88 BOMBAY DUCKS 



Here, then, among the hornbills, during the nesting 

 season, is a division of labour as complete as that 

 which prevails among human beings — the male goes 

 forth and brings back food for his family, while the 

 female stays at home and attends to domestic affairs. 



How this strange habit arose it is difficult to imagine. 

 Its raison detre can scarcely be the protection of the 

 female while sitting on her eggs, for her enormous beak 

 is a weapon calculated to keep all raptorial birds at a 

 respectful distance. It would almost seem as if the 

 female hornbill is by nature a flighty young thing, a 

 gad-about, and that consequently her eggs, despite the 

 admonitions of her husband, used to suffer. She, no 

 doubt, tried to do her duty, but the attractions of the 

 gay world round about her proved irresistible ; her spirit 

 was willing, but her flesh was weak ; consequently she 

 and her spouse recognized that " durance vile " was the 

 only remedy. 



Many weak-minded human beings pursue a similar 

 policy. I once knew a man at Cambridge who could 

 not bring himself to take sufficient exercise to keep his 

 body in health, so he hit upon the plan of starting out 

 with three shillings in his pocket, and taking a cab to 

 the railway station, which cost him two of his shillings ; 

 the last he used to spend on a third-class ticket to a 

 station twelve miles out, and, once landed there, he had 

 no option but to walk home. 



I wonder whether any one has ever shot a cock horn- 

 bill at a time when his wife is plastered up in her nest. 

 It would be a cruel but interesting experiment. What 

 would the hen bird do when the cock failed to come 



