^6 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST. 



able to pitch in their projectiles, they were themselves in a 

 great measure protected. This was much more dexterous 

 than putting them on the top of the slope. I believe there 

 were not more than a dozen large guns at each battery. 



At Nancy I saw a Missel Thrush, which I mention be- 

 cause M.M. Kroener and Fournel say it is a summer migrant. 

 There is a Common Buzz,ird, pure white even to the claws, 

 at the Museum. It was killed at St. Barthelemy marshes 

 hard by. I saw another one quite as good and bought it 

 for the Norwich Museum, at Metz. There are also at 

 Nancy local specimens of the Hawk Owl and Tengmalm's 

 Owl, and a brace of Ring Ouzels with pied heads. I saw 

 similar Ring Ouzels in Alsace, particularly in the public 

 Museum at Carlsruhe, and since my return home I have 

 seen several (Zoologist, s.s. 2607, 2805). Both at Metz and 

 Nancy I was shown Long-tailed Titmice, with the white 

 head, and without it. Fournel clings to the exploded idea 

 that the nest of the Long-tailed Titmouse has two openings. 

 I call it exploded, but I am not at all sure that this observant 

 naturalist may not be right, in spite of the weight of testi- 

 mony against him. I can say, as others have said, that I 

 never saw a nest with two holes, but negative evidence is 

 not worth much. See "Land and Water" of May nth, 

 1872. 



The birdstuffer at Metz was M. Buchillot, and I have 

 much pleasure in recommending him as a skilful taxider- 

 mist. Where all retail trade is at a low ebb, bird-stuffing is 

 not likely to come to the fore. He quitted the town before 

 the war was over and came to England, but I hear that he 

 is now set up in business at Rheims. I saw a Greater 

 spotted Woodpecker brought in to him, and a Grey-headed 

 Woodpecker. I had never seen the latter in the flesh 

 before. It is decidedly scarcer than the Green. I was in- 

 formed that the Middle spotted Woodpecker was scarcer 

 than the Greater spotted. One of the latter at M. Buchillot's 



