Chapter 9 VARIOUS BIRDS NOT INCLUDED IN THE FOREGOING CHAPTERS.

NOTWITHSTANDING the comprehensive titles of the preceding chapters, there are several birds mentioned by Shakespeare which cannot, with propriety, be included in any of them. We have, therefore, deemed it advisable to notice them separately under the above heading.

Naturalists have frequently remarked upon the propensity which some birds have to become restless and noisy before rain. Familiar examples are, the Peacock; the Green Woodpecker, which, on this account, in some parts of the country, is called "rain-bird;" the Golden Plover, whose Latin and French name, Pluvialis and Pluvier, have reference to the same peculiarity; and the Woodcock, which, as Gilbert White says, has been observed "to be remarkably listless against snowy, foul weather." Shakespeare has noticed this peculiarity in the Parrot:-

"More clamorous than a parrot against rain."-As You Like It, Act iv. Sc. 1.

THE PARROT.

It is not quite clear when parrots were first introduced as cage birds, but their attractive colours, and aptitude for learning tricks and words, no doubt brought them into notice at an early period. Shakespeare knew that to ensure success in teaching a parrot, the bird must be rewarded:-

"The parrot will not do more for an almond."-Troilus and Cressida, Act v. Sc. 2.

To talk "like a parrot," that is, without reason, is proverbial. Lieutenant Cassio thus upbraids himself after a drunken squabble:-

"I will rather sue to be despised than to deceive so good a commander with so slight, so drunken, and so discreet an officer. Drunk? and speak parrot? and squabble? swagger? swear and discourse fustian with one's own shadow? Oh, thou invisible spirit of wine, if thou hast no name to be known by, let us call thee devil!"-Othello, Act ii. Sc. 3.

A PARROT-TEACHER.

In a witty scene between Beatrice and Benedick, in Much Ado about Nothing, the former is likened by the latter to "a parrot-teacher," from her great talkative powers:-

"Bened. But it is certain I am loved of all ladies, only you excepted: and I would I could find in my heart that I had not a hard heart, for truly I love now.

Beat. A dear happiness to women; they would else have been troubled with a pernicious suitor. I thank God, and my cold blood, I am of your humour for that; I had rather hear my dog bark at a crow than a man swear he loves me.

Bened. God keep your ladyship still in that mind! so some gentleman or other shall 'scape a predestinate scratched face.

Beat. Scratching could not make it worse, an 'twere such a face as yours were.

Bened. Well, you are a rare parrot-teacher.160

Beat. A bird of my tongue is better than a beast of yours.

Bened. I would my horse had the speed of your tongue, and so good a continuer: but keep your way, o' God's name! I have done.

Beat. You always end with a jade's trick: I know you of old."

[Whereupon Don Pedro steps in and puts an end to this bantering.]

Much Ado about Nothing, Act i. Sc. 1.

The "Popinjay" (Henry IV. Part I. Act i. Sc. 3) apparently is only another name for parrot.

In the Glossary to Chaucer's Works we find the word thus explained:-"Popingay, a parrot; Papegaut, Fr.; Papegaey, Belg.; Papagallo, Ital."

In the Privy Purse expenses of King Henry VIII. the following entry occurs under date November, 1532:-

"Itm?.-The laste daye paied in rewarde to a woman that wolde have gyven a popingay to the King's grace x s?."

THE STARLING.

The practice of turning to advantage the capability which certain birds possess for learning to utter words must be of some antiquity, for Pliny alludes to the starlings which were trained for the amusement of the young C?sars, as being capable of uttering both Latin and Greek.

Shakespeare thus refers to the starling's talking powers:-

"Hotspur. He said, he would not ransom Mortimer;

Forbade my tongue to speak of Mortimer;

But I will find him when he lies asleep,

And in his ear I'll holloa, 'Mortimer!'

Nay, I'll have a starling shall be taught to speak

Nothing but 'Mortimer,' and give it him,

To keep his anger still in motion."

Henry IV. Part I. Act i. Sc. 3.

It is stated that when M. Girardin visited his friend M. Thirel in Paris, he was agreeably astonished at hearing a starling articulate a dozen consecutive sentences with the same precision as if they had been spoken by some person in the next room; and when the bell rang for mass, the same bird called to its mistress, by name, "Mademoiselle, entendez-vous la messe que l'on sonne? Prenez votre livre et revenez vite, donner à manger a votre polisson." If this statement can be depended upon, M. Girardin might well have been astonished.

THE KINGFISHER.

It was formerly believed that during the time the Halcyon or Kingfisher was engaged in hatching her eggs, the water, in kindness to her, remained so smooth and calm, that the mariner might venture on the sea with the happy certainty of not being exposed to storms or tempests; this period was therefore called, by Pliny and Aristotle, "the halcyon days."

"Expect Saint Martin's161 summer, halcyon days."

Henry VI. Part I. Act i. Sc. 2.

It was also supposed that the dead bird, carefully balanced and suspended by a single thread, would always turn its beak towards that point of the compass from which the wind blew.

Kent, in King Lear (Act II. Sc. 2), speaks of rogues who-

"Turn their halcyon beaks

With every gale and vary of their masters."

And, after Shakespeare, Marlowe, in his Jew of Malta, says,-

"But how now stands the wind?

Into what corner peers my halcyon's bill?"

For brightness and beauty of plumage, the kingfisher has no equal amongst our British birds, and so straight and rapid withal is its line of flight, that when the sunlight falls upon its bright blue back, it seems as if an azure bolt from a crossbow had been suddenly shot across our path.

It is difficult to calculate or limit the speed which can be produced by the effort of a wing's vibration. We may, nevertheless, ascertain with tolerable accuracy the rate of a bird's flight, as follows:-If we note the number of seconds which are occupied by a bird in passing between two fixed points in its line of flight, and measure the distance between these points, we resolve the question to a simple "rule-of-three" sum; inasmuch as, knowing the number of yards flown in a certain number of seconds, we can ascertain the distance traversed in 3,600 seconds, or an hour, and thus obtain the rate of speed per hour; supposing, of course, the speed to be uniform. In this way the flight of the common Swallow (Hirundo rustica) has been computed at ninety miles,-

"As swift as swallow flies."

Titus Andronicus, Act iv. Sc. 2;

while that of the swift has been conjectured to be nearly one hundred and eighty miles per hour.

"True hope is swift, and flies with swallow's wings."

Richard III. Act v. Sc. 2.

THE SWALLOW.

Those who have watched the swallows upon a dull day, skimming low along the ground, and seeming almost to touch it, although flying with speed as undiminished as if high in air, will readily see the aptness of the simile:-

"And I have horse will follow where the game

Makes way, and run like swallows on the plain."

Titus Andronicus, Act ii. Sc. 2.

"The swallow follows not summer more willingly than we your lordship, nor more willingly leaves winter; such summer-birds are men."-Timon of Athens, Act iii. Sc. 6.

The swallow, although one of the earliest, is not always the first of our spring ornaments to appear. There are-

"Daffodils,

That come before the swallow dares, and take

The winds of March with beauty."

Winters Tale, Act iv. Sc. 3.

THE MARLET.

A near relative of this bird is the Martin, or, as it is called in the language of heraldry, the "Martlet" (Hirundo urbica).

"This guest of summer,

The temple-haunting martlet, doth approve,

By his lov'd mansionry, that the heaven's breath

Smells wooingly here; no jutty, frieze,

Buttress, nor coigne of vantage, but this bird

Hath made his pendant bed and procreant cradle.

Where they most breed and haunt, I have observ'd,

The air is delicate."

Macbeth, Act i. Sc. 6.

Sir Joshua Reynolds was struck with the beauty of this brief colloquy before the castle of Macbeth, and he observes on it:-"This short dialogue between Duncan and Banquo, while they are approaching the gates of Macbeth's castle, has always appeared to me a striking instance of what, in painting, is termed 'repose.' Their conversation very naturally turns upon the beauties of its situation, and the pleasantness of the air; and Banquo, observing the martlets' nests in every recess of the cornice, remarks that where these birds most breed and haunt, the air is delicate. The subject of this quiet and easy conversation gives that repose so necessary to the mind after the tumultuous bustle of the preceding scenes, and perfectly contrasts the scene of horror that immediately succeeds."

The bird is mentioned again in the Merchant of Venice, where we are reminded that-

"The martlet

Builds in the weather on the outward wall,

Even in the force and road of casualty."

Merchant of Venice, Act ii. Sc. 9.

THE SWALLOW'S HERB.

Old authors tell us that when the young swallows are hatched, they are blind for some time, and that the parent birds bring to the nest a plant called Chelidonium, or Swallow's herb, which has the property of restoring sight. This popular fallacy appears to be widely disseminated. The plant is the well-known Celandine (Chelidonium majus). It belongs to the Papaverace?, or poppies, and may be found growing in waste places to the height of two feet or more. It is brittle, slightly hairy, and full of a yellow, f?tid juice, and bears small yellow flowers in long-stalked umbels.

The name Chelidonium is derived no doubt from the Greek χελιδων, a swallow: but the reason for its being thus named is not so obvious. Some authors assert that it was so called on account of its flowering about the time of the arrival of the swallow, while others maintain that it derived its appellation from being the plant medicinally made use of by that bird.

The belief that animals and birds possess a knowledge of certain plants which will cure a disease, or benefit them in some way, is very ancient, and this particular plant is alluded to by old authors as being especially selected for the purpose. Pliny observes (Hist. Nat. fol. 1530, p. 461, xv.): "Animalia quoque invenire herbas, inprimisque chelidoniam. Hac enim hirundines oculis pullorum in nido restituunt visum, ut quidam volunt, etiam erutis oculis." (!) And the same author further remarks: "Chelidoniam visui saluberrimam hirundines monstravere vexatis pullorum oculis ilia medentes."

Gerard, referring to this plant, in his "Herball, or Generall Historie of Plantes" (1597), observes:-"It is called celandine, not because it then first springeth at the comming in of the swallowes, or dieth when they goe away; for as we haue saide, it may be founde all the yeere; but because some hold opinion that with this herbe the dams restore sight to their yoong ones when their eies be out, the which things are vaine and false: for Cornelius Celsus in his sixt booke doth witnesse that when the sight of the eies of diuers yoong birdes be put foorth by some outward meanes, it will after a time be restored of itselfe, and soonest of all the sight of the swallow, whereupon, (as the same saith) that the tale or fable grew, how, thorow an herbe the dams restore that thing, which healeth of itselfe: the very same doth Aristotle alleadge in the sixt booke of the historie of liuing creatures: the eies of young swallowes, saith he, that are not fledge, if a man do pricke them out, do grow againe, and afterwards do perfectly recouer their sight." Subsequently, when speaking of the "virtues" of the plant, the sage Gerard continues:-"The iuice of the herbe is good to sharpen the sight, for it clenseth and consumeth awaie slimie things that cleaue about the ball of the eie, and hinder the sight." The root was considered good for yellow-jaundice, and also (being chewed) for toothache. Gerard adds, "The roote cut in small peeces is good to be giuen vnto hawkes against sundrie diseases;" and Turbervile, in his "Booke of Falconrie" (1611), treats of a cure for "a blow giuen to the eye, or of some other mischance," as follows:-"Sometimes the eyes of hawkes are hurt by some mishappe, some stripe, or otherwise, as I said afore. Against such unlooked-for mischances, Master Malopin, in his boke of the Prince, willeth to take the juice of Celondine, otherwise Arondell, or Swallowes hearbe, and to convey it into the eye. And if it bee not to be had greene, to take it drie, and to beat it into powder, and to blow it into her eye with a quill, and this shall recure the hawke."

A marginal note to this paragraph informs us that "Arondell" in French is "Hirundo," a swallow, otherwise called "Chelidon."

Parkinson, in his "Theatrum Botanicum" (1640), alludes to two species of Celandine, C. major and minor, and says:-"Some call them Chelidonia major and minor, and tooke the name, as Dioscorides saith, because it springeth when swallowes come in; and withered at their going away (which is true in neither, the greater, whereof Dioscorides chiefely speaketh, being greene both winter and sommer; and the lesser springeth before swallowes come in, and is gone and withered long before their departure). Dioscorides likewise, and Pliny also, say it tooke that name from swallowes that cured their young ones' eyes, that were hurt, with bringing this herbe and putting it to them: but Aristotle, and Celsus from him, doe shew that the young ones of partridges, doves, swallowes, &c., will recover their sight (being hurt) of themselves in time, without anything applyed unto them, and therefore Celsus accounteth this saying but a fable."

It is curious to observe how universally this plant appears to be associated with the swallow. Chelidonium majus is Calidonia maggiore of the Italians; Yerva de las gelondrinhas of the Spaniards; Chelidoine Felongue and Esclaire of the French; and Schwalbenkraut of the Germans; while we, in English, call it Celandine, Swallow's-herb, and Swallow-wort.

Besides the Swallow-herb there is the Swallow-stone, to which wonderful properties have been likewise attributed in connection with diseases of the eye.

THE SWALLOW'S STONE.

Dr. Lebour, in a communication to The Zoologist, for 1866, says (p. 523):-"I met last summer, in Brittany, with a curious fact relating to the habits of the common house-swallow. In Brittany there exists a wide-spread belief among the peasantry that certain stones found in swallows' nests are sovereign cures for certain diseases of the eye. I think the same notion holds in many other parts of France, and also in some of our English counties. These stones are held in high estimation, and the happy possessor usually lets them on hire at a sous or so a day. Now, I had the good fortune to see some of these 'swallow-stones,' and to examine them. I found them to be the hard polished calcareous opercula of some species of Turbo, and although their worn state precludes the idea of identifying the species, yet I am confident that they belong to no European Turbo. The largest I have seen was three-eighths of an inch long, and one-fourth of an inch broad; one side is flat, or nearly so, and the other is convex, more or less so in different specimens. Their peculiar shape enables one to push them under the eyelid across the eyeball, and thus they remove any eyelash or other foreign substance which may have got in one's eye;163 further than this, they have no curing power: the peasants, however, believe they are omnipotent. The presence of these opercula in swallows' nests is very curious,164 and leads one to suppose that they must have been brought there from some distant shore in the swallow's stomach. If so, they must have inhabited the poor bird for a considerable time, and proved a great nuisance to it."

The tradition on this subject, current amongst the peasants in Brittany, is no doubt of some antiquity,165 since the allusion which Longfellow has made to it in his poem of "Evangeline" would seem to confirm this impression, inasmuch as we may assume that the tradition found its way into Acadia through the French colonists who were the first to settle there.

Longfellow, in his "Evangeline," says,-

"Oft in the barns they climbed to the populous nests in the rafters,

Seeking with eager eyes that wondrous stone which the swallow

Brings from the shore of the sea to restore the sight of its fledglings;

Lucky was he who found that stone in the nest of the swallow!"

The connection between the stone and the herb is, that both were said to be brought to the nest by the swallow, and both were deemed remedies for defective sight. There is this difference, however, between the current opinion in Brittany and the popular notion in Acadia, that in the former case it is the finder of the stone who is thereby benefited, in the latter it is the sight of the fledglings which is thereby restored.

A friend has suggested that the tradition may have originated with the Chinese, to whom the edible swallows' nests have been so long known, and to whom credit is now given for having been acquainted centuries ago with inventions which until recently were believed to be modern. Not being conversant, however, with Chinese, we are unable to say whether there is in that language any equivalent for "swallow-stone," or "swallow's-herb," or whether ancient Chinese authors in any way throw light upon the subject.166

THE OSTRICH.

Pliny's mention of the stone found in the stomach of the swallow brings to mind the stones found in the stomach of the ostrich, and so leads to the consideration of another bird noticed by Shakespeare. The food of the ostrich is said to consist of the tops of shrubby plants, seeds, and grain; strange to say, however, it will swallow, with indiscriminating voracity, stones, sticks, pieces of metal, cord, leather, and other substances, which often occasion its destruction. The extraordinary digestion of the bird is thus alluded to in the threat of the rebel Cade, when confronted by Alexander Iden:-

"Ah! villain, thou wilt betray me, and get a thousand crowns of the king by carrying my head to him! but I'll make thee eat iron like an ostrich, and swallow my sword like a great pin, ere thou and I part."-Henry VI. Part II. Act iv. Sc. 10.

This curious habit is not peculiar to the ostriches. The same thing has been observed in the bustards. Dr. Jerdon, speaking of the Indian Bustard (Eupodotis Edwardsii), says, "they will often swallow pebbles or any glittering object that attracts them. I took several portions of a brass ornament, the size of a No. 16 bullet, out of the stomach of one bustard."167

In reply to Hotspur's inquiries for "The madcap Prince of Wales," and his comrades, at the rebel camp near Shrewsbury, he is told that they are

"All furnish'd, all in arms;

All plum'd like estridges that with the wind

Bated; like eagles having lately bath'd."168

Henry IV. Part I. Act iv. Sc. 1.

THE PELICAN.

Looking to the antiquity of the fable of the Pelican's feeding her young with her own blood, it is not surprising that Shakespeare has alluded to it when mentioning this bird. Laertes says:-

"To his good friends thus wide I'll ope my arms;

And, like the kind life-rendering pelican,

Repast them with my blood."

Hamlet, Act iv. Sc. 5.

King Lear, too, likens himself to a pelican when speaking of his ungrateful children:-

"Is it the fashion, that discarded fathers

Should have thus little mercy on their flesh?

Judicious punishment! 'Twas this flesh begot

Those pelican daughters."

King Lear, Act iii. Sc. 4.

Again-

"K. Richard.····

Dar'st with thy frozen admonition

Make pale our cheek; chasing the royal blood

With fury from his native residence.

Gaunt.·····

That blood already, like the pelican,

Hast thou tapp'd out, and drunkenly carous'd."

Richard II. Act ii. Sc. 1.

It is generally supposed that the fable alluded to is a classical one. But this is not the case. Many and various explanations have been offered as regards its origin, but none is more ingenious, and at the same time more plausible, than the explanation suggested by Mr. Bartlett, the energetic Superintendent of the Zoological Society's Gardens. In a letter addressed to the editor of Land and Water, dated the 3rd April, 1869, Mr. Bartlett says:-

"Having devoted much attention to investigations upon the subject of the supply of food provided by several species of birds for their young, I have collected many interesting facts showing that in some instances the parents prepare by partial digestion, and in others by the addition of a secreted nutritive substance, the food intended for the support of their offspring. The one which I am about to relate I was certainly not prepared to expect; nevertheless, such facts as I now lay before you have caused me no little astonishment, as they appear to me to afford a solution to the well-known and ancient story of the Pelican in the Wilderness. I have heard that the so-called fable originated, or is to be found, on some of the early Egyptian monuments (I do not know where), but that the representations are more like flamingoes than pelicans. I have published elsewhere, in the 'Proceedings of the Zoological Society,' for March 1869, what I consider to be the facts of the case, and take this opportunity of referring to the matter. The flamingoes here in the gardens have frequently shown signs of breeding, and have been supplied with heaps of sand to form their nests, but without result; nevertheless they appear to take considerable notice of a pair of Cariamas in the same aviary. These birds have a habit of bending back their heads, and with open gaping mouths utter loud and somewhat distressing sounds. This habit at once attracts the flamingoes, and very frequently one or more of them advance towards the cariamas, and standing erect over the bird, by a slight up-and-down movement of the head, raise up into its mouth a considerable quantity of red coloured fluid. As soon as the upper part of the throat and mouth becomes filled, it will drop or run down from the corners of the flamingo's mouth; the flamingo then bends its long neck over the gaping cariama and pours this fluid into the mouth, and as frequently on the back of the cariama. Having seen this repeatedly, I took an opportunity of obtaining a portion of this fluid and submitted it to the examination of Dr. Murie. We placed it under the microscope, and find it composed of little else than blood; in fact, the red blood-corpuscles are wonderfully abundant in the otherwise clear and almost transparent glutinous fluid. That this does not proceed from any disease or injury done to the flamingo, nor arise or is produced by any portion or part of the food taken by them, I am perfectly certain, for the birds are in the most vigorous health and condition; but I believe that it is an attempt to supply food to the cariamas, just as the hedge-sparrow and other birds supply food to the young cuckoo, and I have no doubt, if a careful observer had the opportunity of watching the flamingoes on their breeding-ground, he would find that this is the mode of feeding their young: no doubt other food is also provided, but most likely mixed with this secretion. I think it highly probable that this habit was noticed in ancient Egypt, and, by the confusion of names in translation, the pelican was supposed to be the bird intended; in fact, I have heard that the representation (which I am very anxious to see) is much more like a flamingo than a pelican. Again, a flamingo is much more a bird of the wilderness than the pelican, seeing that the pelican requires a good supply of fish, while the flamingo can live and does well upon very small insects, seeds, and little fry, and is found in places in which the pelican would starve."

This communication naturally drew forth some comments. Mr. Houghton, in a long letter to the editor of the same journal, dated 24th April, 1869, says:-"That this is the origin of the old story of the pelican feeding its young with its blood seems very plausible. I purpose to examine this ingenious idea, and to offer a few remarks on the old fable. It is commonly supposed-and you will often find it so expressed in works on natural history-that this fable is a classical one. This is an error: I have searched in vain amongst classical authors for any allusion to the pelican feeding its young with its blood. To the Greeks this bird was known by the name of πελεκ?ν, or πελ?κα?, or πελεκινο?, though it would appear that some species of woodpecker was also intended by the word πελ?κα? (see Aristoph. Aves, 1155). Aristotle mentions pelicans two or three times in his 'History of Animals;' he speaks of their migratory habits and flying in crowds. He says they take large shell-fish into their pouches (?ν τ? πρ? τ?? κοιλ?α? τ?π?), wherein the molluscs are softened. They then throw them up and pick out the flesh from the opened valves. ?lian merely repeats this story, only he says the shell-fish are received into the stomach. In another place he says there is mutual hostility between the pelican and the quail. The pelican was known to the Romans under the name of onocrotalus. Pliny says this bird is like the swan, except that under the throat there is a sort of second crop of astonishing capacity. There is, of course, no doubt that the pelican is here intended. Cicero says there is a bird called platalea which pursues other birds and causes them to drop the fish they have caught, which it devours itself. He then gives the same story as ?lian, viz., that this bird softens shell-fish in its stomach, &c. The first part of this account is true of the parasitic gulls (Lestris). It is uncertain what bird Cicero alludes to by the name platalea. Pliny gives the same story as Cicero, and calls the bird platea. The fable, then, is no classical one. Whence did it originate? Does any pictorial representation occur on the Egyptian monuments, as Mr. Bartlett has been informed? I am inclined to think-but I speak under correction-that such a representation does not occur. Horapollo (i. 54) tells us that when the ancient Egyptians want to represent a fool they depict the pelican, because this bird, instead of laying its eggs on lofty and secure places, merely scratches up the ground and there lays. The people surround the place with dried cow's dung, and set fire to it. The pelican sees the smoke, and endeavours to extinguish the fire with her wings, the motion of which only fans the flame. Thus she burns her wings, and falls an easy prey to the fowlers. Some Egyptian priests, considering this behaviour evinces great love of its young, do not eat the bird; others, again, thinking it is a mark of folly, eat it. The Egyptians, however, did believe in a bird feeding its young with its blood, and this bird is none other than a vulture. Horapollo says (i. 11) that a vulture symbolises a compassionate person (?λε?μονα), because during the 120 days of its nurture of its offspring, if food cannot be had, 'it opens its own thigh and permits the young to partake of the blood, so that they may not perish from want.' This is alluded to in the following lines by Georgius Pisidas:-

Τ?ν μηρ?ν ?κτ?μοντε?, ?ματωμ?νοι?

Γ?λακτο? ?λκο?? ζωπυρο?σι τ? βρ?φη.

Amongst classical authors, the love of the vulture for its young was proverbial. But when do we first hear of the fable of the pelican feeding its young with its blood? In Patristic annotations on the Scriptures. I believe this is the answer. The ecclesiastical fathers transferred the Egyptian story from the vulture to the pelican, but magnified the already sufficiently marvellous fable a hundredfold, for the blood of the parent was not only supposed to serve as food for the young, but was also able to reanimate the dead offspring! Augustine, commenting on Psalm cii. 5-'I am like a pelican in the wilderness'-says: 'These birds [male pelicans] are said to kill their young offspring by blows of their beaks, and then to bewail their death for the space of three days. At length, however, it is said the mother bird inflicts a severe wound on herself, pouring the flowing blood over the dead young ones, which instantly brings them to life.' To the same effect write Eustathius, Isidorus, Epiphanius, and a host of other writers, except that sometimes it was the female who killed the young ones, while the male reanimated them with its blood. This fable was supposed to be a symbol of Christ's love to men. I think, then, that the very interesting fact of the flamingo feeding the cariama with the red fluid and other contents of its stomach can hardly be, as Mr. Bartlett conjectures, the origin of the old fable of the pelican feeding its young with its blood, because the Egyptian story of the vulture wounding its thigh has nothing analogous to the natural-history fact of the flamingo, while the fable of the pelican pouring from its self-inflicted wound the life-restoring blood which reanimates its offspring is still further from the mark."

In a short criticism upon the subject in the same number of Land and Water, Mr. H. J. Hancock is inclined to believe that some confusion has arisen in the translation from the original Hebrew. "The word ????? (Kàh-ath'), which is rendered πελεκ?ν in the Septuagint, and Pelican, or Onocrotalus, in the Vulgate, is derived from the verb ??? 'to vomit,' and signifies 'a vomiter.' This name, evidently a general one, may have been intended by the Hebrew writers to apply either to such birds as, like the pelican and many others, possess the power of disgorging their food on being disturbed or alarmed, or to such birds as are accustomed to nourish their young from their own crops; and, in the latter case, the curious bloody secretion of the flamingo may well have given rise to the superstition concerning the pelican. I may observe, as an evidence that the translators did not consider the Hebrew word to be other than a general name, that Kà-ath' is sometimes rendered 'cormorant' (Isa. xxxiv. 11; Zeph. ii. 14). For further information concerning this point, I would refer your readers to the 'Hebrew and Chaldee Concordance,' p. 1083; Bate's 'Hebrew Dictionary,' p. 538; and Parkhurst's 'Hebrew Dictionary,' pp. 631, 632."

Shakespeare, doubtless, had not investigated the subject so narrowly, but was content to accept the common story as he found it, and to apply it metaphorically as occasion required.

IN THE ENGLISH FENS.

The majority of the birds mentioned in this chapter are not natives of the British Islands, but, strange as it may appear, there is evidence to show that the pelican, or, to speak more correctly, a species of pelican, once inhabited the English fens.

The peat-bogs of Cambridgeshire have yielded of late years a large number of bones of birds, and amongst these has been discovered the wing-bone of a pelican. This interesting discovery was made known by M. Alphonse Milne-Edwards, in an able article in the "Annales des Sciences Naturelles,"169 a translation of which subsequently appeared in The Ibis.170 The author thus anticipates the objections of the sceptical:-

"We may be inclined, perhaps, to wonder that a single bone, belonging (as it does) to a young animal, and consequently not presenting all its anatomical characters, should permit the exact recognition of the genus and species of bird to which it belongs. So precise a determination would not be always possible, but in the present case there need be no doubt; for I have shown, in another work,171 that the wing-bone in the genus Pelicanus offers extremely clear distinctive peculiarities, which do not allow of its being confounded with that of any other bird."

THE PELICAN IN ENGLAND.

The only species of pelican which has been recorded to have occurred in England in recent times, is the great white pelican, P. onocrotalus.

Latham has stated,172 on the authority of Sir Thomas Brown, that a pelican of this species was killed in Horsey Fen in 1663. This statement was copied by Montagu,173 and subsequently by Dr. Fleming,174 but there is no evidence to show that the bird was a wild one. On the contrary, it is probable, as suggested by Sir Thomas Brown, that it may have been one of the King's pelicans which was lost about that time from St. James's Park.

He says175:-"An onocrotalus, or pelican, shot upon Horsey Fen, May 22, 1663, which, stuffed and cleaned, I yet retain. It was three yards and a half between the extremities of the wings; the chowle and beak answering the usual description; the extremities of the wings for a span deep brown; the rest of the body white; a fowl which none could remember upon this coast.

"About the same time, I heard one of the king's pelicans was lost at St. James's; perhaps this might be the same."

Latham was further assured by Dr. Leith, that in the month of May he saw a brown pelican fly over his head on Blackheath, in Kent. Montagu, however, suggests that the bird was an immature swan.

In The Zoologist for 1856 (p. 5321), the Rev. H. B. Tristram has recorded, that on the 25th of August, 1856, the remains of a pelican were picked up on the shore at Castle Eden, Durham. Such are the scanty records of the appearance of a pelican in England in modern times.

The bone found in Cambridgeshire may have belonged to P. onocrotalus, a native of South and South-Eastern Europe, and which is stated to be "common on the lakes and watercourses of Hungary and Russia, and also seen further south in Asia and in Northern Africa." M. Milne-Edwards, however, has not quite determined the species, for, on comparison with the bones of other recognized and existing species, it appears to differ rather remarkably in its greater length.

Enough has probably been said, however, to show the interest which attaches to the discovery, and to suggest further research.

With the pelican ends the long list of birds mentioned in the works of Shakespeare.

CONCLUSION.

The reader who has had the patience or the curiosity to follow us thus far will, doubtless, ere this have formed a just estimate of Shakespeare's qualifications as a naturalist, and will have drawn the only conclusion which the evidence justifies.

It is impossible to read all that Shakespeare has written in connection with ornithology, without being struck with the extraordinary knowledge which he has displayed for the age in which he lived; and our admiration for him as a poet must be increased tenfold on perceiving that the beauteous thoughts, which he has clothed in such beauteous language, were dictated by a pure love of nature, and by a study of those great truths which appeal at once to the heart and to reason, and which infuse into the soul of the naturalist the true spirit of poetry.

APPENDIX.

A TABLE OF

ORNITHOLOGICAL ALLUSIONS

IN THE ORDER IN WHICH THEY OCCUR:

THE PLAYS AND POEMS BEING ALPHABETICALLY ARRANGED.

All's Well that Ends Well: PAGE

Act I. Sc. 1 [Hawking-eye] 55

Act I. Sc. 3 Cuckoo 154

Act II. Sc. 5 Lark 136

Act II. Sc. 5 Bunting 136

Act III. Sc. 5 Limed 160

Act IV. Sc. 1 Chough 117

Act IV. Sc. 1 Woodcock 231

Act IV. Sc. 3 Crow 110

Antony and Cleopatra:

Act II. Sc. 2 Eagle 26

Act II. Sc. 3 Cocks 172, 219

Act II. Sc. 3 Quails 219

Act II. Sc. 6 Cuckoo 154

Act III. Sc. 2 [Swan] 201

Act III. Sc. 2 [Kite] 44

Act III. Sc. 10 Mallard 238

Act III. Sc. 13 Kite 44

Act III. Sc. 13 Seel 70

Act III. Sc. 13 Dove 195

Act III. Sc. 13 Ostrich 195

Act IV. Sc. 8 [Nightingale] 123

Act IV. Sc. 12 [Swallow] 276

Act V. Sc. 2 Seel 70

As You Like It:

Act I. Sc. 2 Pigeons 180, 185

Act I. Sc. 3 Juno's Swans 206

Act II. Sc. 3 Ravens 106

Act II. Sc. 3 Sparrow 106, 146

Act II. Sc. 5 Eggs 32

Act II. Sc. 7 [Goose] 197

Act II. Sc. 7 [Cock] 168

Act III. Sc. 3 Falcon 61

Act III. Sc. 3 Bells 61

Act III. Sc. 3 Pigeon 180, 185

Act III. Sc. 4 Goose 197

Act IV. Sc. 1 [Pigeon] 180

Act IV. Sc. 1 Parrot 272

Act IV. Sc. 3 Moss'd 34

Act V. Sc. 4 Stalking-horse 238

Comedy of Errors:

Act II. Sc. 1 [Stale] 245

Act II. Sc. 2 Owls 96

Act III. Sc. 1 Crow 114

Act IV. Sc. 2 Lapwing 221

Coriolanus:

Act I. Sc. 1 Cormorant 260

Act I. Sc. 1 Goose 197

Act I. Sc. 4 Geese 197

Act III. Sc. 1 [Crow] 110

Act III. Sc. 1 [Eagle] 23

Act III. Sc. 1 Cry havoc (note) 57

Act III. Sc. 1 Quarry 57

Act III. Sc. 5 [Kite] 43

Act III. Sc. 5 [Crow] 110

Act IV. Sc. 5 Daw 119

Act IV. Sc. 7 Osprey 42

Act V. Sc. 3 [Dove] 180, 191

Act V. Sc. 3 [Gosling] 197

Act V. Sc. 6 [Eagle] 23

Act V. Sc. 6 [Dovecote] 180

Cymbeline:

Act I. Sc. 2 Eagle 28, 45

Act I. Sc. 2 Puttock 28, 45

Act I. Sc. 3 [Crow] 110

Act I. Sc. 4 Fowl 235

Act II. Sc. 2 Philomel 125

Act II. Sc. 2 [Raven] 99

Act II. Sc. 3 Lark 132

Act II. Sc. 4 [Watching] 45

Act III. Sc. 1 Crows 112

Act III. Sc. 3 Crows 112

Act III. Sc. 3 Eagle 27

Act III. Sc. 4 Jay 121

Act III. Sc. 4 Swan's nest 206

Act III. Sc. 6 Owl 83

Act III. Sc. 6 Lark 136

Act IV. Sc. 2 Ruddock 141

Act IV. Sc. 2 Wren 144

Act IV. Sc. 2 The Roman Eagle 28

Act V. Sc. 3 Crows 111

Act V. Sc. 4 Eagle 30

Act V. Sc. 4 Prune 31

Act V. Sc. 4 Cloys 31

Act V. Sc. 5 The Roman Eagle 29

Hamlet:

Act I. Sc. 1 Cock 167

Act I. Sc. 3 Woodcocks 229

Act I. Sc. 5 The falconer's call 55

Act II. Sc. 2 Aiery 39, 58

Act II. Sc. 2 Kites 43

Act II. Sc. 2 Hawk 75, 223

Act II. Sc. 2 Hernshaw 75, 223

Act II. Sc. 2 Pigeon-liver'd 185

Act II. Sc. 2 Kites 43

Act II. Sc. 2 French falconers 56

Act II. Sc. 2 Eyases 58

Act III. Sc. 2 [Raven] 99

Act III. Sc. 2 Recorder (note) 129

Act IV. Sc. 5 Owl 88

Act IV. Sc. 5 Pelican 286

Act IV. Sc. 5 [Dove] 180

Act IV. Sc. 7 Check 60

Act V. Sc. 1 Dove 180

Act V. Sc. 2 [Chough] 115

Act V. Sc. 2 Lapwing 222

Act V. Sc. 2 Bevy 218

Act V. Sc. 2 Sparrow 146

Act V. Sc. 2 [Woodcock] 229

Act V. Sc. 2 Quarry 56

Henry IV.-Part I.:

Act I. Sc. 3 Popinjay 273

Act I. Sc. 3 Starling 274

Act II. Sc. 1 Turkies 177

Act II. Sc. 2 Chuffs 118

Act II. Sc. 2 Wild-Duck 237

Act II. Sc. 4 [Wild-Geese] 246

Act II. Sc. 4 Sparrow 147

Act II. Sc. 4 [Cuckoo] 147

Act III. Sc. 1 [Raven] 99

Act III. Sc. 1 [Goose] 197

Act III. Sc. 1 Redbreast-teacher 142

Act III. Sc. 2 Cuckoo 155

Act IV. Sc. 1 Estridge 286

Act IV. Sc. 1 Bated 286

Act IV. Sc. 1 Eagles 36, 286

Act IV. Sc. 1 Dove 180

Act IV. Sc. 2 Caliver 240

Act IV. Sc. 2 Wild-Duck 240

Act IV. Sc. 2 Scare-crows 115

Act V. Sc. 1 Gull 148

Act V. Sc. 1 Cuckoo's bird 148

Act V. Sc. 1 Sparrow 148

Act V. Sc. 1 [Vultures] 41

Henry IV.-Part II.:

Act III. Sc. 1 Seel 70

Act III. Sc. 2 Ouzel 139

Act III. Sc. 2 Dove 196

Act V. Sc. 1 Cock and pye 172

Act V. Sc. 1 Pigeons 180, 196

Act V. Sc. 1 Hens 196

Act V. Sc. 1 Wild-Geese 246

Act V. Sc. 4 Vultures 41

Henry V.:

Act I. Sc. 2 Eagle 32

Act I. Sc. 2 Eggs 32

Act II. Sc. 1 Kite 43

Act II. Sc. 1 Crow 111

Act II. Sc. 2 Cloy 31

Act III. Sc. 6 Gull 149, 266

Act III. Sc. 7 Hawk 73

Act III. Sc. 7 Lark 133

Act III. Sc. 7 Hooded 62

Act III. Sc. 7 Bate 62

Act IV. Prologue Cocks 168

Act IV. Sc. 1 Mounted 63

Act IV. Sc. 1 Stoop 63

Act IV. Sc. 2 Carrions 104

Act IV. Sc. 2 Crows 104

Henry VI.-Part I.:

Act I. Sc. 2 Halcyon days 275

Act I. Sc. 2 Mahomed's Dove 194

Act I. Sc. 2 [Eagle] 23

Act I. Sc. 4 Scare-crow 115

Act I. Sc. 5 Doves 180

Act II. Sc. 2 Turtle-doves 180, 191

Act II. Sc. 4 Hawks 73

Act II. Sc. 4 Pitch 73

Act II. Sc. 4 Daw 119

Act III. Sc. 3 Peacock 175

Act IV. Sc. 2 [Owl] 83

Act IV. Sc. 3 [Vulture] 40

Act V. Sc. 3 Swan 204

Act V. Sc. 3 Cygnets 204

Henry VI.-Part II.:

Act I. Sc. 2 [Hawk] 72

Act I. Sc. 3 Limed 161

Act I. Sc. 4 Screech-Owls 85, 97

Act II. Sc. 1 Flying at the brook 50, 51

Act II. Sc. 1 Old Joan 50

Act II. Sc. 1 Point 50, 51

Act II. Sc. 1 Falcon 50

Act II. Sc. 1 Pitch 50, 51

Act II. Sc. 1 Hawks 50

Act II. Sc. 1 Tower 50, 51

Act II. Sc. 1 Fowl 51

Act II. Sc. 4 Limed 161

Act III. Sc. 1 Dove 180

Act III. Sc. 1 [Raven] 101

Act III. Sc. 1 [Eagle] 23

Act III. Sc. 1 Kite 44

Act III. Sc. 2 Raven 101

Act III. Sc. 2 Wren 101, 144

Act III. Sc. 2 Partridge 44, 216

Act III. Sc. 2 Puttock 44, 216

Act III. Sc. 2 [Kites] 43

Act III. Sc. 2 [Screech-Owl] 85

Act III. Sc. 3 [Lime-twigs] 160

Act IV. Sc. 1 [Eagle] 23

Act IV. Sc. 10 Ostrich 285

Act IV. Sc. 10 Crows 113

Act V. Sc. 2 Kites 43, 112

Act V. Sc. 2 Crows 112

Henry VI.-Part III.:

Act I. Sc. 1 Eagle 38

Act I. Sc. 1 Tire 38

Act I. Sc. 1 Hawk's bells 61

Act I. Sc. 4 Swan 205

Act I. Sc. 4 Dove 54, 195

Act I. Sc. 4 Falcon 54

Act I. Sc. 4 Woodcock 232

Act II. Sc. 1 Eagle's bird 25

Act II. Sc. 1 Night-Owl 88, 94

Act II. Sc. 2 Doves 91, 195

Act II. Sc. 6 [Screech-Owl] 85

Act V. Sc. 2 The princely Eagle 33

Act V. Sc. 4 Owl 85

Act V. Sc. 6 Limed 160

Act V. Sc. 6 Owl 86

Act V. Sc. 6 [Raven] 102

Act V. Sc. 6 Night-Crow 102

Act V. Sc. 6 Pies 121

Henry VIII.:

Act II. Sc. 3 [Lark] 136

Act III. Sc. 2 Larks 136

Act IV. Sc. 1 The bird of peace 180

Julius C?sar:

Act I. Sc. 3 Bird of night 89

Act V. Sc. 1 Eagles 27

Act V. Sc. 1 Raven 99–110

Act V. Sc. 1 Crows 112

Act V. Sc. 1 Kites 43

Act V. Sc. 3 [Eagles] 27

Act V. Sc. 3 [Kites] 43

Act V. Sc. 3 Ravens 104

King John:

Act I. Sc. 1 Sparrow 145

Act II. Sc. 2 Cry havoc (note) 57

Act IV. Sc. 3 Raven 103

Act V. Sc. 1 [Crow] 110

Act V. Sc. 2 Eagle 38

Act V. Sc. 2 Aiery 38

Act V. Sc. 2 Towers 38

Act V. Sc. 2 Souse 38

Act V. Sc. 7 Cygnet 201

Act V. Sc. 7 Swan 201

King Lear:

Act I. Sc. 4 Hedge-Sparrow 147

Act I. Sc. 4 Cuckoo 147

Act I. Sc. 4 Kite 44

Act II. Sc. 2 Wagtail 156

Act II. Sc. 2 Goose 198

Act II. Sc. 2 Halcyon 275

Act II. Sc. 4 Wild-Geese 246

Act II. Sc. 4 Vulture 41

Act II. Sc. 4 Owl 97

Act III. Sc. 4 The five wits 95

Act III. Sc. 4 Pelican 287

Act III. Sc. 6 [Nightingale] 123

Act IV. Sc. 6 Crows 116

Act IV. Sc. 6 Choughs 116

Act IV. Sc. 6 Crow-keeper 114

Act IV. Sc. 6 Wren 144

Act IV. Sc. 6 Lark 135

Loves Labour's Lost:

Act I. Sc. 1 Cormorant 260

Act I. Sc. 1 Green-Geese 197

Act III. Sc. 1 Goose 197

Act IV. Sc. 1 Owl 95

Act IV. Sc. 3 Green-Goose 198

Act IV. Sc. 3 Woodcocks 229

Act IV. Sc. 3 Raven 109

Act IV. Sc. 3 [Turtle] 191

Act IV. Sc. 3 Eagle-sighted 25

Act IV. Sc. 3 Bird-bolts 162

Act V. Sc. 1 Pigeon 180

Act V. Sc. 2 Pigeons 180

Act V. Sc. 2 Owl 95

Act V. Sc. 2 [Cuckoo] 147

Act V. Sc. 2 [Lark] 130

Act V. Sc. 2 [Turtle-dove] 191

Act V. Sc. 2 Rook 121

Act V. Sc. 2 Daw 119

Macbeth:

Act I. Sc. 2 Sparrow 147

Act I. Sc. 2 [Eagle] 23

Act I. Sc. 5 Raven 102

Act I. Sc. 6 Martlet 277

Act II. Sc. 1 Owl 84

Act II. Sc. 2 "Obscure bird" 85

Act II. Sc. 4 Falcon 39, 51

Act II. Sc. 4 Towering 39, 51

Act II. Sc. 4 Owl 51

Act III. Sc. 2 [Crow] 110–115

Act III. Sc. 4 Maws 46

Act III. Sc. 4 Kites 46

Act III. Sc. 4 Magot-pie 120

Act III. Sc. 4 Choughs 120

Act III. Sc. 4 Rooks 120

Act IV. Sc. 1 Owlet 84

Act IV. Sc. 2 Wren 91, 143

Act IV. Sc. 2 Owl 91, 143

Act IV. Sc. 3 Vulture 40

Act IV. Sc. 3 [Quarry] 57

Act IV. Sc. 3 [Kite] 43

Act V. Sc. 3 Loon 258

Act V. Sc. 3 [Geese] 197

Measure for Measure:

Act I. Sc. 4 Lapwing 221

Act II. Sc. 1 Scare-crow 115

Act III. Sc. 1 Enmew 64–66

Act III. Sc. 1 Falcon 64

Act III. Sc. 1 Fowl 64

Act III. Sc. 2 Sparrows 146

Merchant of Venice:

Act I. Sc. 2 Throstle 137

Act II. Sc. 2 Doves 196

Act II. Sc. 6 Venus' Pigeons 190

Act II. Sc. 9 Martlet 278

Act III. Sc. 2 Swan 201

Act V. Sc. 1 Crow 143

Act V. Sc. 1 Lark 135, 143

Act V. Sc. 1 Nightingale 128, 143

Act V. Sc. 1 Goose 128, 143, 197

Act V. Sc. 1 Wren 128, 143

Act V. Sc. 1 Cuckoo 150

Merry Wives of Windsor:

Act I. Sc. 1 Cock and pye 171

Act I. Sc. 3 Bully-rook 121

Act I. Sc. 3 [Raven] 99

Act I. Sc. 3 Vultures 41

Act I. Sc. 3 [Dove] 190

Act II. Sc. 1 Cuckoo-birds (note) 148

Act III. Sc. 3 Eyas-musket 74

Act III. Sc. 3 Birding 72

Act III. Sc. 3 [Hawk] 73

Act III. Sc. 4 [Geese] 197

Act III. Sc. 5 Birding 72

Act IV. Sc. 2 Birding 72

Act IV. Sc. 2 Birding-pieces 72, 164

Act V. Sc. 1 Goose 197

Act V. Sc. 5 Swan 207

Act V. Sc. 5 Goose 207

Midsummer Night's Dream:

Act I. Sc. 1 Doves of Venus 190

Act I. Sc. 1 Lark 133

Act I. Sc. 2 Dove 195

Act I. Sc. 2 Nightingale 195

Act II. Sc. 1 Crows 110

Act II. Sc. 1 [Dove] 180

Act II. Sc. 1 [Bolt] 162

Act II. Sc. 2 Owl 89

Act II. Sc. 2 Philomel 125

Act II. Sc. 2 Raven 108

Act II. Sc. 2 Dove 108

Act III. Sc. 1 [Wild-fowl] 235

Act III. Sc. 1 Ousel-cock 139

Act III. Sc. 1 Throstle 137

Act III. Sc. 1 Wren 142

Act III. Sc. 1 Finch 144

Act III. Sc. 1 Sparrow 147

Act III. Sc. 1 [Lark] 130

Act III. Sc. 1 Cuckoo 150

Act III. Sc. 2 Wild-Geese 246

Act III. Sc. 2 Fowler 246

Act III. Sc. 2 Choughs 119

Act III. Sc. 2 [Crow] 110

Act IV. Sc. 1 Lark 131

Act V. Sc. 1 Recorder 129

Act V. Sc. 1 Goose 197

Act V. Sc. 2 Screech-Owl 86

Much Ado about Nothing:

Act I. Sc. 1 Parrot-teacher 272, 273

Act I. Sc. 1 Bird-bolt 162

Act I. Sc. 1 Crow 114

Act I. Sc. 1 Wise and warm 95

Act II. Sc. 1 Partridge 218

Act II. Sc. 1 Fowl 237

Act II. Sc. 3 Raven 101

Act II. Sc. 3 Fowl 238

Act II. Sc. 3 Daw 119

Act II. Sc. 3 Gull 269

Act III. Sc. 1 Lapwing 221

Act III. Sc. 1 Haggards 59

Act III. Sc. 1 Limed 160

Act III. Sc. 4 [Hawk] 73

Act V. Sc. 1 Woodcock 229

Othello:

Act I. Sc. 1 Daws 120

Act I. Sc. 3 Seel 70

Act I. Sc. 3 Snipe 233

Act II. Sc. 1 Birdlime 161

Act II. Sc. 3 Speak Parrot 272

Act III. Sc. 3 Watch 45

Act III. Sc. 3 Haggard 57

Act III. Sc. 3 Jesses 57

Act III. Sc. 3 Seel 71

Act IV. Sc. 1 Raven 100

Act V. Sc. 1 "Cry on" (note) 56

Act V. Sc. 2 [Gull] 239, 267

Act V. Sc. 2 Swan 201

Pericles:

Act III. Introd. [Duck] 222–224, 237

Act IV. Introd. [Night-bird] 99

Act IV. Introd. Dove 113, 191

Act IV. Introd. Crow 113

Act IV. Sc. 3 Wren 144

Act IV. Sc. 3 [Eagle] 23

Act IV. Sc. 6 Coistrel 74

Richard II.:

Act I. Sc. 1 Pitch 51

Act I. Sc. 3 Falcon 54

Act I. Sc. 3 Cloy 31

Act II. Sc. 1 Cormorant 259

Act II. Sc. 1 Pelican 287

Act II. Sc. 1 Imp 69

Act III. Sc. 3 Eagle 24

Act III. Sc. 3 Night-Owls 85

Act III. Sc. 3 Lark 136

Richard III.:

Act I. Sc. 1 [Eagle] 23, 45

Act I. Sc. 1 Kites 45

Act I. Sc. 1 Buzzards 45, 47

Act I. Sc. 3 Wren 144

Act I. Sc. 3 [Eagle] 23

Act I. Sc. 3 [Mew'd up] 64

Act I. Sc. 3 Aiery 39

Act IV. Sc. 4 Owls 86

Act V. Sc. 2 Swallow 277

Act V. Sc. 3 Lark 133

Act V. Sc. 3 Cock 167

Act V. Sc. 3 "Cry on" (note) 56

Romeo and Juliet:

Act I. Sc. 2 Swan 114, 206

Act I. Sc. 2 Crow 114, 206

Act I. Sc. 3 Dove-house 180

Act I. Sc. 4 Crow-keeper 114

Act I. Sc. 4 Soar 50, 51

Act I. Sc. 4 Pitch 50, 51

Act I. Sc. 5 Cock-a-hoop 169

Act I. Sc. 5 Dove 113, 194

Act I. Sc. 5 Crows 113, 194

Act II. Sc. 2 Falconer 54

Act II. Sc. 2 Lure 54

Act II. Sc. 2 Tassel-gentle 54

Act II. Sc. 4 Goose 197

Act II. Sc. 5 Dove 180

Act III. Sc. 2 Hood 62

Act III. Sc. 2 Unmann'd 62

Act III. Sc. 2 Bating 62

Act III. Sc. 2 Raven 108, 109

Act III. Sc. 4 Mew'd up 64

Act III. Sc. 5 Nightingale 124

Act III. Sc. 5 Lark 124, 131, 134

Act III. Sc. 5 Eagle 25

Act IV. Sc. 4 Watch 46

Act IV. Sc. 4 Watching 46

Act V. Sc. 1 [Dove] 194

Act V. Sc. 3 Maw 46

Taming of the Shrew:

Induct. Sc. 1 [Nightingale] 123

Induct. Sc. 2 Hawking 72

Induct. Sc. 2 Hawk 72

Induct. Sc. 2 Lark 72

Induct. Sc. 1 Mew 64, 65

Act I. Sc. 2 Woodcock 229

Act II. Sc. 1 Nightingale 124

Act II. Sc. 1 Buzzard 47

Act II. Sc. 1 Turtle 47

Act II. Sc. 1 Wise and warm 95

Act III. Sc. 1 Stale 245

Act III. Sc. 2 Dove 180

Act IV. Sc. 1 Falcon 62

Act IV. Sc. 1 Stoop 62

Act IV. Sc. 1 Lure 55, 62

Act IV. Sc. 1 Man 45, 62

Act IV. Sc. 1 Haggard 45, 62

Act IV. Sc. 1 Watch 45, 62

Act IV. Sc. 1 Kites 45, 62

Act IV. Sc. 1 Bate 45, 63

Act IV. Sc. 1 Peacock (note) 175

Act IV. Sc. 2 Haggard 59

Act IV. Sc. 3 Jay 122

Act IV. Sc. 3 Lark 122

Act V. Sc. 2 Hawk 73

The Tempest:

Act I. Sc. 2 Raven's feather 107

Act II. Sc. 1 Bat-fowling 157

Act II. Sc. 1 Chough 117

Act II. Sc. 2 Duck 238

Act II. Sc. 2 Goose 197

Act II. Sc. 2 Jay's nest 122

Act II. Sc. 2 Sea-mells 122, 269

Act IV. Sc. 1 Sparrows 146

Act IV. Sc. 1 Barnacles 246

Act IV. Sc. 1 Peacock (note) 175

Act V. Sc. 1 Owls 96

Timon of Athens:

Act I. Sc. 1 Eagle 26

Act II. Sc. 1 [Gull] 267

Act III. Sc. 6 Swallow 277

Act III. Sc. 6 Tiring 38

Act IV. Sc. 3 Eagle 34

Titus Andronicus:

Act II. Sc. 2 Swallows 277

Act II. Sc. 3 Philomel 125

Act II. Sc. 3 Owl 94, 105

Act II. Sc. 3 Raven 105

Act II. Sc. 3 Lark 136

Act III. Sc. 1 [Raven] 99

Act III. Sc. 1 Lark 136

Act IV. Sc. 1 Philomel 125

Act IV. Sc. 1 Swan 205

Act IV. Sc. 2 Swallow 276

Act IV. Sc. 3 Pigeon 180, 183

Act IV. Sc. 4 Pigeons 184

Act IV. Sc. 4 Eagle 33

Act V. Sc. 2 Vulture 40

Act V. Sc. 2 [Philomel] 125

Act V. Sc. 3 Fowl 236

Troilus and Cressida:

Act I. Sc. 1 Cygnet's down 206

Act I. Sc. 2 [Eagles] 23

Act I. Sc. 2 [Crows] 110

Act I. Sc. 2 Daws 119

Act II. Sc. 1 Sparrows 146

Act II. Sc. 1 [Owl] 83

Act II. Sc. 2 Cormorant 260

Act II. Sc. 3 [Raven] 99

Act III. Sc. 1 Doves 196

Act III. Sc. 2 Sparrow 145

Act III. Sc. 2 Watch'd 45

Act III. Sc. 2 Falcon 54

Act III. Sc. 2 Tercel 54

Act III. Sc. 2 Ducks 54

Act III. Sc. 2 Plantage 192

Act III. Sc. 2 Turtle 180, 192

Act III. Sc. 3 Peacock 175

Act IV. Sc. 2 Lark 131

Act IV. Sc. 2 Crows 131

Act V. Sc. 1 Finch-egg 144

Act V. Sc. 1 Quails 219

Act V. Sc. 1 Owl 83

Act V. Sc. 1 Puttock 44

Act V. Sc. 2 Raven 100

Act V. Sc. 2 Parrot 272

Act V. Sc. 11 [Screech-Owl] 85

Act V. Sc. 11 [Goose] 197

Twelfth Night:

Act I. Sc. 3 Coystril 74

Act II. Sc. 3 Gull 149, 267

Act II. Sc. 3 Woodcock 229

Act II. Sc. 5 Stanniel 73

Act II. Sc. 5 Check 60, 73

Act II. Sc. 5 Gull-catcher 267

Act II. Sc. 5 Turkey-cock 180

Act II. Sc. 5 Woodcock 231

Act II. Sc. 5 Bird-bolts 163

Act II. Sc. 5 Stone-bow 163

Act III. Sc. 1 Haggard 60

Act III. Sc. 1 Check 60

Act III. Sc. 2 Wren 144

Act III. Sc. 2 [Gull] 267

Act III. Sc. 4 [Nightingale] 123

Act III. Sc. 4 Daws 119

Act III. Sc. 4 Limed 161

Act IV. Sc. 2 Wild-fowl 232, 257

Act IV. Sc. 2 Woodcock 232, 257

Act V. Sc. 1 Raven 108

Act V. Sc. 1 Dove 108

Act V. Sc. 1 Gull 267

Two Gentlemen of Verona:

Act II. Sc. 1 Robin-Redbreast 142

Act III. Sc. 1 Nightingale 128

Act IV. Sc. 4 Geese 198

Act V. Sc. 4 [Nightingale] 123

The Winter's Tale:

Act II. Sc. 3 Kites 107

Act II. Sc. 3 Ravens 107

Act III. Sc. 2 [Crow] 110

Act IV. Sc. 2 Lark 130

Act IV. Sc. 2 Thrush 137

Act IV. Sc. 2 Kite 46

Act IV. Sc. 2 Woodcock 230

Act IV. Sc. 3 Jay 121

Act IV. Sc. 3 Falcon 64

Act IV. Sc. 3 Swallow 277

Act IV. Sc. 3 Crow 113

Act IV. Sc. 3 Dove 185

Act IV. Sc. 3 Turtles 180, 192

Act IV. Sc. 3 Choughs 118

Act IV. Sc. 3 Pheasant 210

Act IV. Sc. 4 Dove's down 194

Act V. Sc. 3 [Turtle] 180

Lucrece:

Venus' doves 190

Limed 160

Cloy'd 31

Owls 97

Dove 190

[Night-Owl] 83

Falcon 61

Fowl 61

Vulture 41

[Hawk] 72

Cuckoos 149

Sparrows 149

Ravens 110

[Crow] 110

Swan 201

[Eagles] 23

Philomel 125

[Fowls] 235

The Passionate Pilgrim:

Dove 180

Philomela 125

Lark 130

Nightingale 125

The Ph?nix and Turtle:

Eagle 23

Swan 201

Crow 110

Turtle 191

Sonnets:

XXIX. Lark 132

LXX. Crow 110

LXXXVI. Gulls 269

XCI. Hawks 72

CII. Philomel 125

CXIV. Crow 110

Dove 180

Venus and Adonis:

Doves 180, 190

Eagle 38

Tire 38

Dive-dapper 258

Crows 113

Owl 98

Vulture 41

Falcon 56

Lure 56

Lark 131

Doves of Paphos 190

FOOTNOTES.

1. Such words are there enclosed in brackets [ ].

2. Amongst the entries in the Council Book of the Corporation of Stratford, during the period that John Shakespeare, the Poet's father, was a member of the Municipal body (he filled the office of Chamberlain in 1573), the name occurs one hundred and sixty-six times under fourteen different modes of spelling.

3. "An Inquiry into the Authenticity of various Pictures and Prints, which, from the decease of the Poet to our own times, have been offered to the public as Portraits of Shakespeare." By James Boaden. London, 1824.

4. "An Inquiry into the History, Authenticity, and Characteristics of the Shakespeare Portraits." By Abraham Wivell. London, 1827.

5. The Stratford Portrait was doubtless painted from the bust, and probably about the time of the Garrick Jubilee, 1769.

6. Boaden adds: "Let it be remembered in aid of this inference that tradition has invariably assigned to him, as an actor, characters in the decline of life, and that one of his relatives is reported to have seen him in the part of old Adam, the faithful follower of Orlando, in that enchanting pastoral comedy As You Like It." Op. cit., p. 22.

7. "Life Portraits of William Shakespeare," by J. Hain Friswell. London, 1864.

8. We have, unfortunately, no proof that Joseph Taylor, the player, ever painted portraits. There was a contemporary, however, named John Taylor, who was an artist, and it is possible that these two have been confounded.

Boaden refers the picture to Burbage, "who is known to have handled the pencil." Op. cit., p. 49.

9. Taylor was thirty-three when Shakespeare died in 1616, and survived him thirty-seven years.

10. This will, it appears, is not to be found (Wivell, Op. cit., p. 49), but it matters little, if we are assured that Davenant possessed the picture.

11. These passages will be found duly criticised in Chapter II.

12. In the following passage from The Tempest, Shakespeare, à propos of fish, gives one of many proofs of his knowledge of human nature. Trinculo comes upon the strange form of Caliban lying flat on the sands:-"What have we here? A man, or a fish? dead or alive? A fish: he smells like a fish: a very ancient and fish-like smell; a kind of, not of the newest, poor-John. A strange fish! Were I in England now (as once I was), and had but this fish painted, not a holiday fool there but would give a piece of silver: there would this monster make a man: any strange beast there makes a man: when they will not give a doit to relieve a lame beggar, they will lay out ten to see a dead Indian!"-Tempest, Act ii. Sc. 2.

13. The author of "The Treatyse of Fysshynge wyth an Angle, 1496," makes the following quaint remarks on the superiority of "Fysshynge" over "Huntynge":-"For huntynge, as to myn entent, is too laboryous, for the hunter must alwaye renne and followe his houndes: traueyllynge and swetynge full sore. He blowyth tyll his lyppes blyster. And when he weenyth it be an hare, full oft it is an hegge hogge. Thus he chasyth and wote not what."

14. The subject of Bird-catching will be fully discussed in a subsequent chapter.

15. Letter from Rowland White to Sir Robert Sidney, dated 12th Sept. 1600.

16. Nichols' "Progresses, Processions, and Magnificent Festivities of Queen Elizabeth," vol. iii. p. 90. (1788–1805.)

17. "A forester is an officer of the forest sworn to preserve the vert and venison therein, and to attend the wild beasts within his bailiwick, and to watch and endeavour to keep them safe, by day and night. He is likewise to apprehend all offenders in vert and venison, and to present them to the Courts of the Forest, to the end they may be punished according to their offences."-The Gentleman's Recreation. 1686.

18. "We say the deer is 'broken up,' the fox and hare are 'cased.'"-The Gentleman's Recreation. 1686.

From this ancient practice, too, is derived the phrase, "to eat humble pie," more correctly written "umble pie." This was a venison pasty, made of the umbles (heart, liver, and lungs), and always given to inferiors, and placed low down on the table when the squire feasted publicly in the hall.

19. "The coney is called the first year 'a rabbet,' and afterwards 'an old coney.' He is a beast of the warren, and not a beast of venery."-The Gentleman's Recreation. 1686.

20. Brock is the old name for badger, and we still find the word occurring in many names of places, possibly thereby indicating localities where the badger was formerly common. Of these may be mentioned, Brockhurst in Shropshire, Brockenhurst in Kent, Brockenborough in Wiltshire, Brockford in Suffolk, Brockhall in Northampton, Brockhampton in Oxford, Dorset, Gloucester, and Herefordshire, Brockham Green in Surrey, Brockholes in Lancashire and Yorkshire, Brock-le-bank in Cumberland, Brocklesby in Lincolnshire, Brockley in Somersetshire, Brockley in Suffolk, Brockley Hill in Kent, Brockley Hill in Hertfordshire, Brockmoor in Staffordshire, Brockworth in Gloucestershire.

21. See also Winter's Tale, Act iv. Sc. 3.

22. In the Midland Counties, the bat is often called leathern-wings. Compare the high German "leder-maus."

23.

·····"hedgehogs which

Lie tumbling in my bare-foot way, and mount

Their pricks at my footfall."

Tempest, Act ii. Sc. 2.

24. "Rere-mouse" from the old English "hrere-mus," literally a raw mouse. The adjective "rere" is still used in Wiltshire for "raw." The bat is also known as the "rennie-mouse" or "reiny-mouse," although Miss Gurney, in her "Glossary of Norfolk Words," gives "ranny" for the shrew-mouse. The old name of "flittermouse," "fluttermouse," or "fliddermouse," from the high German, "fledermaus," does not appear in Shakespeare's works.

25. "The Natural History of the Insects mentioned in Shakspeare's Plays," by Robert Patterson, 12mo. Lond. 1841.

26. Mudie, "Feathered Tribes of the British Islands," i. p. 82.

27. "De Bello Judico," iii. 5.

28. Xenophon, "Cyrop?dia," vii.

29. "Annals and Magazine of Natural History," June, 1864.

30. Colquhoun, "The Moor and the Loch," p. 330. And this is not an isolated instance. See Newton, "Ootheca Wolleyana," Part I. p. 11.

31. Pennant, "British Zoology."

32. Yarrell, "History of British Birds."

33. "Rural Sports," vol. i. p. 246.

34. "Dissertations," vol. i. p. 173.

35. See Pennant's "Arctic Zoology," ii. p. 195; Sir J. Malcolm's "Sketches of Persia;" Johnston's "Sketches of Indian Field Sports;" Atkinson's "Travels in Oriental and Western Siberia," and Burton's "Falconry in the Valley of the Indus."

36. Folio, 1676. Part ii. p. 169.

37. "Memoirs of Stephen Grellet," i. p. 459.

38. See "The Naturalist" for May, 1837.

39. "Tour in Sutherland," vol. i. p. 113.

40. "The Great Sahara," p. 392.

41. "Tour in Sutherland," vol. i. p. 121.

42. The name, no doubt, of a favourite falcon.

43. Tardif, "Treatise on Falconry."

44. No doubt a corruption of "erne," a name which is still given to the sea eagle (Aquila albicilla).

45. See his "Faerie Queene," Book III. Canto 4.

46. This scarce volume, of which we are fortunate enough to possess a copy, contains the work of the Emperor Frederic II., "De arte venandi cum avibus;" Albertus Magnus, "De Falconibus;" as also a digest of Hubner's work. "Sur le vol des oiseaux de proie," and other ancient and rare works on Falconry.

47. Salvin and Brodrick, "Falconry in the British Islands," pp. 38, 39.

48. To "cry on" anything was a familiar expression formerly. In Othello (Act v. Sc. 1), we read-

"Whose noise is this that 'cries on' murder?"

And in Richard III. (Act v. Sc. 3), Richmond says:-

"Methought, their souls, whose bodies Richard murder'd,

Came to my tent, and 'cried on' victory."

To "cry havoc" appears to have been a signal for indiscriminate slaughter. The expression, "Cry havoc, kings!" occurs in King John, Act ii. Sc. 2; and again in Julius C?sar, Act iii. Sc. 1:-

"Cry havoc, and let slip the dogs of war."

In Coriolanus (Act iii. Sc. 1), Menenius says-

"Do not cry Havoc, where you should but hunt

With modest warrant."

49. Salvin and Brodrick, "Falconry in the British Islands."

50. His "bow," that is, his "yoke." Some editions read "low;" an evident mistake.

51. Compare, ante, pp. 57–59, "I'd whistle her off," &c.

52. Compare, ante, p. 52, "A falcon tow'ring in her pride of place," &c.

53. It will be observed that, in these pages, falconry is treated as a thing of the past, as indeed it is a sport now almost obsolete, and but few comparatively are acquainted with its technicalities.

54. The weapon of this name, the most important of small fire-arms, is said to have borrowed its title from this the most useful of small hawks, in the same way that other arms-as the falcon, falconet, and saker-have derived their names from larger and more formidable birds of prey. Against this view it is asserted that the musket was invented in the fifteenth century by the Muscovites, and owes its name to its inventors. See Bescherelle, "Dict. Nat.," and "The Target: a Treatise upon the Art Military," 1756.

55. December 30th, 1865.

56. Victor Fatio, "Les Campagnols du Bassin du Léman." Bale, Génève, et Paris. 1867. P. 16.

57. "Illustrations of Shakespeare, and of Ancient Manners." 1807.

58. "The Moor and the Loch."

59. "The Zoologist" for 1863, p. 8,765.

60. "Essays on Natural History," 1st Series, p. 14.

61. Stanley's "Familiar History of Birds," p. 179.

62. An excellent dissertation on the organ of voice in the raven will be found in the second volume of Yarrell's "British Birds," 3rd ed. p. 72.

63. Willughby's "Ornithology," folio, 1678. Book I. p. 25.

64. Stanley's "Familiar History of Birds," p. 188.

65. Compare, "A cyprus, not a bosom, hides my heart." Twelfth Night, Act iii. Sc. 1.

66. "To fear," that is, "to frighten."

67. According to Steevens, this is not merely a poetical supposition. "It is observed," he says, "of the nightingale that, if undisturbed, she sits and sings upon the same tree for many weeks together;" and Russell, in his "Account of Aleppo," tells us "the nightingale sings from the pomegranate groves in the day-time."

68. "Ovid. Metamorph." Book vi. Fab. 6.

69. These lines, although included in most editions of Shakespeare's Poems, are said to have been written by Richard Barnefield, and published in 1598 in a volume entitled "Poems in Divers Humors." (See Ellis's "Specimens of the Early English Poets," vol. ii. p. 356, and F. T. Palgrave's "Golden Treasury of the Best Songs and Lyrical Poems in the English Language," p. 21.) The "Passionate Pilgrim" was not published until 1599.

70. "Sir Thomas Browne's Works" (Wilkin's ed.), Vol. II. p. 537.

71. Not only does the nightingale sing by day, but she is by no means the only bird which sings at night. We have frequently listened with delight to the wood lark, skylark, thrush, sedge-warbler and grasshopper-warbler long after sunset, and we have heard the cuckoo and corncrake at midnight.

72. The "recorder" is mentioned in Midsummer Night's Dream, Act v. Sc. 1, and in Hamlet, Act iii. Sc. 2.

73. Bechstein "Ornithologisches Taschenbuch."

74. Shelley.

75. "The ruddock warbles soft."-Spenser's Epithalamium, I. 82.

76. Instead of "winter-ground" in the last line, Mr. Collier's annotator reads "winter-guard;" but "to winter-ground" appears to have been a technical term for protecting a plant from the frost by laying straw or hay over it.

77. See ante, p. 129.

78. "The English of Shakespeare," by G. L. Craik.

79. That is, the young cuckoo. The expression occurs again in The Merry Wives of Windsor, Act ii. Sc. 1:-

"Take heed, ere summer comes, or cuckoo-birds do sing."

80. "Epigrams (Black Letter), 1587."

81. "Musurgia Universalis." 1650. p. 30.

82. Pied, that is parti-coloured, of different hues. So in The Merchant of Venice, Act i. Sc. 3:-

"That all the yeanlings (i.e. young lambs) which were streaked and pied."

And in The Tempest, Caliban, alluding to the parti-coloured dress which Trinculo, as a jester, wore, says:-

"What a pied ninny's this."

Milton, in "L'allegro," speaks of "meadows trim with daisies pied."

83. "Lady-smocks" (Cardamine pratensis), a common meadow plant appearing early in the spring, and bearing white flowers. Sir J. E. Smith says they cover the meadows as with linen bleaching, whence the name of "ladysmocks" is supposed to come. Some authors say it first flowers about Ladytide, or the Feast of the Annunciation, hence its name.

84. Botanists are not agreed as to the particular plant intended by "cuckoo-buds." Miller, in his "Gardener's Dictionary," says the flower here alluded to is the Ranunculus bulbosus. One commentator on this passage has mistaken the Lychnis flos cuculi, or "cuckoo-flower" for "cuckoo-buds." Another writer says, "cuckoo-flower" must be wrong, and believes "cowslip-buds" the true reading, but this is clearly a mistake. Walley, the editor of Ben Jonson's Works, proposes to read "crocus-buds," which is likewise incorrect. Sidney Beisley, the author of "Shakespeare's Garden," thinks that Shakespeare referred to the lesser celandine, or pilewort (Ranunculus ficaria), as this flower appears early in Spring, and is in bloom at the same time as the other flowers named in the song.

85. See Chambers's "Book of Days," i. 531.

86. The "cresset-light" was a large lanthorn placed upon a long pole, and carried upon men's shoulders. (See Strutt's "Sports and Pastimes," Introduction.)

87. Thornbury, "Shakespeare's England," vol. i. p. 339.

88. Sir S. D. Scott, "The British Army: its Origin, Progress, and Equipment," vol. ii. pp. 80, 81.

89. "The British Army: its Origin, Progress, and Equipment." London, 1868, vol. ii. pp. 284–286.

90. Note here the use of the word "extravagant" in its primary signification, implying, of the ghost, its wandering beyond its proper sphere.

91. Apropos of ale-house signs, Shakespeare gives us the origin of "The Bear and Ragged Staff." It is the crest of the Earls of Warwick.

Warwick. "Now, by my father's badge, old Neville's crest,

The rampant bear chain'd to the ragged staff."

Henry VI. Part II. Act v. Sc. 1.

92. "The Compleat Gamester," 1709.

93. "The Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication," i. 235.

94. Id. i. 236, 237.

95. See also Taming of the Shrew, Act iv. Sc. 1, and Tempest, Act iv. Sc. 1.

96. Darwin, "Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication," i. 290.

97. Pro. Zool. Soc. April 24th, 1860.

98. Darwin, op. cit.

99. Baker's "Chronicle."

100. It is observable, however, that in "The Privy Purse Expenses of King Henry VIII." turkies are not once mentioned amongst the fowls to be provided for the table.

101. "Journal Asiatic Society, Bengal," vol. xxix. p. 38.

102. Pp. 390, 391.

103. In the ruined temple of Medineet Haboo is a representation of the coronation of the famous warrior, King Rameses III. (B.C. 1297). "The conquering hero, among the clamours of the populace, and shouts of his victorious army, is depicted proceeding to the temple to offer his grateful thanks to the gods; and whilst certain priests in their gorgeous robes are casting incense about, and offering up sacrifices at many a smoking altar, others are employed in letting off carrier-pigeons to announce the glad tidings to every quarter of the globe."-Leith Adams, Notes of a Naturalist in the Nile Valley and Malta, p. 27.

104. A good description of these whistles, by Mr. Tegetmeier, with illustrations, will be found in the Field of the 12th March, 1870.

105. Darwin, "Variation of Animals and Plants under Domestication," i. pp. 204, 205.

106. Hunter "On the Animal Economy," p. 194.

107. "Illustrations of British Ornithology."

108. "Ornithological Dictionary," Preface, 1st edition.

109. "Pigeons: their Structure, Varieties, Habits, and Management." By W. B. Tegetmeier, F.Z.S. London, 1868.

110. "Glossary," 4to. Lond. 1822.

111. Sir W. Raleigh, "History of the World," Book I. Part i. c. 6.

112. See ante, p. 143.

113. Translated from the French by Sir Thos. Mallory, Knt., and first printed by Caxton, A.D. 1481.

114. See "Chambers's Dictionary," last ed., article "Chase;" also Holt White's note to this passage in the "Variorum Shakespeare."

115. Wood's "Buffon," xix. p. 511, note.

116. This, it will be observed, differs materially from Col. Hawker's observation.

117. "Essays on Natural History," second series, p. 128.

118. See end of Chapter V.

119. See "The Ibis," 1869. p. 358.

120. As a copy of the "Northumberland Household Book" is not readily accessible, we give the following interesting extract, showing the price, at that date, of various birds for the table:-

Capons at iid. a pece leyn (lean).

Chickeyns at ?d. a pece.

Hennys at iid. a pece.

Swannys (no price stated).

Geysse iiid. or iiiid. at the moste.

Pluvers id. or i?d. at moste.

Cranys xvid. a pece.

Hearonsewys (i.e. Heronshaws or Herons) xiid. a pece.

Mallardes iid. a pece.

Teylles id. a pece.

Woodcokes id. or i?d. at the moste.

Wypes (i.e. Lapwings) id. a pece.

Seegulles id. or i?d. at the moste.

Styntes after vi. a id.

Quaylles iid. a pece at moste.

Snypes after iii. a id.

Perttryges at iid. a pece.

Redeshankes i?d.

Bytters (i.e. Bitterns) xiid.

Fesauntes xiid

Reys (i.e. Ruffs and Reeves) iid. a pece.

Sholardes vid. a pece.

Kyrlewes xiid. a pece.

Pacokes xiid. a pece.

See-Pyes (no price).

Wegions at i?d. the pece.

Knottes id. a pece.

Dottrells id. a pece.

Bustardes (no price).

Ternes after iiii. a id.

Great byrdes after iiii. a id.

Small byrdes after xii. for iid.

Larkys after xii. for iid.

121. "Extracts from the Household and Privy Purse Accounts of the L'estranges of Hunstanton, 1519–1578." (Trans. Roy. Soc. Antiq. 1833.)

122. "The Privy Purse Expenses of the Princess Mary, 1536–1544." (Edited by Sir F. Madden, 1831.)

123. Some interesting remarks on pheasant and partridge-hawking will be found in Freeman and Salvin's "Falconry; its Claims, History, and Practice," pp. 233, 235.

124. Vide Julius Pollux, "De ludis," lib. ix.

125. "Musurgia Universalis," 1650, p. 30.

126. In Sweden the bird is known as wipa to this day.

127. The fine was 8d. for every egg. See 3 & 4 Ed. VI. c. 7, and 25 Hen. VIII. c. 11.

128. "Falconry; its History, Claims, and Practice," by G. E. Freeman and F. H. Salvin. London, 1859.

129. Leland states, that at the feast given on the inthronisation of George Neville, Archbishop of York, in the reign of Edward IV., no less than "400 Heronshawes" were served up!

130. Every Man Out of his Humour, Act iii. Sc. 3.

131. Thornbury, "Shakespeare's England," vol. i. pp. 169, 170.

132. Thornbury, "Shakespeare's England," i. p. 21; see also p. 33.

133. "The Gentleman's Recreation." 1595.

134. See pp. 164, 165.

135. "The British Army: its Origin, Progress, and Equipment," vol. ii. p. 286.

136. See the Report in Maitland's "Hist. of London," p. 594.

137. "An Answer to the Opinion of Captain Barwicke." (Harl. MSS., No. 4,685.)

138. Their numbers, in Mr. Hewitt's official Tower Catalogue, are 12/10 and 12/11.

139. "Brief Discourse of War, 1590."

140. Peck's "Desid. Cur."

141. Bandoleers consisted of a belt of leather worn over the left shoulder, on which were suspended little metal, wooden, leather, or horn cylinders, each containing one charge. Examples are preserved in the Tower of London.

142. Harl. MSS., No. 5,109.

143. Brant?me, "?uvres," tom. vii. pp. 425–429.

144. Sidney, "Arcadia," ii. p. 169.

145. See ante, p. 197.

146. Aldrovandi Opera Omina: Ornithologia. 3 vols. Bononi?. 1599.

147. "Philosophical Transactions," l.c.

148. The doctrine of Pythagoras is again alluded to by Gratiano, who says:-

"Thou almost mak'st me waver in my faith,

To hold opinion with Pythagoras,

That souls of animals infuse themselves

Into the trunks of men."

Merchant of Venice, Act iv. Sc. 1.

149. In China, at the present day, an allied species, Ph. sinensis, is reared and trained to fish.

150. This diary is amongst the additional MSS. in the British Museum. It is bound in soft parchment, and entered in the catalogue as "Wurmser, H. J.: Travels with Louis, Count (?) of Wurtemberg, 20,001."

151. The presence of the King at Thetford at this date, as on other occasions, is recorded in the "Progresses, Processions, and Magnificent Festivities of King James the First," as published in four volumes by John Nichols, F.S.A., in 1828.

152. The above extracts were communicated by Mr. Salvin to Mr. Frank Buckland's journal, Land and Water, in 1867, in a series of articles on "Cormorant Fishing."

Some interesting chapters on the subject will be found at the end of Freeman and Salvin's "Falconry; its Claims, History, and Practice." 8vo, 1859.

153. Sidney Bere, in Land and Water, April 20, 1867.

154. In "Chambers's Journal" for 1859, will be found an interesting article upon the subject, entitled "The King and his Cormorants."

155. Mr. Salvin, to whom we have before referred, and Mr. E. C. Newcome, of Feltwell Hall, Norfolk, still keep and use trained cormorants; as, through the kindness of the former, we have had pleasant opportunities of attesting.

156. Geck-a laughing-stock. According to Capel, from the Italian ghezzo. Dr. Jamieson, however, derives it from the Teutonic geck, jocus.

157. See also Othello, Act v. Sc. 2, and Timon of Athens, Act ii. Sc. 1.

158. See D'Israeli's "Curiosities of Literature," iii. p. 84.

159. Thornbury, "Shakespeare's England," vol. i. pp. 311, 312. Doubtless compiled from Greene's "Art of Coney Catching," 1591, and Decker's "English Villanies," 1631.

160. Compare "Redbreast-teacher," Henry IV. Part I. Act iii. Sc. 1.

161. To this day the bird is still called "Martin-pécheur" by the French.

162. "Arondell," no doubt the old French, or a corruption of "Hirondelle."

163. One would suppose that such a foreign substance as a "swallow-stone" in the eye would be much more inconvenient than the eyelash which it was destined to remove.

164. Curious, if true. Dr. Lebour does not say that he ever found such stones himself, nor does he vouch for their having been found by others in the nests. We have examined a great number of swallows' nests without being able to discover anything of the kind.

165. Pliny makes mention of a "swallow-stone," but says nothing about its being found in the nest. On the contrary, he says it is found in the stomach of the bird! "In ventre hirundinum pullus lapilli candido aut rubenti colore, qui 'chelidonii' vocantur, magicis narrati artibus reperiuntur."

166. The substance of the above remarks was contributed by the author in an article published in The Zoologist for 1867, p. 744.

167. "The Birds of India," iii. p. 610.

168. Some editions read-

"All plum'd like estridges that wing the wind;

Bated like eagles having lately bath'd."

But we have adopted the above reading in preference for three reasons: 1. Considering the rudimentary nature of the ostrich's wing, Shakespeare would not have been so incorrect as to describe them as "winging the wind;" 2. The word "bated," if intended to refer to eagles, and not to ostriches, would have been more correctly "bating;" 3. The expression, "to bate with the wind," is well understood in the language of falconry, with which Shakespeare was familiar.

169. Cinquième séries, tom. viii. pp. 285–293.

170. Ibis, 1868, pp. 363–370.

171. "Oiseaux Fossiles de la France," p. 230.

172. "Synopsis," iii. p. 577 (1785).

173. "Suppl. Orn. Dict." (1813).

174. "Hist. Brit. An." p. 118 (1828).

175. "Works:" Wilkin's ed. vol. iv. p. 318.

INDEX.

A.

Adder, 13, 15, 16, Intro.

Aiery, 39.

B.

Badger, 12, Intro.

Bandoleers, 243.

Bat, 13, 14, Intro.

Bat-fowling, 157–160.

Barnacle Goose, 247.

Barnacles, 247–256.

Bating, 62.

Bee, 17, 18, 19, Intro.

Beetle, 17, 20, Intro.

Bells, 60.

Bird-bolts, 163.

Bird-catching, 4, 157.

Birding, 72.

Birding-pieces, 72, 164, 239.

Bird of Jove, 28, 29.

Bird-lime, 160.

Bird-traps, 162.

Birds of song, 123.

Birds under domestication, 167.

Blackbird, 139.

Black Ouzel, 139.

Brock, 12, Intro.

Bunting, 136.

Butterfly, 17, Intro.

Buzzard, 47.

C.

Cadge, 63.

Cadger, 64.

Caliver, 239. derivation of, 240.

description of, 240.

figure of, 242.

price of, 243.

Camelot, 198, 199.

Caterpillar, 17, Intro.

Chase, Wild-goose, 199.

Chough, 115. and Crow, 116.

language of, 117.

red-legged, 119.

russet-pated, 119.

Cloys, 31, 32.

Cock, 167. ancestry of domestic, 174.

Cock-a-hoop, 169, 170.

Cock and pye, 171.

Cock-crow, 168.

Cock-fighting, 172–174.

Coistrel, 74.

Cormorants, 259. fishing with, 260.

the King's, 261–264.

home of the, 265.

Coursing, 12, Intro.

Coystril, 74.

Cricket, 17, Intro.

Crow, 99. black as a, 113.

food for, 112.

Crow, habits of, 111. -keeper, 114.

Night-, 102.

Scare-, 114.

to pluck, 114.

Crows and their relations, 99.

Cry havoc, 57.

Cuckoo, 147–156. habits of, 150.

note of, 151.

songs, 152–156.

Cygnet, 201–206.

D.

Daw, 119.

Deer-hunting, 8, Intro. -shooting, 4, Intro.

-stealing, 6, Intro.

wounded, 10, Intro.

Dive-dapper, 258.

Divers, 258.

Dove, 191. of Paphos, 191.

of Venus, 191.

Rock-, 190.

Turtle-, 191.

Dove-house, 180.

Dove, Mahomed's, 193. timidity of, 195.

Doves, dish of, 196.

Dormouse, 13, Intro.

Drone, 17, 19, Intro.

Duck, 237. -hunting, 237.

E.

Eagle, 23–40. age of, 35.

eggs of, 32.

eye, 25.

eyrie of, 38.

longevity of, 33–35.

omen of victory, 27.

power of flight, 25, 26.

power of vision, 24.

Eagle trained for hawking, 36, 37. the Roman, 28–30.

Enmew, 64, 66.

Eyas-musket, 74.

Eyesses, 57, 58.

Eyrie, 39, 57.

F.

Falcon, 52. docility of the, 54.

-gentle, 53.

Haggard-, 57–59.

and Tercel, 52.

Falconer, 54. qualities of a good, 55.

call of the, 55.

wages of, 80.

Finch, 144.

Fishing, 3, Intro.

Fly, Blow-, 17, Intro. Gad-, 17, Intro.

House-, 17, 20, Intro.

small Gilded-, 17, Intro.

Flying at the brook, 51.

Forester, 6, 10, Intro.

Fowl, 235. flight of, 236.

Sea-, 235.

Wild-, 235–237.

Fowling, 4, Intro.

Fox, 11, Intro.

G.

Game-birds, 209. former value of, 212.

laws, 215.

preserving, 209–214.

Gin, the, 231.

Glowworm, 17, Intro.

Gnat, 17, Intro.

Goose, 197. a green-, 197.

a stubble-, 198.

former value of a, 197.

Wild-, 246.

Grasshopper, 17, Intro.

Grebe, 258. Great-crested, 258.

Little, 258.

Guinea-fowl, 179.

Gull, 266. -catchers, 267.

-gropers, 268.

H.

Haggard, 57–59.

Halcyon, 275. days, 275.

Hare, 11, Intro.

Hawks, 49. how to seel, 70.

keep of, 79.

trappings of, 58–64.

value of, 77, 78.

unmann'd, 62.

Hawking, age of, 50. sundries, 80–82.

terms, 51.

Hedgehog, 13, Intro.

Hernshaw, 75, 223.

Heron, 223. -hawking, 224–228.

in bills of fare, 228.

Hood, 61.

Hounds, 8, 9, Intro.

Hunting, 4, Intro.

I.

Jackdaw, 119.

Jay, 121.

Jesses, 58, 59.

Imping, 67, 68.

Jove's bird, 28, 29.

K.

Kestrel, 73.

Kingfisher, 275.

Kite, 43–47. habits of, 46.

nest of, 47.

ill-omened, 45.

L.

Lang-nebbit things, 228.

Lapwing, 221. decoying from nest, 221.

Lark, 130. at heaven's gate, 132.

herald of morn, 131.

soaring and singing, 135.

song of the, 130–134.

method of taking, 130.

the ploughman's clock, 133.

Lime, 160.

Loon, 258, 259.

Lure, description of the, 55. use of the, 56.

M.

Magpie, 120.

Mallard, 238.

Marten, 33.

Martin, 277.

Martlet, 277, 278.

Mole, 13, Intro.

Moth, 17, Intro.

Mew, 64. origin of the word, 65.

Mews, the Royal, 65, 66.

Musket, 74.

N.

Night-crow, 102.

Nightingale, 124. lamenting, 125.

recording, 129.

singing against a thorn, 126, 127.

singing by day, 128.

song of, 124.

O.

Owl, 83–98. its associations, 83.

its character maligned, 93.

Owl, its comrades, 97. its fame in song, 96.

its five wits, 95.

its habits misunderstood, 86.

its utility to the farmer, 87.

its use in medicine, 84.

its note, 90.

its retiring habits, 94.

robbing nests, 91.

of ill-omen, 85.

Osprey, 41. its power over fish, 43.

Ostrich, 286.

Ouzel, 139.

P.

Parrot, 272. -teacher, 273.

Partridge, 216. in kite's nest, 216.

-hawking, 217.

netting-, 218.

Peacock, 175. introduction of, 176.

value of, 175.

variety of, 176.

Peewit, 222.

Pelican, 286. fable of the, 287.

explanation of fable, 288–294.

Pelicans in England, 295.

Pheasant, 210. introduction of, 211.

-hawking, 217.

Pigeon, 180. Barbary-, 189.

Carrier-, 183.

domesticated, 181.

-fanciers, 182.

feeding young, 186.

-liver'd, 185.

-post, 184.

price of, 196.

Pitch, 51.

Plantage, 192.

Point, 51.

Prune, 31.

Q.

Quail, 218. -fighting, 219.

note of the, 220.

Quaint recipes, 71.

Quarry, 57.

R.

Rabbit, 12, Intro. -netting, 12, Intro.

Raven, 100. of ill-omen, 101.

deserting its young, 106.

feathers of, 107.

food of, 105.

presence on battle-fields, 104.

supposed prophetic power, 103.

variety of, 109.

Recipes, quaint, 71.

Redbreast, 139. -teacher, 142.

Robin, 139.

Rock-dove, 190.

Rook, 121.

Ruddock, 140. covering with leaves, 141.

S.

Sea-fowl, 235.

Sea-gulls, 266.

Sea-mells, 270.

Seel, 69.

Seeling, 69.

Slow-worm, 16, Intro.

Snake, 13, 15, Intro.

Snipe, 233. -netting, 234.

Souse, 38, 39.

Sparrow, 144. fall of a, 146.

hedge-, 147.

Sparrow, Philip, 145. value of a, 146.

Sparrowhawk, 73.

Springes, 229. how to make, 230.

Stag, wounded, 10, Intro.

Stale, 244. how to make a, 245.

Stalking, 238.

Stalking-horse, 238.

Starlings, 274. talking, 274.

Stoop, 63.

Swallow, 277.

Swallow's herb, 279. stone, 283.

Swan, 201. habits of the, 204.

nest of the, 204.

song of the, 202.

Swan's down, 206.

Swans of Juno, 206. warrant for, 207.

Squirrel, 13, Intro.

T.

Tassel-gentle, 54.

Tercel, 53. and Falcon, 52.

Throstle, 137. song of the, 138.

Tire, 38.

Tower, 39, 51.

Towering, 39, 51.

Toad, 13, 15, Intro.

Tradition, a curious, 88.

Trout, 3, Intro.

Turkey, 177. introduction of, 177.

Turkey-fowl, 179.

Turtle-dove, 191.

V.

Vulture, 40. repulsive habits of, 41.

W.

Wagtail, 156.

Wasp, 17, Intro.

Watching, 45.

Weasel, 13, 32.

Wild-cat, 13, Intro.

Wild-duck, 237.

Wild-fowl, 235, 257.

Wild-goose, 246.

Wild-goose chase, 199.

Winter-ground, 141.

Wren, 142. courage of, 143.

pugnacity of, 143.

song of, 143.

Woodcock, 228, 271. springe for a, 229.

Woodcock's head, the, 232.

Woodfall and Kinder, Printers, Milford Lane, Stand, London. W.C.

Transcriber's Notes.

Punctuation has been standardised, and simple typographical errors have been repaired. Variations in hyphenation and obsolete or variant spelling have been preserved.

The marker for Footnote 162 is missing in the original text, and has been left unmarked.

In the original book's List of Illustrations and Appendix, repeated text is indicated by dittos; in this e-book, the repeated text is copied in full.

The cover image included with the EPUB and MOBI versions was made by the transcriber and has been placed in the public domain.

The following changes have also been made:

Page 76: ancent => ancient: (the ancient ?gyptians).

Page 182: Shangai => Shanghai: (Dr. Lockhart of Shanghai).