ground  by  the  building  where,  on  a  little  tree,  the
hawk  perched  day  after  day.     Then,  beating  round,  he
hovered  over  the  gardens  of  the  district,  often  above
the  public  roads  and  over  a  large  tennis  lawn.     His
farthest  sweep  seemed  to  be  to  the  Sussex  County
Cricket  field  and  then  back  again.     Day  after  day  he
went    his   rounds   for   weeks   together,   through   the
stormy  times   of  the   early  months,  passing   several
times  a  day,  almost  as  regularly  as  the  postman.     He
showed  no  fear,  hovering  close  to  the  people  in  the
roads  or  working  in  their  gardens.     All  his  motions
could  be  observed  with  facility — the  mode  of  hovering,
which  he  accomplished   easily,  whether  there  was  a
gale  or  a  perfect  calm ;  indeed,  his  ways  could  be
noted  as  well  as  if  it  had  been  by  the  side  of  the  wildest
copse.     One  morning  he  perched  on  a  chimney;  the
house  was  not  occupied,  but  the  next  to  it  was,  and
there  were  builders'  workmen  engaged  on  the  opposite
side  of  the  road  ;  so  that  the  wild  hawk,  if  unmolested,
would  soon  become  comparatively  tame.     When  the
season  became  less  rigorous,  and  the  breeding  time
approached,  the  kestrel  was  seen  no  more ;   having
flown  for  the  copses  between  the  Downs  or  in  the
Weald.
