271 



present of the brilliant scarlet cheeks.* One is slightly 

 larger than the other, and lam hoping that they will 

 turn out to be a pair. I regret to say that a few days 

 ago I lost the mother of the birds. She must have 

 flown on to the wires — they are very guilt}'^ of that — 

 and a cat seized her. Anyway I found the head pulled 

 ofif and missing, and the body lying inside the avairy. 

 If I could have caught that cat just then — well it is 

 most likely the tragedy would have been a double one. 



IReniiniscenccs of But) (TollectinG anD a 

 Sboppmg IDisit to Calcutta dealers. 



By Captain G. A. PerrEAU. 



Having ages ago promised our long-suffering Mr. 

 Editor to send him some copy on the inhabitants of 

 my aviaries or some field notes, I now proceed to dis- 

 course at some length on quite another subject, 

 though it really has some connection with the former, 

 as, but for that visit I should probably be even now short 

 of inhabitants to write about. T must warn readers 

 not to expect anything exciting as the sorts I was 

 after, are so easily procurable at home, that my labours 

 must seem ridiculous to many ; however they may find 

 something of interest, probably in side incidents 

 which were of no interest to me at the time, so 

 absorbed was I in tlie engrossing business of trying to 

 fill my aviaries. 



A short resume of my collecting experiences 



* Unfortunately one of the young has died, and ou December 6th I 

 received its body. The white spots were then well developed, and there were 

 specks of scarlet showing round the base of the upper mandible.— Ed. 



