18 The Study of Wild Birds 
beyond which was a straggling village which was held by the Arabs 
whence they opened a sharp fire with their Remingtons. As we 
were out only for a day’s cattle raid and the enemy were in force, 
I gave the word to fall back through the grove to our vessel. 
It was whilst thus engaged that I suddenly spied a lemon tree with 
its branches festooned with the beautifully-woven nests of the small 
Black-and-red Weaver-bird! I had never seen one of them before 
7 situ. Unfortunately, they were eight or nine feet up, and at the 
extreme end of the pendent boughs. Calling a Bluejacket near me I 
besought him to give me a leg up. He replied by seizing me 
by the legs and hoisting me with a jerk. I had just time to 
grab one nest and stuff it into my bosom when he let me drop and 
we raced back together to the friendly plank which led aboard our 
‘“‘war-ship.” As we shoved off, the Arabs lined the scrub on the 
steep bank and their bullets pattered against the old boiler plates 
which formed our armoured topsides. 
Events moved rapidly in those days and there was much to 
do and think about and it was not until four days later, in our 
bivouac at Metemmeh, that, feeling my shirt very scrubby, I put 
my hand in and drew out the Weaver-bird’s nest squeezed as flat 
as a pancake! It however, recovered its shape and is among my 
treasures to this day, a memento of the furthermost point south 
on the way to Khartoum, where I was able to land, as well as my 
one and only experience of the nesting habits of the Black-and- 
red Weaver-bird. 
The second example was in November 1899 during the early 
days of the Boer War. I-was with the Frontier Force at Orange 
River Bridge and organized a train to support a reconnaissance 
towards the heights of Belmont then strongly held by the Boers. 
On reaching the high ground near Witteputs, I halted and pushed 
out patrols to get in touch with those to our front. We had brought 
with us a telephone from the station and the R. E. officer with me, 
