THE KING BIRD OF PARADISE. 37 



subject that amused the naturalist,* and caused him 

 to laugh. 



The old man declared he had found out the 

 secret. No doubt the birds, and all the stuffed 

 creatures, that the white man was going to carry 

 away in his box, would come to life when they 

 reached his country ! Yes, that must be the 

 reason ! 



At one time of the year, the birds are very 

 merry indeed. They hold what the natives call 

 their dancing-parties. Do you rgmember the tree 

 I spoke of, with its broad green top like a plateau 1 

 At a certain season, and when the birds are in 

 full plumage, they come here in parties of twenty 

 or more, and begin to play about, or, as the natives 

 say, to dance. They put themselves in all kinds 

 of attitudes, and wave their plumes about till the 

 tree seems alive. This is the time the most 

 favourable for the naturalist : he can now behold 

 the birds in their full beauty. At other seasons 

 they moult, and lose their feathers, as other birds 

 do, and are not worth preserving. 



*Mr. Wallace. 



