110 FIFTEEN DAYS ON THE DANUBE. 



and I went to the Catholic church to hear Mass. The church 

 is very plain, and may really be said to be rather poor and 

 neglected. A lean and hungry-looking priest said low mass 

 and preached the Gospel in Servian. The Catholic commu- 

 nity is very small, for, with the exception of a few families, 

 the whole population belongs to the Orthodox Greek Church. 



After service we went back to our vessel for lunch. During 

 our absence the two Savants had observed many large birds of 

 prey flying pretty low towards the Hungarian plains, and 

 quite undisturbed by the noise and bustle, the firing of 

 cannon, and the ringing of bells. Sea-Eagles, Imperial 

 Eagles, and, according to Hodek, also a Griffon Vulture had 

 been seen,' and a White Stork, which was nesting on one of 

 the houses of the village, had come repeatedly to the steamer 

 and flown round it in amazement. As Hodek had no per- 

 sonal knowledge of the Fruska-Gora, and was well aware that 

 we should be quite safe in the hands of Count Chotek and his 

 splendid staff of foresters, he asked for a few days' leave of 

 absence, and leaving the t Vienna ' behind him, and abandon- 

 ing all his work to his son, disappeared before we quitted the 

 vessel. He intended to betake himself to the district of 

 Tittel and there look for nests in the Kovil and Sacer forests, 

 which both belong to the Hungarian Crown, and we were to 

 follow him a few days later. 



After breakfast we got ready for our very interesting 

 shooting-excursion into the mountain valleys. The popula- 

 tion of Cerevic meanwhile stood about the bank, looking with 

 amazement at our remarkable vessel ; and the steamer had 

 indeed assumed a very quaint character, for the deck abounded 

 with all sorts of weapons guns, rifles, and boxes of ammuni- 

 tion, the forward part of the upper deck being tenanted by a 

 regular menagerie, consisting of young Sea-Eagles, young 

 Eagle- Owls, Tawny Owls, my Eagle- Owl, and the two dogs. 

 Upon it there was also a large operating-table, where the men 



