9694 Birds. 



surprised to find the cushat or common ring dove so tame in the public 

 promenades of Paris. In the gardens of the Tuileries, for example, 

 they would let you come within a few feet of them, and I was greatly 

 interested one day at the same place on seeing a gentleman surrounded 

 by a perfect swarm of sparrows, which, hovering close to his feet, dex- 

 terously caught the crumbs of bread which he threw into the air before 

 they fell to the ground. 



On our way into Switzerland we slept at Pontarlier, a small town on 

 the frontier, and whilst looking out of our bedroom window, in the 

 morning, were delighted to see a couple of beautiful black redstarts 

 flitting about the church steeple close by the house ; these we watched 

 for half an hour with a pocket telescope. 



At Neuchatel we visited the fine Museum of Natural History, and 

 among the birds were pleased to find a specimen of the great auk, now 

 considered to be extinct. 



At Geneva, too, there is a very good museum, which we also visited, 

 and among other birds in the markets and game shops of that town, we 

 found heaps of ring ouzels, both youtig and old, no doubt obtained 

 from the neighbouring mountains. We also bought a fine hen harrier, 

 but observed no grebes on the celebrated lake where once they were 

 said to be so plentiful. 



Journeying from Sallanches to Chamouni, we observed, among 

 other insects, several specimens of Colias Edusa and C. Hyale. 



At Chamouni we slept, and the next morning took a delightful 

 ramble up the mountains to the Mer de Glace, &c., meeting with the 

 following birds during the ascent. At first we heard the notes of the 

 crossbill, and on looking up observed numerous flocks of those birds 

 flying overhead, but in a little while we had the gratification of seeing 

 numbers alight on the fir trees, clinging to and hanging from the cones 

 in the most extraordinary manner whilst extracting the seeds, the 

 glowing red breasts of the males looking most beautiful, and so intent 

 were they in their occupation that they paid little heed to us, thereby 

 allowing me to make several sketches of their singular attitudes. 



Further on we came across some fine black redstarts, and when 

 many thousands of feet up, and far into the snow, there appeared 

 (true to its name) the alpine accentor. These small birds have been 

 observed at an elevation of 11,000 feet in summer, but in winter they 

 seek shelter in the valleys. Although I have killed the black redstart 

 and alpine accentor in England, yet I cannot describe the pleasure we 

 experienced in being enabled to watch the habits of these birds in 

 their native haunts. 



