44 
and if allowance were made for head winds the distance was probably 
much greater even than that. Some birds vere not migratory, but 
simply wandered to and fro‘on the face of the waters. Thus the giant 
petrel had been known to follow a ship for three weeks. It often made 
200 miles in the twenty-four hours, hunting up the wake of the vessel 
to secure any offal that had been thrown overboard, the interim being 
employed in scanning the ocean in immense circles. The most 
romantic migration known to us was that of the Pallas sand-grouse, from 
Central Asia and Siberia to England, some 3,000 miles due west. This’ 
took place in 1863, and was repeated again last year. It was, so to 
speak, an entirely original migration, for the lines of most birds were 
more or less north and south, whereas these came due west, and, though 
an inland bird, they exchanged the centre of the great Russian Asian 
Continent for the sea coasts of Western Europe. It was a matter of 
great satisfaction to find that the prediction that these birds would die 
out in 1889 had been falsified. Last week four were reported to him 
on the Downs, immediately south of our west corner of Snssex, going 
south, and in excellent health, and it was most probable that the 
migration of last year was still continuing, so that the passing of the 
special Act protecting the sand-grouse in December might be sufficient 
for success, though the penalty of £1 was not sufficient. 
But Oceana had also some wonderful examples of migration, the 
startling suddenness of which almost paralleled the feat of the sand- 
grouse. Butler said that the Zosterops, or blight-bird, crossed Cook’s 
Strait, for the first time within the memory of man, in the winter of 
1856, coming over in numerous flocks as if to explore the country. 
Then it retired for two years and re-appeared in greater numbers than 
before in the winter of 1858, since which time it had been a permanent 
residevt in the North Island, breeding in every district and becoming 
more plentiful every year. This migration was induced by scarcity of 
some food supply, which must have occurred again two years later. 
But the exceptional feature was that after the second migration the 
natural impulse to return home lost itsinfluence. Every lover of beauty 
would ecbothe wish that the residence with us of that marvel of elegance, 
the sand-grouse, may be as permanent. Having cited Darwin’s 
opinion that the cuckoo is parasitic, because she lays her eggs not daily, 
but at intervals of two or three days he added that a change of the 
female’s plumage at nesting time indicated that the cuckoo once had a 
nest of her own. Mr. Gordon then said that having mentioned the 
great name of Darwin more than once, he should Jike to be permitted 
to quote the words of Sir Walter Buller, published last December in 
his magnificent reprint of the Birds of New Zealand :—“I see no 
difficulty in reconciling this view of the evolution of species by means 
of natvral selection with the belief in the unity and design in Creation 
and with the acceptance of the great truths of revelation. It is nota 
question of the Creation itself as divinely revealed to man, but as to 
the plan and method of the Creation ; and when we understand by the 
‘ six days ’ of the Mosaic record so many vastly extended geologic epochs 
every difficulty in the way of orthodox belief disappears. Science dis- 
closes the method of the world, Religion its cause, and there is no 
conflict between them except when either forgets its ignorance of what. 
the other alone can know.” ’ 
