9 o



called “bracing” by the faculty. At any rate it was too bracing

for Bengal Bulbuls, for one morning I found them both dead on

the floor. Marius amid the ruins of Carthage could not have

worn a more tragic air than I did that morning.


There are some few aviculturists that have the gift of

sympathy, and to them I appeal with confidence.



REARING RINGED-PLOVERS FROM THE EGG.


By W. G. Percivae.


On May nth, last year, I took a clutch of four eggs of the

Ringed Plover, sEgialitis hiaticola (Linn.), and, while drilling

one in order to remove its contents, I found that the young bird

was on the point of being hatched. I at once put the remaining

three eggs into an incubator, in company with a number of

fowls’ eggs. Two of them were chipped on the following

morning, and the young birds emerged about six o’clock the

same evening. The third egg produced a weakly bird the next

evening, but this one only lived until the 28th. As soon as the

young were hatched, I transferred them to an incubator by

themselves. They were not able to stand up on their feet for

some hours, and I noticed that they took some time to get

thoroughly dry.


Food was the next question, so I took my water-net and

collected a lot of weed from a pond which was close at hand.


The next morning I placed the chicks in an open box in

the conservatory, and put beside them some of the pond-weed,

which contained a number of minute insects. After a few

minutes one of them began to peck about a little, but they

would not feed properly. They soon got cold, and had to be

replaced in the incubator, where they remained for the rest of

the day.


On the 14th I placed them in a large glass case (about 5ft.

by i8iu.) on which the sun was shining, having previously

covered the floor with sand. They at once began to run about

in a very lively manner, and to pick up insects from the weed

which I offered them ; but directly a cloud came over the sun

they became dull, and soon lay down and appeared to be dying,

so I had to return them at once to the incubator, where the

warmth soon revived them.


After this they were put out for a short time ever)'' day,

while the sun was shining, and I sometimes allowed them to run



