834 '^HE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



littering a violent clamor. The castigation is soon over, and " the 

 unfortunate sufferer having endured the penalty," says Mr. G, 

 Garratt, in his " Marvels of Instinct," " is as well received after- 

 ward by the community as if it had committed no transgression 

 at all." 



Mr. Garratt repeats the following story from Father Bougeant : 

 "A sparrow, finding a nest that a martin had just built, pos- 

 sessed himself of it. The martin, seeing the usurper in her house, 

 called for help to expel him. A thousand martins came full speed, 

 and attacked the sparrow ; but the latter being covered on every 

 side, and presenting only his large beak at the entrance of the 

 nest, was invulnerable, and made the boldest of them that dared 

 approach him repent of their temerity. After a quarter of an 

 hour's combat, all the martins disappeared. The sparrow thought 

 he had got the better, and the spectators judged that the martins 

 had abandoned their undertaking. Not in the least. They im- 

 mediately returned to the charge ; and each of them having pro- 

 cured a little of that tempered earth with which they make their 

 nests, they all at once fell upon the sparrow, and inclosed him 

 in the nest to perish there, though they could not drive him 

 thence." 



Another equally tragic story is recorded by the Rev. G. Go- 

 gerly in " The Pioneers," his narrative of the Bengal mission : 

 "The flamingo," he remarks, "is common in the low, marshy 

 lands of Bengal. My friend Mr. Lacroix — the well-known mis- 

 sionary — when once sailing in his boat up the Hooghly, went on 

 shore. His attention was shortly directed to a large gathering of 

 these peculiar-looking birds in a field some little distance off. 

 Knowing their timid character, he approached as near as he could 

 without being observed or exciting alarm ; and, hiding himself 

 behind a tree, noticed all their proceedings, which were of a most 

 remarkable character. After a great deal of noisy clamor, they 

 formed themselves into a circle, in the center of which one of 

 their number was left standing alone. Again there was a con- 

 siderable amount of screeching bird oratory, when suddenly all 

 the birds flew on the unhappy solitary one and literally tore him 

 to pieces." The conclusion to which Mr. Lacroix came to was, 

 that one of these flamingos had committed an offense against the 

 rules of their order, that he had been tried by a kind of court- 

 martial, was found guilty, and had been adjudged, and met with, 

 immediate punishment. 



The following stories concerning storks seem to indicate that 

 they have views concerning the purity of their race, and act upon 

 them : Bishop Stanley relates that a French surgeon at Smyrna, 

 being unable to procure a stork, on account of the great venera- 

 tion entertained for them by the Turks, purloined all the eggs 



