the whole «neighbourhood. They perform extensive journeys, and
are great arid irregular wanderers. f Ear from being shy., they are
simple and •ea'sily ,tame%pbut generally, soon die in confinement.
Their food consists chiefly of juicy fruits, on' which they fatten,
brifilo the great detriment of the- orchard,, where, they« commit
extensive. ravages. ’ When fruits are scarce^ --they seize Upon
in'sectsi* catching them dexterously, in. the same manner as' their
distant;' relatives the -Flycatchers.- ÿ'No name could be ïnoçe
inappropriate for these Birds. than that .of Chatterers*.-,as there
are few less noisy, and they might even be -called mute,"'with
much better reason. They build in trees, arid lay twice in a year
about five eggs.
Whence' does« the Bohemian Wax-wing come at the ' long and
•irregular periods of .its- migrations ? • • Whitheï doijs.s it - retire ..to
pass its existence "and ' give birth to its.- progeny? These, are
circumstance^finvmved in darkness, 'and which:it hris -riot héén
given to any naturalist to “ascertain. It has. been-stated, and with
much appearance of probability, that these birds retire during
summer- withinethe Arctic cirçiij but the fact is otherwise, -naturalists
who have explored these regions asserting that, they are
rarer and more accidental there than in temperate climates; It
seCnis probable that their chief place of abode is iri-the Oriental
parts of the did continent, and if we .may hazard an-opinion, .we
should. not 1 be/surpri'Sed if the eitensÿfé, and elevated .table
land of ;ceritral Asia -was found .to. be their principal rendezvous;
whence-like the Tartars in former times» they make their irregular
excursions..
-As we can Orily arrivp at the truth in this matter, by observing
facts, and collecting Idealities,‘we. shall endeavour to .do this- with
ftfegréatest; ^CCuràey; In northern Russia and the extreme.north
Of Norway .they are seen- iri great numbers’every, winter, being
observed there earlier-than in temperate countries. >\ In northern
Asia-and easterri^EUrope th e ir migrations: arc tolerably regular,
very numerous flocks generally passthrough Scania-pn No t ember,
and »are again seen» op .their return injure spring; / But they appear
only, atf very: rempt^i.and irregular- periods, and merely as occasional
and, rare visitants in western,-iSojithern, or e^en, central
and northern-Europe, and thenmnly in the^oMest-months qf the
most severe winters- N otwithitanding that tbey*,atytimes- invade
peculiar districts in-vast npmb^rs^ so remarkable, is. the appear.an.ee-
of these'winged »strangers-then, considered, that We find ,it placed
■upon- record. ■-However- extraordinary it>t;. mayri ^epnap*to. ithpse
who live in this enlightened age and $guutryr that the unusual
appearance of >‘Gedar-birds of.a.large kind” should strike terror
intb»tbdf soals ©>fi.men? such nbtwithstanding wa,s^th^ igffieCtip^ po re
ignorant times. They have bpemlooked- upon as'the precursory
of waB,; pestilence, and. other public calamities.. One. of their
irruptaons<vwas • experienced in Ttaly . in 1.571,' when *flocks of
hundreds, wore seen flying about in the north of . that,.country" in
the; month'of 'December, and were easily, canght^^A^gimHar visit
had taken place in 15 JO in February, .marking gheveppeh' when
Gh arles Y.r causedhimself to be crowned at Bologna.. AJApvandi,
from whom>w,e learn the above'particulars, als,q informs, us. , that
large ^.floek-s:.»of them appeared in, 155.1, when itywafi remarked
that.though they spread in nuinbfers, through the .Modenese, .the
Plaisantine,. and. other parts of -ItaLy," they cnpefully ayojde<|
entering the Ferrarese,. as, i f , to. escape. the ^dreadful .earthquake
that--was felt, soon after, causing;thewyery birds to turn their flight.
Iri-1-552, Qesner informs us, :«they. appeared along the Rhine near
Mentz in Germany in such numbers as tq obscure the sun. They
have however of late years, in Italy, and Germany, and in- France
especially, at all times, been extremely rare, being» seen.only in
small ^companies. or. singly,,, appearing as if they had /.strayed
from .their Way. In England, the Bohemian Wax-wing-has