CLANGULA GLAUCION. 614 
and strength of its claws the difficulty was partly though not 
altogether solved. The diameter of the chamber is often very small. 
The box must always be placed so that the hole, which may be round, 
square, or triangular, is conspicuous from a distance, and on no 
account must there be any branches that can interfere with the 
bird’s easy access and departure. It is usually turned towards a 
river or lake, sometimes hanging four or five feet only above the 
water, oftener in a tall tree, and even on the side of a steep hill far 
away from the place to which the mother would have to carry her 
young. ; 
A few miles from here [Muoniovara] there are five or six poor 
houses which constitute the kyla or hamlet of Niilima. They are 
scattered along a still part of the small river Utkojoki. The 
inhabitants have great numbers of egg-boxes, a dozen or more may 
be in sight at once on the banks, and many others are in the woods. 
At the last-erected habitation there is a Scotch fir growing between 
the dwelling and the cow-house, which, as usual, face one another 
with an interval of only a few paces. This tree, quite a unique 
sight in such a situation, makes the place very pretty, and the owner 
has resisted all the ridicule of his neighbours on its account, and 
even their officious essays to cut it down. On it he has hung an 
egg-box which is tenanted every year, though the birds have 
constantly to fly close over peoples’ heads. 
{Here unfortunately ends this paper, and it remains for me to add a few 
words. The practice of people in Lapland to take advantage of the Golden- 
eye’s habit of breeding in holes of trees by setting up, for their own advantage, 
nest-boxes has long been known; and, as already mentioned in this work 
(vol. i. p. 165, note), was noted by Linnzeus during his ‘ Tour in Lapland’ in 
1732, in a passage which was reprinted by Mr. Yarrell (Brit. Birds, ed. 1, iii. 
p. 870) from the translation of the former's journal published by Sir James 
Edward Smith (i. p. 93) and has since been repeated by several other authors. 
This passage also shews that it is the habit of certain Owls occasionally to 
occupy the lodgings thus provided, of which, in the case of Tengmalm’s and 
the Hawk-Owl, particular instances have been given (§§ 536-538, 542, 548, 
558, and 560), while, as will be presently seen, the Goosander (§§ 5874, 5876, 
5877, 5883) sometimes, and the Smew (§§ 5864-5867) more commonly, 
makes use of them. The construction of these boxes and the mode of hanging 
them are well enough described above ; but I do not know that one of them has 
been figured, and accordingly I here give, in a sketch of my own (Tab. O), 
the likeness of one, which, so far as I remember, was set up in a tree on the 
bank of lake Viksi near Muopiovara; though the drawing was not intended 
to be the accurate representation of that or any particular nest-box, but rather 
to shew the general appearance. It seemed to me from those I saw—at least 
a score in number—‘hat a tree standinz alone, when one could be found, was 
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