Page:The Natural History of Ireland vol1.djvu/192

 on a finger, deliberately prepare himself for sleep : which on one occasion he indulged in so long, as to completely weary his perch. He would eat off my lap, hop about there without any concern, pick at my shawl, and then look up in my face and begin his little song, or prattle ; occasionally he became quite coquettish, disregarding my call, while sitting on a high branch and only descending at his leisure, with a digni- fied hop — hop, from twig to twig, as if quite aware of how much I was his humble servant. Finding that neither Cresty, nor Big-eye, visited the terrace, but that we always found them waiting for us, either in the garden, or in the melon-pit enclosure, we began to suspect there was some appropriation of landed property amongst the birds, and were soon convinced of the fact, by witnessing grievous battles between our two favourites, Terry and Cresty, the former attacking the latter if he appeared within a certain distance of the terrace, and the latter seizing Terry, if he made any move- ment towards the melon-pit. It would have been amusing, had it not been distress- ing, to view these beauteous little creatures, who seemed only formed for harmony and love, bristling up with rage, every feather like "quills upon the fretful porcupine," eyes on fire, and their tiny heads making circles of defiance before the final collision, which always terminated by our separating the combatants, who retreated severally to their respective districts, — so fierce have they been that they have fought even upon our hands. Terry, though by far the mildest and quietest creature in times of peace, was the most daring and determined in war : he seemed also to have more respect for the rights of property, for Cresty was generally the intruder upon his neighbour.

We often marvelled, that we had never seen the slightest quarrel take place between Cresty and Big-eye, though we had often perceived frequent trespassing upon what we deemed Cresty's peculiar domain ; the riddle was solved however, in spring, when one day the latter gentleman made himself very busy by snatching a crumb from us at repeated intervals, which he would eagerly carry to a neighbouring hedge. On examining the premises, we saw Mrs. Big-eye, snugly ensconced in her bower, and her gallant Cresty, playing the kind little husband by bringing her food, which she opened her mouth with much satisfaction to receive. Afterwards we watched them both go down to the bank nest the sea, which proved to be the spot selected for their nest. And in process of time (the lady having disappeared altogether), Cresty would carry large cargoes of food to madame and the chicks. Often about this period have we seen both him and Terry, (with green caterpillars caught in their bills, and writhing round their heads like so many small serpents,) hop on our hands, and add to their burthen eight or nine bits of oaten cake, and thus, with bills well packed, fly to their nest. Cresty never was, at any time, so familiar with us as Terry ; his habit was to flutter round the hand for a moment, pick a crumb, and away: but he would occasionally rest for a minute or so, then sit on a flower-pot, or twig, and talk to us. Big-eye never came near us but in the absence of Cresty, and then only to about the distance of half a yard, where she fed quietly and securely on the crumbs we threw down to her, — and when this pair brought their young ones abroad, they kept close to the hedge and seemed to inherit the shyness of their parents. But not so, the progeny of our sweet Terry, who were careless and confiding ; their mother never came near us, and we have sad reason to believe that she met with some untoward