three able mowers, who would cut the whole in about an hour; and, as the plat was nearly circular, set them to mow round, beginning at the outside.  And now for sagacity indeed!  The moment the men began to whet their scythes, the two old larks began to flutter over the nest, and to make a great clamour.  When the men began to mow, they flew round and round, stooping so low, when near the men, as almost to touch their bodies, making a great chattering at the same time; but, before the men had got round with the second swath, they flew to the nest, and away they went, young ones and all, across the river, at the foot of the ground, and settled in the long grass in my neighbour’s orchard.

The other instance relates to a house-marten.  It is well known that these birds build their nests under the eaves of inhabited houses, and sometimes under those of door-porches; but we had one that built its nest in the house, and upon the top of a common door-case, the door of which opened into a room out of the main passage into the house.  Perceiving that the marten had begun to build its nest here, we kept the front door open in the day-time, but were obliged to fasten it at night.  It went on, had eggs, young ones, and the young ones flew.  I used to open the door in the morning early, and then the birds carried on their affairs till night.  The next year the marten came again, and had another brood in the same place.  It found its old nest; and, having repaired it, and put it in order, went on again in the former way; and it would, I dare say, have continued to come to the end of its life, if we had remained there so long, notwithstanding there were six healthy children in the house making just as much noise as they pleased.

HIS CHILDREN
[Sidenote:  William Cobbett]

We wanted no stimulants of this sort [he is referring to social dissipation, romances, and playhouses] to keep up our spirits; our various pleasing pursuits were quite sufficient for that; and the book-learning came amongst the rest of the pleasures, to which it was, in some sort, necessary.  I remember that, one year, I raised a prodigious crop of fine melons, under hand-glasses; and I learned how to do it from a gardening-book; or, at least, that book was necessary to remind me of the details.  Having passed part of an evening in talking to the boys about getting this crop, “Come,” said I, “now let us read the book." Then the book came forth, and to work we went, following very strictly the precepts of the book.  I read the thing but once, but the eldest boy read it, perhaps, twenty times over; and explained all about the matter to the others.  Why, here was a motive!  Then he had to tell the garden labourer what to do to the melons.  Now, I will engage, that more was really learned by this single lesson, than would have been learned by spending, at this son’s age, a year at school; and he happy and delighted all the while.  When any dispute arose among them about hunting or shooting, or any other of their pursuits, they, by degrees, found out the way of settling it by reference to some book; and, when any difficulty occurred as to the meaning, they referred to me, who, if at home, always instantly attended to them in these matters.