Queries and A?iswers. &| 



Partridges arid Moorhcm {Note from a Journal^ ,1826). — I was 



once detained for an hour or two iii the night at Hal, in Flanders. When 

 the daylight broke, I went into the court-yard of the post-house, and found 

 amusement in watching the behaviour of sundry birds which were shut up 

 in a large cage suspended against the wall. I hav« forgotteh many of them, 

 but I well, remember that there were quaiis, partridges, moo^rhens, sparrows ; 

 goldfinches, canaries, and mirk, besides several otliers, which' appeared to be 

 reconciled to their plac^ of confinemerit, and to each other, with a solitary 

 exception. Whilst the owls were composkag themselves to sleep after* their 

 midnight watch, and the twittering and musical * gentry were piping all 

 throats, to repay those grave-looking gentlemen 'for the hooting theyhad 

 kept) up all the time the others had been at rest, the morning ortly seemed 

 to be to, the partridges and moorhens, what ittUsed to be to the Greeks and 

 Trojans in , the days of Ajax and* Hector,: the ^^'sigHali-timeftM- strife.'' Nev«r 

 didil^see sueh. worki aa those quari^lsome ifellow&rnvade .qf''itj<'whaitl the 

 aqiiatio ,biilds had d©n<?i ^ coiUld, Eot leam^ toutitbepai'tridgtes-did nothihgibut 

 chas$ thew i«^out, i)ackw!al'ds!arKlifoPwapd»ydfdund ^ndnep^n^i (without mercy^ 

 anti|\vi4hwt^|r§Ifrxftti0ii;; y-iQuoc <Ml)twioej;ti*©' m«^^^ 



borwi^)^t^0jtiwg,^^vitli J J>iiixlar> «jiw7ro»*i;i6vu^w(ifip* wateni b€;st??]i: hvit\i\S 

 sQf^vi^. ,h^^ i^he^ .(fCln^itJejied f tjaei^is^lvete mie ffitdna ibntAier mbiestatiewj thaa 

 tlluEj ifl^^idg^ft :§-¥|>af^dpd f Itfciejr! ejij»f)ed/ wingSjUandi made ai i«»rt 1 of' indirfeot. 



p^Q|>i§?a*j fefee ^\^§i\ip\ii\m&'iit^^?l9<\timjo>w^s 'imdne^H&neUAsk^^f'm^m&y^ ^^e 

 sagjjfe'f^] ;<that the^pfe i^^^i ;.Ei(<l)>iatfi*}6ti6e . betweeh»!lthe> ic«HnbatiaBtr< tiil' night 

 cj«HQrjiafldi that, theyihrid kept up that fim foi-Zseveral day8<:>'dvbr sihci, d« 

 ^ioffty. the, partridges, who /were > the JohnnfjKewoomes, -haJ beed^ there. 

 Wljietheri the game is still eontinued>>iI know tnot a probablyj now < the Hoi-; 

 landm'iS and the Brabanters have -learneid' theiisporfe-,! the birdsj ar© uO' more. 

 But what I should like to know isj whethef tthfe' piartridge -is alwayis a pug* 

 nacioua.gentleman, and the moorhen generally a dowardj or whether it is 

 more likely a private quatrel or jccilotlBy ©Xiistin^'lbetweeU these^ individual 

 represefttatives of the^^iSjjeciesw . ■. Whilst' the chti&e. continued, the area was 

 free to the combatants. The owls now and then winked an observation on 

 what^ w^as. going, oa ibeloiw-; and fthelgaonfal'ler 'birds (kept hdpping about, from 

 peroh to perch,; and singingj i as if they were* nwisieiitos hired to play on the 

 oiJcasion of the gladiatorial eshibitioia iq& theip. fellow-prisoners. —t- W^B. 



. Ji^pmiidgus <euvQp(B\si ' — Haf^^e-apyl-cHB i^iifeadeni -<>£■ Ihe^Magsi^n^ of 

 Natural Hjistory kept the Caprimjulguii 'euspopSae'^tiSffrtia'cage ? '.Btiiing 'the 

 present >season I eatight one, apparently from fivie to vsixfweeks )6ld, as it was 

 capable. of flying a distance of 200 yai'ds at the tome I caught it. I kept it, 

 in *a state of perfect health, between 'two/aaad ihre«i weeks, feeding it on 

 boiljed; eggs and meat, but I iwa»s always obliged to open its mouth when 

 fed J '^ad Irohi its natural! -habit; of taking' its food- >on the wing, 1 do not 

 think it ever woildd have picked, or opened its iiwuth to be fed. After keep- 

 ing it the t-une specified, it flew away, froiii the /carelessness of the young 

 man to whose care I had confided it, he having left the door of its cage 

 unfasteaedi I am. Sir, &c.^•■!— TvSwwai ^//i>. York^ Oct.lQ^l^W* r. 



Curious N^st.mui JEgg'S.'^ Sir, I have been invitedy through the medium 

 qf. your valuable publication, to sleud you an account of a nest and eggs 

 which were brought to me by a boy on the 84th (^' May last, and were 

 taken in a thick wood near the village where I reside. The nest was placed 

 in H yovmg nut tree, about 15 ft. from the ground : it was composed outside 

 of thorns, sticksj and large roots; inside rather deep, and lined with very 

 smaill curly roots, twigs, and three or four large borsechestnut leaves; and 

 somewhat resembled, both in size and texturcy that of the jay. The eggs 

 were five in number, and, when taken, of a most beautiful flesh colour; but 

 since that time they have faded greatly, and now are more like a colour 



