Of all animals being this is the most elegant in form and the
most brilliant in colors. The stone sand metals polished
by our arts are not comparable to this jewel of Nature.
She has placed it least in size of the order of birds. "maxime Miranda in minimis.
" Her masterpiece is this little humming-bird, and upon it she has heaped
all the gifts which the other birds may only share. Lightness, rapidity,
nimbleness, grace, and rich apparel all belong to this little favorite.
The emerald, the ruby, and the topaz gleam upon its dress. It never soils them
with the dust of earth, and in its aerial life scarcely touches the turf an instant.
Always in the air, flying from flower to flower, it has their freshness
as well as their brightness. It lives upon their nectar, and dwells only in the climates
where they perennially bloom. From Natural History.