Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1896-06-25

few ont 10 meet our ship as We ncared
the Irish coast might have been the
same gullS that escorted us out Of the
harbor at home; and the English spar
rows Quarreling III the garden OF our
hotel, as we ate our fist breakfast i'll
England. were neither more nor less
diSagreeable than the Sparrows We had
left taking mud baths in the streets OF
our New England village But later in
the morning. as We were walking on
the old Roman wall about Chester. we
heard voice from the hawthorn hedge
that was no SparroW'S vote. ana We
realized that We We're liSleriug to our
first English bird Something Ia the
quality OF the song seemed familiar,
and We were not surprised when q boy,
whom We questioned eagerly, an
Swered, Yes. it is a thrush. The
song of the English thrush, or throstle,
as he is sometimes called, is not unlike
thar OF our brown thlaSEer and does
not compare in quality With the music
OF the W God thrush the hermit or the
veery; but this bird was singing on
historic ground. Not far away was The
army defeated at RCwton Moor; and as
we looked over the fair English coun-
try stretching away toward Wales, We
wondered if the thrush's song had come
up to the king in that hour of trial
with n message of hope and cheer.
And CCnturies before aid the old
Romans. as they worked on this same
wall, stop TO listen to Just such music,
while the song Of the hermit rang out
UNDECIDED in the tar-aw&y wilds of
America? AS we unused the cathedral
chimes struck the hour and seemed TO
minsle past and present into Il moment
OF time.
AS our train swept across the coun-
try from Chester to London We made
our first acquaintance with English
rocks as they stalked about the fields.
These too, seemed historic birds, and
brought back PiCkwicki&n memories.
They We're The very same rocks which
the agonized Wrinkle vainly tried TO
bring down on the morning of the
famous shooting party at Mr.. Wardle's S,
They had a placid domestic air, as ii
they were only waiting to be made
into rock pies and never discussed
the affairs of nations in the tops OF
tall pines after the fashion Of lneii
American cousins, the crows.
During drive over Salisbury plain
or driver pointed out to us another
bird OF domestic habits, the starting.
A flock OF these birds were comfort
ably perched on the backs of the sheep,
where they seemed to enjoy the flies
and The view with equal Zest. We
were told that this was quite a COM
mon sight in England, and the ar
rangement seemed to be as satisfactory
to the sheep as TO the birds. On this
same drive we heard the chatlinch sing,
his song is more noticeable if less
sweet than that OF our field sparrow,
which ii resembles. At Stonehenge we
were entertained by the English spar
rows. These birds, with she imperti-
hollow places in the grand old monu-
ments Tor their nests. a com patriot
OF ours, intent perhaps UPON setting
old scores with this British pest, was
trying, with persistency worthy OF
a better cause, 10 throw stones INTO
these nests. The sparrows licw in and
out jeering at his truitless efforts, and
his friends vainly reminded him that
he was not looking at the ruins. lie
evidently had his own ideas OF sight
seeing, and had he succeeded in his at
tempt would have gone away fully sat
isfed with the historic charms of the
spot.
Walking home from Netley abbey
just at twilight we listened to the sky
larks rs they scared and sang above
cur heads. The liquid music tell so
clearly from this great height that we
could distinguish every note, 4 YER
liable rain of melody" 1t was
Shelley's skvlark, Wordsw ogth's sky-
lark, we were listening t0-and yet
somehow as we stood there, the Eng
fish landscape seemed to fade, and we
were gazing off over a certain III aadow
from a village street in New England,
while the sun sank behind the noun
tain, and the twilight gathered softly
about us, and the voice Of the meadow
lark came up to US, pathetic and sweet;
only three simple notes, but worth
more TO us than all the slylarks in
England. Is there so much then in the
power OF association that bird songs
can never be simply bird songs 10 US,
or is Burroughs right when he tells us
that there is something in the quality
OF our bird music lacking in that o.
the English songsters?
1t is undoubtedly true that In Eng
land the best musicians are not far to
seek The backbirds and brushes
sing just about the house, For this
reason the Englishman in America
feels as if he had come to birdleSs
country. He must wander Ear to hear
our birds at their hes: in their proper
setting of woods and fields. We