340 MISCELLANEOUS OBSERVATIONS 



I am glad to find that the fact I have formerly 

 mentioned of the Long Tailed Titmouse, or Bottle 

 Tit, placing a feather occasionally across the en- 

 trance to the nest, has been corroborated by 

 others. This feather is beautifully placed, proba- 

 bly for the purpose of adding to the warmth of 

 the nest, and pretty firmly fixed amongst the 

 lichens, webs and wool of which the nest is com- 

 posed. The nest, which is a sort of ball, and lined 

 inside with an amazing quantity of feathers, will 

 sometimes contain from ten to fifteen young ones. 

 It is somewhat elastic, and the labour bestowed 

 upon it must be prodigious. I know nothing in 

 the architecture of birds so really interesting and 

 beautiful. The hole is so small, that it appears 

 scarcely large enough to admit the old birds, and 

 it is over this hole that the feather is placed, like a 

 swinging door. 



So sagacious are animals, that the cattle in Aus- 

 tralia are never known to feed beyond that point 

 in the prairies, which will enable them to get down 

 in the evening to their drinking places. The Shet- 

 land and Orkney Cows, and even the ponies, 

 observe a strict regularity in coming down to the 

 shore, as soon as the tide is out, in order to feed 

 on the sea-weed, moving off as the tide comes in, 

 and repeating the same thing both night and day 

 punctually. 



