Ornithology of Northern Africa. 151 



Hooded Shrike is not a desert bird, but is only a summer visitant 

 to the Tell, retiring, however, very late, as I have met with birds 

 of the year at the end of October. It seems strictly confined to 

 the forest districts. 



The path now diverged somewhat southwards towards the plain, 

 and I was astonished on reaching the brow of the hill to find 

 myself approaching a clearing, more like a Canadian back settle- 

 ment than an Algerian " propriete." A man in a blue blouse 

 emerged from a side path in front of me, bearing two pails of 

 water. I rode up to him and inquired in French if I were in 

 the right road for Halloula. The man turned round and with a 

 vacant stare from a rosy Saxon face ejaculated, " Eh ? " Startled 

 as by an apparition (though a very solid one), I exclaimed, 

 " Why, you are an Englishman ! " " Ees ; I bees from Stafford- 

 sheere," was the reply; and, entering into conversation with 

 him, I was astonished to find that I had reached an English 

 farm, probably the only one in North Africa, the proprietor of 

 which had a few months previously brought out two families of 

 agricultural labourers, besides a young man who lodged with 

 my companion. They had none of them been farther than the 

 market of Koleah since their arrival, nor had they made any 

 French acquaintances, having no neighbours except some Arab 

 workmen who slept in outhouses or tents. Willingly accepting 

 the invitation to have a talk with the '' missus," I followed him to 

 the cottage and found two families of bright English children, 

 for whose sake the mothers sadly lamented the want of the 

 schools of home. An infant lately born gave me the opportu- 

 nity of telling them I was a clergyman, of which fact, from my 

 Arab guise, they seemed at first incredulous, but gladly ac- 

 cepted my offer to baptize it. After holding a short service 

 with the two families, who now, like many others, valued the 

 religious privileges they had slighted at home, and having heard 

 the children read the Testaments with which they had been 

 provided before leaving England, I was preparing to depart, 

 glad that I was able to leave as a souvenir of my visit a pi'ayer- 

 book and a few tracts, when the women hospitably begged me 

 to take breakfast as my fee. 



The men went off to the fields, and the matrons seemed in 



