63 Messrs. H. J. Elwes and T. E. Buckley 



however, was occupied in vainly trying to force a road through 

 the snow on the mountains, which had not been so deep for 

 many years. Circus swaimoni and C. ceruginosus were very com- 

 mon here, but birds of pre)' generally are not so numerous in 

 Greece as in Turkey. 



We reached Volo, in Thessaly, on the 8th of February, but, 

 owing to the political differences which then existed between 

 Greece and Turkey, we were not allowed to land. Luckily, 

 however, a French steamer was lying in the bay ready to start ; 

 so we went on board, and arrived next day at Salonica, a large 

 and busy town inhabited by Jews, Turks, Greeks, and Italians. 

 We made preparations for starting at once into the interior — a 

 plan which had been strongly recommended by Col. Drummond- 

 Hay, and spent a month agreeably in shooting and collecting. 

 Comfortable quarters were always found either in villages or 

 monasteries; and as our cook was a tolerable hand at bird- 

 skinning, we got a good many rare specimens, as well as some 

 fair sport in the mountains. I would, howevei', warn any one 

 who thinks of going to Turkey of the difficulty of getting good 

 powder, as the importation of it is strictly prohibited, and the 

 native manufacture is dear and very bad. 



Bears, red deer, roes, and wild boars are found in this pro- 

 vince; and chamois are not uncommon on Mount Olympus. 

 Wild fowl are very numerous in the gulf of Salonica and 

 marshes of the Vardar and Karasmak rivers, which in summer 

 would well repay a more careful exploration. 



On leaving Salonica we stopped a few days in Constantinople, 

 where we had the pleasure of seeing M. Alleon's collection, and 

 visited his residence in the Forest of Belgrade, which in summer 

 is an excellent place for birds [cf. Rev. Zool. 1869, p. 259). 

 As, however, the season of their passage was not yet come, 

 we hurried on to the Crimea, which, though very interesting to 

 a soldier, is in early spring but a barren country for a naturalist. 



Little Bustards were feeding among the ruins of the Mame- 

 lon, and Owls had taken the place of Russian sharpshooters in 

 the quarries and ravines around the town of Sevastopol ; but 

 Larks [Alaucla calandra, A. cristata, and A. brachydactyla) were 

 the only birds which appeared very common. We returned 



