302 ANTHUS CALTHORPiE. 



song, is a general favourite. He came into my possession 

 more than six years ago. and was brought from Swartland. 

 He usually commences his song the earliest, but one, of all 

 my birds : the ' early bird ' is a Java sparrow, who with the 

 faintest dawn begins a low guttural gobbling, ending in a 

 mellow but short pipe. As soon as I remove the cover from 

 the cage, 'Brownie,' who roosts on the ground, sometimes in 

 a corner, at other times behind the seed-box, mounts a large 

 stone, placed in the cage for his special benefit, and pours 

 out his voluble song, short, certainly, but oft-repeated. Occa- 

 sionally he will hop on the edge of the cage or mayhap on a 

 perch, and then treat us to a stave ; but his favourite singing 

 place is the stone. Sometimes, when I am going to bed, 

 without any warning, ' Brownie ' will start off in full tide of 

 song : he is then usually on the ground. ' Brownie,' however, 

 has more than once been in disgrace. Among the many birds 

 confined with him are a pair of doves from Java ; these he 

 almost stripped of their feathers for the sake of nibbling the 

 quill-ends, which are rapidly passed through his little sharp 

 bill, like canes through a sugar-crusher, and with the same 

 results. From this propensity I fancy 'Brownie' must like 

 a meat diet — worms and insects, perhaps ; he, however, feeds 

 upon canary-seed, and will eat groundsel and chickweed, and 

 all that the canaries that are inhabitants of the same large 

 cage feed upon. I dedicate this, to me, new species to 

 perpetuate the name of the faithful companion of my labours 

 for upwards of twenty years, who has aided me with pen and 

 pencil, and shared the pleasures I have experienced in the 

 study of the works of Nature." This species should be called 

 A. calthorpae, as it was dedicated to Layard's wife, who was a 

 Miss Calthorpe. 



I have quoted the above as it gives a vivid picture of both 

 the bird and its friend the author. 



