IV 

 THE SCAVENGER-IN-WAITING 



THE number of kites to be seen in any given 

 place depends almost entirely upon the 

 state of sanitation in that place. In 

 England conservancy arrangements are 

 so good that the kite is practically extinct. We have 

 no use for the bird at home. '* II faut vive," says the 

 kite, " and if you do not provide me with offal I shall 

 prey upon poultry," " As to your hving," repHes the 

 farmer, *' Je n'en vols pas la necessite, and, if you 

 attack my poultry, I shall attack you." The kites in 

 the United Kingdom were as good as their word ; so 

 were the farmers. The result is that the kite is a 

 rara avis at home ; a nestling born in the British Isles 

 is said to be worth £25. 



India teems with kites (Milvus govinda) ; we may 

 therefore infer that sanitation out there is primitive. 

 Unfortunately, we Anglo-Indians do not require the 

 kites to enable us to appreciate this fact. Kites, how- 

 ever, are useful in giving us the measure of the in- 

 sanitariness of a town. Lahore is a great place for 

 kites. That city contains a greater proportionate 

 number of these scavenger birds for its size than any 



