It flies in small flocks, and when these light on a cherry tree, they are quite quiet, not a sound is heard, except the cracking of the hard shells by the strong bills, which are specially formed for the work. The cherry stone lies in the lower mandible, the upper one being ribbed and so perfectly adapted for cracking the stone. This bird breaks with ease a fruit stone, which a full-grown man can only crush with the heavy pressure of his boot heel. Towards spring, when there are no more fruit stones to be found, it attacks and destroys the young leaf buds. This bird is not very commonly found in Hungary. * * * * * The number of Hawfinches has been steadily increasing in England of late years. This is probably due to Bird Protection, which is so much more enforced than it used to be. The young are fed chiefly on caterpillars, but unfortunately they soon take to eating peas, which brings them into bad repute with gardeners, and numbers of young birds are shot and buried in gardens where peas are grown. It is pleasant, on the other hand, to watch them amongst the wild plums and sloes and crab-trees in one of our old hedgerows, but is not an easy matter as they are so suspicious. In districts where many peas are grown for the market, these birds are a perfect plague. In Germany this bird is called Kernbeisser (kernel biter) because of the ease with which it cracks cherry stones with its powerful bill. With us it eats the seeds of the horn-beam and other trees, beechmast, haws, etc. Only one brood is raised in a season, but if the first nest is meddled with, another one is made. In “Within an Hour of London Town” the writer interviews a gardener on the subject of Hawfinches. We give it here as it stands. “What do I want with the gun? Hawfinches; they hawfinches in my peas!” he grunts. As he leaves the tool-house I quietly follow, and place myself with him behind a low faggot-stack which stands in a line with the peas. “Jest hear ’em! ain’t it cruel!” he whispers. “I hope the whole roost of ’em may git in a lump so that I ken blow ’em to rags an’ tatters. If you didn’t know what it was you’d think some old cow was grindin’ up them peas. Ain’t they scrunchin’ of ’em! All right now, I ken see you, you grindin’ varmints! Now for it!” Bang! Three birds fall--young ones in their first plumage, which has a strong likeness to that of a greenfinch. After picking the birds up, we examine the pea-rows. There is no doubt as to the mischief the birds have done. The old fellow’s own expression, “grinding up,” is the best to convey any idea of the destruction that has taken place. Where the birds have been, nothing remains but the stringy portion of the pods of his precious “Marrer fats.” There is enormous power in the bill of the Hawfinch, when the size of the bird is considered. The pea-pod is simply run through the bill, and the contents are squeezed out in a state of green pulp and swallowed.