CURIOUS HEAPS. 247 



other, and buried at nearly an arm's- depth per- 

 fectly upright, with the large end upwards. The 

 eggs are covered up as they are laid, and allowed 

 to remain until hatched. Mr. Gould was credibly 

 informed, both iby natives and settlers living near 

 their haunts, that it is not an unusual event to 

 obtain nearly a bushel of eggs at one time from a 

 single heap ; and as they are delicious eating, they 

 are eagerly sought after. 



Some of the natives state that the females are 

 constantly in the neighbourhood of the heap 

 about the time the young are likely to be hatched, 

 and frequently uncover and cover them up again, 

 apparently for the purpose of assisting those that 

 may have appeared. Others, however, state that 

 such is not the case, the young being left to force 

 their way out unassisted. From the fact of the 

 egg being placed upright, Mr. Gould was disposed 

 rather to credit the latter than the former state- 

 ment, since the eggs of birds which are disturbed 

 and turned during incubation are generally laid 

 horizontally. At Sydney, Mr. Gould saw one of 

 them in a state of domestication, which had for 

 two successive years collected an immense mass of 

 materials, so as to form a large mound in a garden. 



