SOME ROUGH NOTES 247 



A clear head is, of course, essential, and if a man 

 have no nerve, he had better keep away from cliff- 

 climbing. Turning to that fascinating pursuit, let us 

 advise every one who goes in for it to see that his 

 tackle is all perfectly sound before attempting a 

 descent ; also see that the crowbars are properly 

 driven home and the knots in the rope secure. Many 

 an accident is averted by these simple but oft- 

 neglected precautions. Always, too, remove all loose 

 rubble at the edge of the cliff where the ropes hang 

 over and put a piece of sacking between the ropes 

 and the cliffs edge. More danger is incurred from 

 falling stones and loose pieces than from any other 

 source. 



Now as to egg-collecting. If a man means to 

 collect, we advise his taking the whole clutch, 1 for the 

 following reason : All birds as a rule will lay a 

 second clutch of eggs should any mischance befall 

 the first set, and of course we are now speaking of 

 single-brooded birds, for nearly all the double- 

 brooded ones are fairly common, and a clutch of their 

 eggs more or less scarcely matters. Therefore, sup- 

 posing a bird like a Pied Flycatcher lays seven eggs, 

 which is not so very unusual, and four of them be 

 taken, she will only rear three young ; and then other 

 mischances have to be taken into consideration, such 

 as addle egg, incursions of Hawks, &c. ; whereas should 

 all seven eggs be removed, she will set to work on 

 a fresh nest and certainly lay five or six eggs, which 

 she has an equal chance of bringing off as she would 

 have had with the three. Here is a case in point : 

 1 I do not agree with this. O.G.P. 



