THE CAPOCIER. 93 



scribed recurred. I have witnessed eight interrup- 

 tions of this kind in one morning. How happy birds 

 are ! They are certainly the privileged creatures 

 of nature, thus to work and sport alternately as 

 fancy prompts them. 



" On the third day the birds began to rear the 

 side walls of the nest, after having rendered the 

 bottom compact by repeatedly pressing the materi- 

 als with their breasts, and turning themselves round 

 upon them in all directions. They first formed a 

 plain border, which they afterward trimmed, and 

 upon this they piled up tufts of cotton, which was 

 felted into the structure by beating and pressing with 

 their breasts and the shoulders of their wings, taking 

 care to arrange any projecting corner with their 

 beaks so as to interlace it into the tissue and ren- 

 der it more firm. The contiguous branches of the 

 bush were enveloped, as the work proceeded, in the 

 side walls, but without deranging the circular cavity 

 of the interior. This part of the nest required many 

 materials, so that I was quite astonished at the 

 quantity which they used. 



" On the seventh day their task was finished ; and, 

 anxious to examine the interior, I determined to in- 

 troduce my finger, when I felt an egg that had prob- 

 ably been laid that morning, for on the previous 

 evening I could see there was no egg in it, as it was 

 not quite covered in. This beautiful edifice, which 

 was as white as snow, was nine inches in height on 

 the outside, while in the inside it was not more than 

 five. Its external form was very irregular on ac- 

 count of the branches which it had been found ne- 

 cessary to enclose ; but the inside exactly resem- 

 bled a pullet's egg placed with the small end up- 

 ward. Its greatest diameter was five inches, and 

 the smallest four. The entrance was two thirds of 

 the whole height, as seen on the outside ; but within 

 it almost reached the arch of the ceiling above. 



" The interior of this nest was so neatly worked 



