LESSON XIX. THE ENGLISH SKYLARK. 1. BIRD of the wilderness, Blithesome1 and cumberless,2 Sweet be thy matin3 o'er moorland1 and lea!5 Blest is thy dwelling-place O, to abide in the desert with thee! 2. Wild is thy lay, and loud, Love gives it energy, love gave it birth, Where art thou journeying? Thy lay is in heaven, thy love is on earth. 3. O'er fell and fountain sheen,8 O'er the red streamers that herald the day, Over the rainbow's rim, Musical cherub, soar, singing away!" 4. Then, when the gloaming comes, Blest is thy dwelling-place O, to abide in the desert with thee! THE LARK AND THE ROOK. 1. "GOOD-NIGHT, Sir Rook!" said a little lark, In yon dewy meadow-good-night, Sir Rook." 2. "Good-night, poor lark!" said his titled friend, But not to sleep on the cold, damp ground; 3. "I opened my eyes at peep2 of day, 4. "I trod the park with a princely air; I fill'd my crop with the richest fare; I caw'd' all day 'mid a lordly crew, And I made more noise in the world than you! I looked and wondered-good-night, poor thing!" 5. "Good-night, once more," said the lark's sweet voice, "I see no cause to repent my choice; You build your nest in the lofty pine, But is your slumber more 'soft than mine? You make more noise in the world than I, But whose is the sweeter minstrelsy ?"5 1 Nook, corner. 2 PEEP, dawn. 3 Caw, to cry like a crow, rook, or raven. 14 EB'-ON, black. Wayside Gatherings. 5 MIN'-STREL-SY, singing. The occupation of a musical performer. LESSON XXI. BIRDS IN SUMMER. 1. How pleasant the life of a bird must be, In the leafy trees, so broad and tall, 2. What a joy it must be, like a living breeze, MARY HOWITT. 1. Purple Long-tailed Sunbird, Nectarinea platura. 2. Emerald Bird of Paradise, Paradisea apoda. 3. Stokes's Humming-bird, Trochilus Stokesii. 4. Nepaul Sunbird, Nectarinea Nepalensis. 5. Malachite S. B., Nectarinea famosa. 6. Vieillot's H. B., Trochilus chalybeus. 7. Tufted-necked H. B., Trochilus ornatus. 8. Hoopoe, Upupa epops. 9. Red-throated H. B., Trochilus colubris. 10. Amethyst-throated S. B., Nectarinea amethystina. 11. Topaz-throated H. B., Trochilus pella. 1. THE thin-billed birds have been considered by an eminent naturalist1 "the most interesting of the animal world," as the smallest birds and the most brilliantly adorned are contained in this group. Here are found the hoopoes, the delicate humming-birds, the sunbirds of the torrid zone, and the far-famed birds of Paradise. 2. The hoopoes, which are a group of brilliant African birds, occasionally seen in Europe, are not found in this country: One of these birds, which is of a reddish-gray and black color above, and white below, with an ample crest of orangebrown feathers, strays occasionally to the British isles, where it attracts considerable attention. An African species, not found in Europe, is said to glitter in the sunlight with the most brilliant hues of azure2 and emerald3 green. 3. The HUMMING-BIRDS, of which more than a hundred species are known to exist, are wholly confined to the American continent and the adjacent islands. These beautiful "flower birds," "the jewels of ornithology," have excited the admiration of all who have observed them, by their delicate forms and the dazzling splendor of their plumage. "The humming-bird! the humming-bird! So fairy-like and bright; It lives among the sunny flowers, A creature of delight."-MRS. HOWITT. They are the smallest of the feathered races, some species being exceeded in size and weight by several of the insect tribe. 4. These fairy birds swarm in the tropical forests of South America, fairly covering the dense growth of wild flowers, whose blossoms only give way in beauty to the sparkling tints of their airy tenants. "Like fairy sprites, a thousand birds Glance by on golden wing; Birds lovelier than the lovely hues Of the bloom wherein they sing." They also abound in gardens, and seem to delight in the society of man, becoming familiar and destitute of fear, hovering near a shrub in bloom while the flowers are plucked from the opposite side. 5. Only three or four species of humming-birds are found within the limits of the United States, and of these the redthroated, or northern humming-bird, well known for its golden-green back, purple wings, and ruby-colored throat, is the most common. It is three inches and a half long from the tip of its bill to the end of its tail. It is often seen hovering among the arbors of honeysuckles and beds of flowers, poising itself in the air for the space of two or three seconds, with a murmuring noise made by the rapid motion of its scarcely visible wings, thrusting its long tubular tongue into the flowers in search of food, and then suddenly darting off with a rapidity so great that the eye can not follow it. |