180 



most wary birds known of ; thirdly, iii illustration of the utter 

 disregard of man shown by some of the water fowl on this lake, I 

 may mention, that, until going there I had never killed a pelican, 

 nor one of the beautiful snake-birds, or darters as they are some- 

 times called, (Plotus melanogaster, Jerdon's birds of India, Vol. 3, 

 No. 1008) and although most anxious to examine one of each, I 

 really could not do so, for the birds swam so close to my canoe, 

 as it was pushed about the shallows, or sat on the nets and fishing 

 stakes and watched me with such confidence, or unconcern, think- 

 ing doubtless that I was merely a fisher less expert than they were ; 

 that I had not heart to kill one of them ; my first pelican was shot 

 several days after leaving the Chilka, but I certainly did, after 

 some time, murder one of the darters. 



I hope that I may not be supposed to write this from egotism, 

 merely wish to illustrate what was said at page 20. 



Wild geese both " barred-headed" and the " black-backed," Nos. 

 949 and 950, Vol. 3 of Jerdon's birds of India, are to be found in 

 large flocks on the Chilka during the winter, and it is only at this 

 season that any of the birds on this lake should be killed. 



Since the above was written, I have seen in the Bombay 

 Times of, I think, 14th June 1869, the following extract from 

 an article in the Madras Mail, June 4th, on an Australian Meat- 

 preserving Company, established with a view of exporting mutton, 

 fresh and uncooked, to England. Perhaps the suggestion of the 

 writer is worthy of consideration : I do not doubt the quantity of 

 wild birds to be found on the Chilka, but I do mistrust their 

 quality, having always thought the wild duck and curlew on the 

 Chilka were oily and fishy, and the flesh of the snipe, great numbers 

 of which could be killed on some of the black and muddy swamps 

 about the lake, exceedingly bitter this may be fancy on my part 

 however. 



" It is worthy of consideration, whether one of these methods of 

 preserving meat could be turned to good purpose in this country. 

 We have no beef or mutton to export from India, and if we could 

 spare the little we have got, nobody would buy it ; but we have a 

 large command of an article de luxe, which always obtains a ready 



