''No Child's Playr 29 



the nest, when the cuckoo immediately commenced to 

 hoist the egg on its back and began to climb, and 

 when near the top of the nest a snap-shot was taken, 

 but, owing to a small tin having slipped, Mr. Millar 

 had to expose the plate, which was spoiled in trying 

 to take another snapshot. The bird then became 

 extremely restless, and though somewhat exhausted, 

 it made several attempts to reach the top of the nest 

 with its burden, but failed. 



" I again visited the nest on the following day, and 

 put an Qgg into it, but the bird was not inclined to 

 begin operations. I dropped another egg into the 

 nest, when it immediately began to hoist one of them 

 on its back, and carried it to the edge of the nest and 

 threw it out. But there was no snap-shot taken as 

 Mr. Millar had to attend to his business at home, 

 Saturday being a busy day with him. We again 

 visited the nest on June 19th, but the bird would on 

 no account commence operations, though we put four 

 eggs into the nest, showing nothing of the restless- 

 ness that it had done three days before. 



" I have spared no effort to prove my case and 

 make a clean sweep of my opponents." 



Mr. Craig's observation of the nest with two young 

 cuckoos in it is in favour of the stronger young 

 cuckoo throwing the weaker one out. " It was 

 about four miles from where I reside, and the 

 other one about three miles ; so that every time I 

 visited the nest of the former I had to walk eight 

 miles ; and of the latter about six miles, which 

 amounted to more than one hundred miles, which was 

 no child's play on these warm summer evenings in 

 June." 



