WIIITE-RUMPED SWALLOW. 585 



of the same month, in the evening, during a great storm of wind 

 and rain, part of the upper front fell down, carrying with it one 

 of the eggs, in which was an embryo chick far advanced. The 

 old birds, as usual, fluttered about, uttering plaintive cries. 

 Early next morning they began to repair the damage, although 

 it rained heavily all day. Part of the lining hanging over the 

 side was incorporated with the new layers of mud. The urgency 

 of this case required that they should work during bad weather. 

 Throughout the day, there w^as generally one sitting on the nest, 

 whilst the other laboured assiduously. Kindly was he wel- 

 comed by his mate, who sometimes during his absence nibbled 

 and retouched the materials which he had just deposited. In 

 a fews days it was finished, and shortly after the young were 

 born. 



" When their nests are destroyed, these birds do not always re- 

 build them, but sometimes forsake the neighbourhood entirely. 

 On the 20th of July last, I observed a pair of Martins carrying 

 mud to support their tottering edifice, applying it to the base. 

 In May 1838, a pair of Martins built their nest in the staircase 

 window. They reared two broods, and departed in due season. 

 Last season, about the period of their arrival, a pair of House 

 Sparrows took possession. The female I suspect w^is barren, 

 as up to the 27th of May no eggs were deposited. In the morn- 

 ing of that day, and without any squabbling, a pair of Martins 

 took possession of the nest, and in a few days the female was 

 incubating. When the Martins' nest in one of the front win- 

 dows fell on the 28d of June, I placed the young on some cot- 

 ton in a little basket in their native window, covering them 

 with a large sheet of brown paper ; but during the remainder 

 of that day, and on the following day, their parents took no 

 notice of them. Seeing that the poor creatures would perish 

 of hunger, I placed them on a table in the room, and fed them 

 with common house flies for two days. On the evening of the 

 26th, I resolved to try an experiment. Taking up the young 

 ones, I pushed them gently into the nest in the staircase window, 

 which contained young a few days old. It was about 8 p. ai., 

 and rain was falling heavily at the time. No sound was heard, 

 save the cheeping of the young birds, and the dashing of the 



