68 THE ESSEX NATURALIST.
stories which justify the inclusion of the House-Sparrow as a
bird of augury and also the following lines:
"The unsatiate Sparrow doth prognosticate,
and is held good for divination,
for flying here and there from gate to gate,
foretells true things by animadvertion:
A flight of Sparrows flying in the day
Did prophesie the fall and sacke of Troy."
During the dark, still nights of winter a rushing, rustling
sound may be heard over the English Channel and is called
by the fishermen of Dover and Folkestone the "herring spear"
or "herring-piece." This is the well-known sound produced
by the flight of Redwings. Although it is an awesome sound
to the fishermen yet they regard it as an omen of success for
their nets. Another instance of marine augury is associated
with the Wren. In the neighbourhood of Hamilton the fisher-
men before starting on a trip catch a Wren and pluck some
feathers from it. They are tossed into the air and according
to the manner in which they fall or are carried by the wind
the success of the herring fishing is predicted. One writer on
this subject states that there is no bird to which the gift of
prophecy is more generally conceded than the Cuckoo. I
quote one example of the many stories of this nature which relate
to this bird. The country people of Norfolk say that if during
the last week before his departure he remains on the tops of the
oaks and makes a noise it is an indication of a good harvest
but if he frequents the lower branches a bad crop may be
expected. The Barn-Owl seems to have acquired generally
the reputation of being a bird of ill omen; this impression
prevails in England, France, Germany and Italy. Curious
superstitions have arisen about the Golden Plover. A tradition
exists that they contain the souls of Jews, who assisted at the
Crucifixion and were therefore condemned to float in the air
for ever, and so it was considered a bad omen to hear the call
of these birds. The Leicestershire colliers believe that the call
of this bird warns them of some calamity and on hearing it refuse
to descend into the pit until the next day.
By what process of reasoning medicinal powers were granted
to birds it seems impossible to fathom, and yet the idea was
accepted by many, including the educated of the times, and