The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-08-04
POWER OF FLIGHT IN BIRDS.
The Graceful swallow, the Swift
Moving Humming BIRD, and Others.

The Graceful swallow, the Swift
Moving Humming BIRD, and Others.
From the Boston Transcript.
How wonderful and beautiful is the pow
or of flight, and yet from the smallest in
sect that is tossed about by the gentle
summer breeze 10 the great golden eagle
that Is capable Of carrying a young lamb
to his eyrie all are masters of the art.
a large portion Of the living animal
world has wings and can use them. When
watching a swallows infinite power upon
the wing one feels like rephrasing the cry
OF Richard H., MY kingdom for a horse"
to My kingdom for a pair Of wings"
Perhaps among our most common birds
the swallows are the most graceful and
| skillful of flight Before a rain along our
country roads, the barn and white-bellied
swallows are always 10 be seen cutting the
air IN graceful curves. now sldmming the
roads, now rising abruptly 10 sail over
the stone wall. and iloat out across some
neighboring meadow. They love the sea
also. and wing their way over its surface
with marvellous skill.
The chimney-sWlft surpasses in the
power of endurance even the swallows
Their flight is not as graceful as the swal-
low $, but in a way more cratic. They
rest only in the chimneys or hollow trees
even gathering the twigs for the construc-
ton of their nests while on the wing
Their food also is taken when on flight
in fact, the chimney-swift's life is spent
in the heavens. Perpetual notion must
be their motto, for but a few moments out
of each twenty-four hours are spent at
rest in the chimney's sooty depths.
The opposite of the swallows and the
swift's flight one might say. is that of
the kingbird. Jerky, spasmodic. ungrace-
ful, as it is in the extreme and yet power
full; for the kingbird among crows GER
tainly deserves his name As all true
Tyrannidae, he is an expert fy-catcher,
and Is very deXterious and often absurd in
pursuit. tumbling over himself in his hurry
10 catch some dainty insect.
The mOnOtonous undulations of the gold
finch, each rise and fall in the flight ac-
companied by the notes which resemble
considerable, give the bird an original
If not a pleasing flight, and to me he
brings to mind the two extremes of the
seasOn-in summer undulating over the
sunny meadows and in winter over the
snowbound fields.
When a robin crosses the sky so one
can really see his flight. he is one of the
few birds that look as if they really We're
going somewhere. Direct, even, and
steady are the characteristics of the
flight when really on the wing with some
distant point in view.
The errauc and wonderfully rapid flight
of the humming birds in marvellous, and
the human eye can only vaguely follow
their winding course; such strength of
wing for so tiny a body seems almost
incredible Their migration southwark
from New England extends to South
America.
The phoebe's flight is very like that of
the kingbirds, and his tumblings when in
pursuit of insects are almost identical
but is long flights do not denote such
power, nor, I think. such rapidity.
The wonderful feats of the carrier pig
cons have become famous and the dis
tance that they cover in a given time
is hardly to be believed. Each downbeat
of their wings looks as if they were
flying in denser atmosphere than air.
SO much power is shown
The bats crazy movements in the even
ing twilight are absurd. Iu1l of plunges
turnings, twistings, rapid flappings and
tumbles and yet they seem to know
where they are going, and most certainly
do.
The movements Of hawk or eagle in
the upper air are graceful and magnifi-
cent. What must the sensation be Of
sailing about so easily in the heavens?
Rising and falling. sailing and gliding
diving down with frigtfu speed, and vet
the whole body is in perfect command.
The osprey plunges into the sea and
rises with a FISH; how keen the eye that
directs such swoops!