THE GULAB-CHASM 85 



escaped and flew to a guava tree in the 

 compound of my house, which, I might 

 mention, was in a populous quarter. One 

 would have expected the bird to fiy straight 

 away to its natural haunt leaving the city 

 and its dangers behind. But the bird 

 clung to the guava tree calling out to 

 its companions, who were not slow to res- 

 pond to its call. Not content with only 

 calling to its companions, this shy and 

 timid bird became bold enough to come 

 to the varandah where its companions had 

 been safely lodged in a cage. It, however, 

 eluded our attempts to re-capture it and 

 disappeared after a couple of days. 



While singing blithely from a pronjl- 

 nent position in the most happy-go-lucky 

 fashion, as if inviting the whole world to 

 listen to its music, it never fails to keep 

 a watchful eye all round. If its song draws 

 you towards the spot where it is singing, 

 you are not likely to see it ; for, before 

 you guess its location, it slips down into 

 cover. Even if it happens to he visible, 



