Daily American organ. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1856, 1855-07-27
NUMBER PIG.
AMERICAN ORGAN.
From Chambers's journal Tor July.
The Siege OF the Swallows.
This guest Of SUNNI,

The Siege OF the Swallows.
This guest of summer,
| The temple-hauntng martet, does approve,
by his loved mansionry, that the Heavens breath
Smells wooingy here: no jutty, frieze, buttress,
| Nor coigne OF vantage, but this bird hath made
His pendent bed, and procreant cradle: where they
Most breed and haunt have observed, the air
| ls delicate.
The swallow of this kind, however, Is not always
tempe-hunting or church-going swallow. occa-
sionsy, he contents himself with the abode of the
priest; and some years ago, when staying at tic
rectory OF Stanbourne, a retired village in Essex,
was greatly interested IN siege he and some of
his Deighbors galanty sustained in dwellings, they
had built under the caves of the house.
In the latter part OF spring, these birds make
their appearance with US in England If the weather
| Ia fine but whence they come, il would be more
difficult TO tell Many years ago an anonymous
Person OF Learning and Piety" propounded the
theory, that they spent their hybernaton eitherin
the moon or IN some intermediate planet, too small
TO be visible from the earth, lying il the gulf OF
space, just AS rocky islands arc found in the mid.
die OF the sea, OF no other obvious use than for
fowls TO rest aud breed upon.
This idea, however, after being thoroughly siited
by the naturalist Ray and his correspondents, was
dismissed as untenable; even the nearest planet
being too far of for such purpose. CLAUS Mag.
nus was the first who proposed the submarine the
ory--or, rather, who stated as simple fact what
was received as such by the descending line Of
| philosophers, including Lnn@us and his rival
| Klein, down to Baron Cuvier, that the swallow,
like the little old man Of German tradition, tucked
himself under the water for his winters sleep The
most authentic narratives were gven--one of them
read to Royal Society-of the lunches of swal-
lows that were dragged up from the bottom by
| fishermen; and il was stated that although the
birds We're nsensble, their hearts were still pull
sating! At length, il occurred to some person Ia
(Iprnapy To bring the uupgtinn Tn a tAuf
and he at once offered an equal weight In silver
for haul of the submarine swallows No reply
was received, and the authentic stories ceased.
Let US get to the building, however. Whether
he comes from the moon or the bottom of the wiz
ter, the swallow Is here, and sets to work at his
nest in the fashion thus described by White: "The
crust or shell of this nest seems to be formed of
such dirt or loan as comes most readily to hand
and is tempered and wrought together with little
bits OF broken straws, to render it tough and tena-
| cious. As this bird often builds against perpen.
dicular wall, without any projecting ledge under,
il requires its utmost efforts to get the first fun-
daon firmly fixed, 80 that it may safely carry the
superstructure On this occasion, the bird not
only clings with its claws, but partly supports It.
self by strongly inclining its tail against the wall
making that fulcrum; and thus steadied, it works
and plasters the materials into the face of the brick
or stone. BY this method, in aboutten or twelve
days, is formed hemisphere nest, with n small
hptItule tOWdTus tut Top, btTOuE, cOWpuct, uhu
warm, and perfectly fitted for all the purposes for
which 1t was intended.
"The shell or crust Of the nest Is sort of rustic
work, full OF knobs aud protuberances on the out
side nor is the inside of those that have ex-
amined smoothed with any exactness at ALL but is
rendered soft and warm, and 6t for incubation, by
lining of small straws grasses and feathers; anl
sometimes by bedding of moss, interviewer with
wool. Thoy often capicious in fixing
nesting-placc, beginning many edifccs and leav-
ing them unfinished; but when once nest Is COM
pleed in sheltered place, it generally serves for
several seasons Those which breed in ready
finished house, get the start in Matching Of thos,
that build new, by ten days or a fortnight. These
industrious artifcers at their abors In the long
days before four in the morning; when they fix
their materials, they plaster them with their
chin, moving their heads with a quick vibratory
motion"
The locality chosen by the swallows we have
now our eye upon, was, in the year In question,
in various former years, under the caves Of the
rectory of Stanbourne. The house Is an old-fasl-
ioned lathed and plastered parsonage; its project
ing gables united by transverse body, and this
protected from the midday sun by a pretty We
randa, covered with roses, clematis and woodbiue
The progress of the architecture Of their summer
visiters had been watched with interest," year after
year, by the worthy rector and his wife--by the
latter more especially, a close observer OF the
4
| them for ten days or fortnight The swallow, in
fact, is necessarily slow builder; for each layer
Of mud he places, requires some considerable time
to dry before anything can be superadded with
safety. Notwithstanding all his caution however,
the difficult job frequently fails; and occasionally
he has to begin several nests anew, before getting
one to hold. Some folk think him an idle work
man, because he is seen so much upon the wing,
flashing hither and thither, with other apparent
object than amusement but all this time bis nest
is drying and he knows he must not yet venture
| to touch it.
The nests we're at length completed, and we
thought there was nothing more 10 be seen till the
young should be peeping curiousy out Of their
| doors at a world into which they were called, they
| could not tell how or wherefore. But one morn
ing our attention was aroused by an unusual clat-
ter-by sounds, there was doubt, Of eria strife
and running out we saw the stronghold OF the
swallows attackel by troop OF spsrrows, whose
obvious design was to gain possession Of the ready
built, comfortable nests. We are not aware that
this proceeding is in accordance with the ordinary
habits of sparrows They build skilfully their own
nests, and are more careful in the choice Of local
ity than the swallows; aud we are driven, there
fore, TO the conclusion, that this entirely an
exceptional case, and that the besiegers were a
| colony whose dwellings had been either rendered
uncomfortable, or wholly destroyed, by some acci
| dental interference Of man or nature.
| II might be thought that the maraudlng party
| would have had no chance az all with creatures
strong and so wonderfully quick that il was dodbt
| less in reference TO them the orator alluded colt
fidently TO the fact Of birds be ng In two places
ut once. But there are some considerations that
| tell in favor of the sparrows They are a more
united body than the others. They go to work n
| concert, and live under fixed social laws. When
they are engaged in pundering, they have out.
lying pickets TO give the alarm in case Of need;
and they have secret courts Of fjusce for the trial
and punishment Of criminals. On these solemn
occasions, they betake themselves TO some solitary
place, perhaps at the outskirts of wood, and the
whole community gather and vocferate round the
offender, rcproaching him. no doubt, with his bnse
ness. What punishment follows we arc unable to
tell; for this secret tribunal has It's spies and sen.
tinels posted around, and, on the slightest alarm,
| the court breaks up, and changes the venue TO
some more solitary spot The very mystery Of tie
proceedings, however, is onlinous Of some terrible
catastrophe; and we turn away with shuddcr
from specuating the doom Of the guilty sparrow.
/ The sparrows, beside, are obstinate and deter