Come, fairy bird, and my sheltering trees
Shall shield thy wing from the ruffling breeze:
Come, merrily flit through the fragrant bed,
And visit each flower by the summer dew fed.
Hail! sylph-like bird, on thy airy wing;
Fly hither, fly hither, thou fairy thing.

ORDER PASSERES.

The Furze-Wren, or Dartford Warbler.

Motacilla Provincialis.-LINN. Le Pitchou de Provence.

-Buff.

THIS elegant little bird, though abundant in many parts of England, has hitherto been so little known to ornithologists, that even Bewick was unable to give more than a very meagre account of it. It has the colours of the robin, with a more graceful form. It is about five inches in length, of which the tail is about one half.*

We are indebted to the kindness of the ornithological friend before referred to, for the following detailed account of its habits, which we give in his own words.

"This is a very interesting bird, and far from

being generally known. I have occasionally met with clever ornithologists, who have never seen it: the more extraordinary, as it is a frequenter of almost every district where furzebushes grow. Bewick places it next the nightingale, from which I infer, he thought its habits similar to that bird; they are, however, very different. I have paid considerable attention to these little warblers, and consider them decidedly a species of wren. Their manner of flight, general motions, and great propensity for concealment, are all indicative of their relation to that family, but they do not flirt their tails quite so much as the wrens. They are so dark in colour, as to appear almost black when flying. The Dartford warbler, or furze-wren, as I would willingly call it, is so peculiar in evading sight, that although common in this neighbourhood, (the Sussex border of Surrey,) I have often been in pursuit of them for many successive months, without getting sight of a single bird; yet I have seldom been disappointed of seeing them, when hunting the furze for rabbits with beagles. These little dogs disturb them more than anything else. I have often tried beating the furze with a large stick, when I knew they were in the bushes, but could scarcely ever get them out that way. On the Brighton downs, where the groups of furze in

some places are thin and far apart, when these birds have taken shelter in a small patch of them, boys have been known to drive them from bush to bush, until they have tired them out, and fairly run them down. I have procured several that have fallen a sacrifice in that way. They seem quite out of their element when they cannot hide. I have known them caught by the hand in a single furze-bush, rather than quit it. Their last resource is to creep to the lowest part of the furze, and close to the ground; in which case I have known instances of their being trampled upon, the bush, a solitary one, being trodden all over in order to make them start from it. Bewick says they are supposed sometimes to winter with us: I am convinced they always winter with us. They are the least likely of any of the motacillas to be birds of passage, because, as I before observed, they live almost entirely in the thickest furze, which would, throughout the winter, afford them an ample supply of food, (insects of course,) and shelter from the bitterest storms. Early in the spring, the male birds are seen sitting on the tops of the furze, and singing sweetly. Their notes are somewhat similar to the common wren; more varied and lengthened, but not half so powerful, and rather plaintive.

E

"All I can say of the eggs and

nests of the Some eggs

furze-wrens, must be surmise only. brought me by boys, I have supposed might belong to these birds; but those of the willow and common wrens, also the tit-mice, assimilate so nearly, it is difficult to ascertain them separately, unless the birds and nests are watched. I cannot suppose the nest to be oval, nor does it follow it should be shaped thus like the nests of other wrens, because I think it would be an unnecessary provision, if placed in the thick furze, and that I have no doubt is the situation usually chosen for it. This is nearly all I know about these birds, except that, after long enquiry, I have found that they are known by men and boys where the furze is abundant, by the name of red eyes. You cannot do better than copy Bewick's description as to the size and colour of the birds in question."

W. K.

THE FURZE-WREN.

Bird of the desert, thy home may not be

In

groves of Arabian spicery:

No dwelling hast thou in the fertile vale

Where clustering roses have scented the gale;
The waste places are thine, sweet warbling bird,
Thy notes of joy in the desert are heard.

My spirit is glad while I listen to thee;
There are songs in the wilderness also for me.

In the lonely wild thou hast made thy nest,
And the thorny gorse is thy place of rest,
Yet dost thou sit on its branches and sing,
Making the waste with thy melody ring.
Bird of the desert, who cheerest my way,
There's a lesson for me in thy joyous lay.
There are golden flowers on the thorny tree;
There are songs of the wilderness also for me.

Bird of the desert, I too have a song,
A hymn of joy, as I travel along:

The fairest flowers that my pathway adorn,
Spring up in the shade of some rankling thorn.
Strains of thanksgiving and praise be mine,
For blessings more lofty and lasting than thine.
My spirit is glad while I listen to thee;
There are songs in the wilderness also for me.