Winchester gazette. [volume] (Winchester, Va.) 18??-1826, 1822-05-25
MISCELLANY.
From Wilson'S american orn;tAoiqgy.
THE MOCKING BIRD.

ing gaudy or brilliant in it and had
no nothing else 10 recommend him,
| would scarcely eGtit!e him TO notice,
but his figure is we'll propor toned, and
even handsome. The ease. elegance,
and rapidity Of bis movements, the
animation of his eye, aud the intel!i.
; genoe be displays in listening, and lay
ing up lessons from aimost every spe-
eies Of the feathered creation within
his hearing, are really surprising and
mark the peculiarly of his genius.
To these qualities me may add that Of
a voice full, strong, and musisal, and
capable of almost every meditation,
from the clear mellow tones of the
Wood Thrush to the savage scream of
the Bald Eagle. In the measure aud ac.
cent, he faithfully follows his origi-
nass. In force and sweetness of ex-
preston, he greatly improves upon
them. In his native groves, mounted
on the top of tall bush or half grown
tree, in the dawn Of dewy mornings,
while the woods are already vocal with
a multitude of MARBLES, his admirable
song arises pre-eminent over every
competitor. The ear can listen to his
music alone, to which that of the others
seems mere accompaniment. Nei-
. Their Is this strain altogether initiative.
His own Dative notes, which are east
ly distinguishab!e by such as are we'll
acquainted with those of our various
song birds, are bold and full, and va
ried seemingly beyond all limits.
They consist of short expressions of 2,
3, or at the most 8 or 6 syllablcs, gen
! orally interspersed with limitations,
| and all of them uttered with great en-
phasis and rapidly, and continued
with undimiDished ardour for half an
hour or an hour, at time. His ex-
banded wings and tail giiltenins with
white, aud the buoyaut gaiety of his
action arresting The eye, ns his cong
most irresistably does the eur, he
sweeps round with enthusiastic ecstacy
he mounts and descenis az bis cong
swells or dies away and, as my friend
| Mr.. Bartram has beautifully express
sed il, Is He bounds alnft with the ce.
terity Of an arrow, as if to recover or
last elevated strain. While exer.
ting himself, bystander, destitute of
sight, would suppose that the whole
feathered tribe had assembled together
on a trial Of skill, each striving to pro.
| duce his utmost effect, SO perfect are
his limitations. He many times de-
eeiVas the sportsman, aud sends him in
search of birds that perhaps are not
! within miles Of him, but whose Botes
he exactly initiates even birds them
selves are frequently imposed on by
this admirable mimie, and are decoyed
by the faucied calls Of their mate or
dive, with precipitation, into the depth
OF thieketa, at the scream of what they
suppose TO be the Sparrow Hawk.
The Moc'liug Bird loses little of the
power and energy of his song by con-
finemeut' Ia his domesticatet state,
when he commences his career Of song,
IL is impossible TO stand By uninter.
| ested. Ee whistles for the dog Ca
ear starts up, wags his tail, and runs to
meet his master. He squeaks ont like a
hurt chicken, aad the hen hbrries a.
bout with hanging wings and bristled
feathers, eiuekiDg, TO protect her ia.
| jursd brood The barking of the
dog, the mewiug Of the eat, the creak-
| ing of passing wheei.bsrrow, Follow.
cd with great ruth and rapidity. He
repeats the tone taught him by his
! master, though Of considerable length,
fully and faithfully. He runs over
the quiVerings Of the Canary, and
the clear whislling OF the Virginia
Nightingale or Redbird, with such SUI
! perior execution and effect, that the
mortified suugsteTs feel their own in
feriority and become altogether silent,
while he seems TO triumph in their de.
feat by redOubling his eIeFtions.
The excessive fUnduess for variety,
however, in The opinion Of some, ina
| jures his gong. His elevated imita-
tIous Of the Brow Thrush are fire..
| quenIy interrupted by The growing Of
cocks and The warblings Of he Blue.
bird, which he exquisileiy manages,
ere mingled with the SCREENINGS of
| swallows, or the eackliDg Of bens;
amidst the simple melody Of the Robin,
we are suddenly surprised by the shrill
reiterations OF the Whip-poor will :
while The notes Of the KiIldeer, Blue
| Jay, Martin, aud twenty other, sue.
coed with such imposing reality, that
we look round for The originals, and
discover, with sstonishment. that the
sole performer in this singular concert
is the admirable bird now before us.
Burning this exhibition Of his powers,