ACBOCEPHALUS, 227 



fifth day after leaving Naini Tal — ever mindful of my friend 

 Mr. Brooks's parting advice to me (in reference to the part of the 

 country which required to be investigated), ' avoid the lower hills 

 as the plague ' — I reached Takula, which is the first march beyond 

 Almora on the road to the Pindari glacier, late on the evening of 

 the 10th of May. It rained heavily all that night, so that I°was 

 obliged to halt the next day, my tents being far too wet to be 

 struck, and the distance to the next halting-place necessitating a 

 start the first thing in the morning. 



" Takula is at an elevation between 5000 and 6000 feet ; it is 

 beautifully wooded, with a small mountain-stream flowing right 

 under the camping-ground, and the climate is delightful. All 

 things considered, I was not sorry at having an opportunity of 

 exploring such productive-looking ground ; and before it was fairly 

 daylight the next morning operations were commenced in right 

 earnest. To each of my collectors I apportioned olf a well-wooded 

 mountain-slope, reserving for ray own hunting-gi-ound (as I had 

 not yet got my hill-leys) the water-courses and ravines in the im- 

 mediate vicinity of my camp. 



"Not more than 20 yards from where my tent stood, there is a 

 deep ravine clothed on both banks with a dense jungle of the larger 

 kind of nettle (Girardinia heterophylla : such nettles too !), the hill- 

 dock {Rumea nepalensis), and wild-rose trees. Wending my way 

 through this dark, damp, and muggy nullah to the best of my 

 ability, I came upon the nest of this interesting little bird ; it was 

 placed in the centre of a rose-bush, at an elevation of some two 

 feet above the bank and about four feet from where I stood, but 

 yet in a most tantalizing situation, inasmuch as it was necessary to 

 remove several thorny branches before an examination of the nest 

 was possible. 



_" The act of cutting away the branches alarmed my sombre little 

 friend (I knew that the nest was tenanted, as the bill and head 

 were distinctly visible through the lateral entrance), and out she 

 darted with such a ' ivUr ' that anything lilte satisfactory identifi- 

 cation for a bird of this sort was utterly hopeless. The nest con- 

 tained four beautiful little eggs, so that to bag the parent bird was 

 a matter of the first importance ; all my attempts, however, first 

 to capture her on the nest and next to shoot her as she flew off, 

 were equally futile, her movements being as rapid and erratic as 

 forked lightning. And here let me give a word of advice to my 

 brother ornithologists : Never attempt to shoot a ivary little bird 

 in the act of leaviny its nest, as you only run the risk, and mortifi- 

 cation I may add, of wounding perhaps an unknown bird, in which 

 case she will never again return to her nest ; but lie in ambush for 

 her with outlying scants, and maJce certain of her as she is returning 

 to her nest. She will first alight on a neighbouring tree, then on 

 one closer, coming nearer and nearer each time ; finally, she will 

 perch on the very tree or bush in which the nest is built, and 

 while taking a look round to see that all is well before making a 

 final ascent, you have yourself to blame if you fail to bag her. All 



15* 



