Bit'ds of ike Pyrenees. 65 



though interesting birds of prey could liardly be expected 

 to be conspicuous in Catalonia, the most prosperous and 

 populous province of Spain, yet, even there, some marshes 

 and lakes appeared on the map, especially in the sweep of 

 the Gulf of Rosas, and these seemed worthy of investigation, 

 to say nothing of the rocky coast on either side. It was 

 true that a score of years ago I had learned by sad experience 

 that the etangs on the French coast between Narbonne and 

 Perpignan were vanity, and Mr. Eagle Clarke's subsequent 

 visit was fruitless, but better things were hoped from Spain. 

 As regarded the weather, the outlook was dubious. The 

 w^inter had been absolutely open ; no snow had fallen, and 

 almost any pass could have been crossed up to the middle 

 of March ; but then a heavy storm took place on the French 

 side, and all the "ports" and "cols" were blocked. In Spain, 

 however, no rain had followed, and Aragon was reduced by 

 drought to absolute famine, while processions and prayers 

 were the order of the day, even in free-thinking Catalonia. 

 It seemed unlikely that this state of affairs could last much 

 longer, but the latter part of April came and the news was 

 that the drought continued. My friend Colonel H. W. 

 Feilden had agreed to give me the pleasure of his company, 

 and, as we were obliged to return to England by the middle 

 of June, the 25th of April found us at Toulouse. 



At the excellent museum of that city I was pleased to 

 find my former acquaintances. Dr. Eugene Trutat, the 

 Director, and M. Victor Bonhenri. M. Adrien Lacroix still 

 retained his valuable collection of Pyrenean birds ; while 

 M. Felix Regnault showed us his grand series of spoils from 

 the caverns — complete skeletons of cave-bear and hyaena, 

 skulls of cave-lion, and, rarest of all, one cranium of a 

 panther, with any number of stone implements. Moreover, 

 the celebrated archaeologist M. Cartailhac introduced us to 

 the interior of many ancient hotels and other buildings 

 which we should never have found out from guide-books. 

 Our first excursion was up the valley of the Ariege — passing 

 the old towns of Foix and Tarascon — to Ax-les-Thermea, 

 which Mr. Eagle Clarke has so well described; and thence 



SER. VII. VOL, Hi. F 



