I04 CATALOGUE OF BIRDS. 



cascade, just introduced Its beak underneath one par- 

 ticular spot which I carefully marked, and not waiting 

 to deliver all the food went rapidly back again to the 

 top of the cascade before making up its mind about 

 delivering the remainder. I never saw anything 

 prettier in my life than these two birds feeding their 

 young. When the food was too hard for the young- 

 sters to digest properly they would break it up on the 

 rocks before giving it them. 



Before continuing this story I must mention that 

 the landlord of the hotel and I had made an attempt to 

 dam up the aperture through which the water was 

 coming from the basin of the river in order to 

 approach the nest more easily ; this was carried out 

 on his first visit to the place with only partial success. 



To return to my narrative. The morning follow- 

 ing the day on which I had located the nest, the 

 landlord went up with me again — I being anxious to 

 know what was in the nest — and divesting himself 

 of his clothes, — as there was too much water for any 

 other mode of procedure, — I directed him to the 

 exact spot, the result being that he found it under 

 the boulder near the edge in the right-hand corner ; 

 in fact, where I knew it must be. There were 

 three youngsters : he said they felt very clammy 

 to the touch as if they had not much feather, so I 

 instructed him to leave them alone — this being a 

 Friday. On Sunday afternoon a thunderstorm 

 broke over Arthog, bringing on with it a perfect 

 deluge of rain. On Monday morning I asked 

 the landlord whether he would mind going 



