Letters, Extracts, Notices, S^c. 471 



only pointed to my fast-filling liousc, so they laughed and 

 let me keep the birds, which soon recovered in the dry room. 

 Ojie poor little thing I found suspended in a large spider's 

 web, and, although the wings of a Swallow seem so powerful, 

 it was quite unable to extricate itself. They continued to 

 come in all day, and before 5 o'clock more than a hundred 

 had taken shelter, and the twittering and fuss that went on 

 were most amusing. When it began to grow dark they 

 packed themselves up for the night on the partitions as close 

 as they could possibly crowd together, two and three deep. 

 Most of them went to roost with their tails spread out, 

 perhaps in order to dry them thoroughly, and the round white 

 spot on the tip of each feather had a very curious appearance 

 when they were all asleep and quiet. I fully expected to 

 find the bottom row dead from suffocation the next morning, 

 but only three had fallen victims, and these I immediately 

 skinned. They stayed with me till about noon, one or two 

 occasionally flying out and returning, apparently to report 

 on the state of the weather, and then all leisurely took their 

 departure, no doubt very glad to see the sun again shining 

 brightly. I felt quite sorry when my little visitors departed, 

 but was glad they chose their countrywoman's house in their 

 time of need, for they proved to be English Swallows." 



Bird-notes from Mogador. — Mr. C. A. Payton, who writes 

 from Mogadoi', Morocco, May 13th, under the well-known 

 mm dejjlume of " Sarcelle," tells us ('Field,' 1892, p. 811) 

 as follows : — " Knots {Trinf/a canutus), in rich russet summer 

 plumage, have been arriving here in large flights during the 

 past three days, and pursuing a northward migration, after 

 a good halt for food on the muddy plain outside the 

 Mogador market-gardens, recently partly submerged by 

 spring tides. I have secured some good specimens of these 

 interesting Arctic-breeding birds, which were feeding in 

 company with large numbers of Ringed Plover {^yialitis 

 liiaticula) and Grey Plover [Squatarola helvetica), many of 

 them already black-breasted, sundry Sandpipers, a small 

 party of Greeushank [Totanus canescens), and a variety of 



