METHODS OF RESEARCH 151 



Owing to the dullness of onr senses and the iinwieldi- 

 ness of our bodies, to study successfully the small folk of 

 the jungle we had to resort to many artificial means, usually 

 some method of causing them to assemble at a desired spot. 

 We have seen how gravitation was used in the case of the 

 pits. We also used scent, such as exposing the female of 

 some insect in an open cage and waiting for males of the same 

 species to come up wind. Or we placed dishes of partly dis- 

 solved sugar made still more irresistible by the addition of 

 a little gin, along the trails and seldom failed to find great 

 blue morphos and other butterflies and bees drinking to re- 

 pletion. A less pleasant but quite as effective method was 

 to carry a jar of carrion to the jungle and there unstopper 

 it, and the host which gathered could be numbered by the 

 score of species. Or the body of a red howling monkey re- 

 visited after several days, would furnish such varied speci- 

 mens as king and yellow-headed vultures, rare and beautiful 

 butterflies and giant-horned scarabs all in blue and copper 

 mail. 



The sense of sight was resorted to by placing the wings 

 of a metallic morpho in the band of one's helmet, as a miner 

 carries his lighted lamp, when any of these wary butterflies 

 within sight would usually deflect their flight and descend 

 to within easy reach of the net. 



A third sense — that of hearing — was a fertile source of 

 profit. The old, old trick of squeaking like a young bird in 

 trouble was as effective in the tropics as elsewhere, more so 

 perhaps, for it never failed to elicit some response from the 

 smaller pugnacious people of the jungle. From an appar- 

 ently deserted part of the forest I have summoned a noisy 

 flock of many species, coming from nest or food. Even when 

 they arrived within sight, they could not but continue to be- 

 lieve that somewhere there was a friend in trouble and some 

 of the smaller ones would come within a foot or two of my 

 face. After a suspicious bird had given the alarm and all 



