulling off the 
lining of a hot-bed, in order to add some fresh manure. From 
out of the side of this bed leaped an animal with great agility 
that made a most grotesque figure; nor was it without great 
difficulty that it could be taken ; when it proved to be a large 
white-bellied field-mouse with three or four young clinging to 
her by their mouths and feet. It was amazing that the desul- 
tory and rapid motions of this dam should not oblige her litter 
to quit their hold, especially when it appeared that they were 
so young as to be both naked and blind! 
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‘a wv 
