mountains and wintering in the foothills and on the plains. The Chinese 
capture these finches with the aid of bird-lime made from hempseed oil. In 
the spring and autumn the bird-catcher repairs to some wooded, hilly district, 
and having made his preparations, he takes up his position on the top of some 
ridge. He is armed with several long rods, on the ends of which are fastened 
branching twigs, carefully smeared with bird-lime. Several call-birds in cages 
are hung in the leafy parts of some suitable young pine, and the rods are placed 
in such a position that the twigs stick out just above the highest branch of each 
respective tree. The protruding twig offers a tempting perch for any passing 
finch and many a wretched bird thus falls into the ruthless hands of the snarer, 
who has been quietly waiting a few yards distant. The birds are sold according 
to their value as songsters or trick birds. Crossbills, hawfinches, and bram- 
blings are readily trained to do various tricks, whilst the Chinese goldfinch 
and the rosefinch are valued for their vocal powers. 
A large and handsome grosbeak, named Fophona melanura, is also caught 
during the migrations and is especially valued by the Chinese as a trick bird. 
This bird is of a dull grey colour with shiny black head, wings and tail. It 
possesses a large very thick and strong beak of a bright yellow colour. We 
saw many larks, the exact names of which I was not able to ascertain. 
Soft-billed birds are very numerous. These are found throughout the 
summer, but most of them migrate to the south in winter. 
The first to appear in the spring are the starling (Sternus sinensis), and the 
redstarts (Phenicurus auroreus and Ruticilla rufiventris). These are shortly 
followed by great numbers of other species, which scatter over the country, 
taking up their abodes where conditions are most congenial to their modes of 
life. Thus we find a variety of wheatear (Saxicola morio) repairing to the 
desert areas, such as exist in and on the borders of Mongolia. Here it shares 
the burrows of the ground-squirrel (Citellus), and brings up a lively brood of 
from four to six hungry squawking fledglings. 
The pied wagtail (Motacilla alboides) finds a suitable nesting-place in the 
bushes that line the ravines and gorges of the mountains, whilst a beautiful 
yellow-headed variety (/. citreolides), after swarming along the rivers and over 
the marshes during the spring, travels north to the rich Siberian plains. 
A third very common wagtail (M. alba) seems to find suitable nesting 
places everywhere, and many may be seen from March till October. 
The redstarts resort to old temples and disused buildings, making their 
nests in suitable holes in the masonry. The black redstart (Auticilla rufiventris) 
is much rarer than the other species and nests in out-of-the-way ravines, 
either of loess or rock. 
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