FRENCH CAMEROONS 165 
tropical jungle, my success was due, almost wholly, to close ob- 
servation. After that it was merely a matter of common sense. 
The abandoned native plantations in the forest produce a vege- 
tation entirely different from that of the forest which envelops 
them. This is brought into being by wind-borne seeds, and is 
called second growth. It is composed of bushes and small trees 
which are bound together by creepers of all descriptions, forming 
an impenetrable mass. Some of these bear thorns and others have 
knife-edged grass-like blades which cut one to pieces. It would need 
at least the weight of an elephant to penetrate this tangled mass, 
and even boys armed with cutlasses make little impression on it. 
They may hack away until they are exhausted and the result is a 
small tunnel a few yards long. The bird-life in this second growth 
is quite distinct from that of the forest. Some of its inhabitants 
are skulkers which live near the ground, and rarely, if ever, show 
themselves in open places. One of these is the Blue-shouldered 
Robin-chat, which is a magnificent bird. It was weeks before I got 
my first glimpse of one of these most secretive creatures, though 
I knew of their existence by hearing their soft call-notes late in 
the day. Determined to find one, I crawled along an animal track 
frequented mainly by wild pigs. It was like crawling through a 
tunnel only two feet high, as the vegetation was dense beyond 
belief. I went along this for some distance like a snake, and then 
came to a part that was more lofty which enabled me to sit up- 
right. Keeping quite still I waited patiently, and after a while was 
rewarded by seeing a Blue-shouldered Robin-chat hop on to the 
track only a few yards away, obviously looking for insects. I soon 
realized that this track was its favorite feeding place, and as robin- 
chats are usually in pairs, I concluded that its mate was not far off. 
Returning with a spring-net trap, I crawled along the tunnel again 
and set it on the ground baited with a live meal-worm. When I 
returned a little later the robin-chat was caught, and the next day 
I caught his mate. 
Once while crawling on my belly through a similar second- 
growth tunnel, a startling noise ahead brought me to a halt; it 
might have been a child being murdered, but the noise was con- 
stant and of steady volume. After listening to this uncanny noise 
