The Boys Hawking on the Broad.
THE SWAN
AND HER CREW,
OR THE ADVENTURES OF
THREE YOUNG NATURALISTS AND SPORTSMEN
ON THE BROADS AND RIVERS OF NORFOLK.
BY
G. CHRISTOPHER DAVIES,
SECOND EDITION.
WITH NUMEROUS ILLUSTRATIONS.
London:
FREDERICK WARNE AND CO.,
BEDFORD STREET, STRAND.
NEW YORK:—SCRIBNER, WELFORD AND ARMSTRONG.
LONDON:
R. CLAY, SONS, AND TAYLOR, PRINTERS,
BREAD STREET HILL,
QUEEN VICTORIA STREET.
PREFACE.
A preface is like the bow of an actor when he comes on the stage, orlike the hand-shaking of two friends when they meet—the prelude to theentertainment, or the friendly conversation. I suppose, therefore, Imust follow the fashion, and say, "How d'ye do?" in this way. I hope theanswer will be, "Quite well, thank you, and much the better for seeingyou."
In a book of similar character to this one, which I published a shorttime ago, I offered to reply to any questions which any of my youngreaders, who wished for further information upon any of the subjectsmentioned in that book, might put to me, by means of letters addressedto me, to the care of the publishers. I then had the pleasure ofanswering many such letters, and I now repeat the offer to the readersof this book.
I am indebted to my friend Mr. William Whitwell, of Oxford, who is, likemyself, a lover of boys, for the chapter on the "Life of a Fern."
CONTENTS.
PAGE
Greeting.—The Broad District.—HicklingBroad.—Felling a Tree.—Dodging the Swallows.—Shootingthe Crossbills.—The Boat-house.
Stuffing the Crossbills.—The proposed Yacht.—Animpaled Woodcock.
A Momentous Decision.
Digging for Pupæ.—Dick Carleton.—Metamorphoses of Butterfly.
Building the Yacht.—The Launch.—GreatCrested Grebe's nest.—A floating Coot's nest.—GoldenCrested Wrens.—Their Migration.—The Flight of a Heron.
Mr. Meredith.—"Whatsoever thy