Nolices of Books. 9347 
titmouse from a slender twig, all the while keeping up a loud warbling 
strain, or a low querulous sort of note, very different from each other. 
It is not confined to cultivated ground, but is also a denizen of the 
open spaces of jungles. Its flight is performed by a succession of 
quick vibrations of the wing, and causes a loud whirring sound. Its 
food consists of various insects and larve, spiders, &c. The male at 
the breeding season now and then takes a short flight from one tree to 
another, slowly and in a fluttering manner, with his black tail spread, 
and the white feathers of the flanks puffed outwards and upwards, so 
as to give the appearance of a pure white rump. I have seen the nest 
and eggs on several occasions. The nest is deep, cup-shaped, very 
neatly made with grass, various fibres, hairs and spiders’ web; and 
the eggs, two or three in number, are reddish white, with numerous 
darker red spots, chiefly at the thicker end. It breeds in the 
South of India in August and September ; perhaps, however, twice a 
year. Burgess, speaking of its notes, says, ‘ truly it has a wonderful 
power of voice; at one moment uttering a low plaintive cry, at the 
next a shrill whistle.’ Layard, too, who observed it in Ceylon, states 
that ‘ the note is a clear bell-like whistle, which may be imitated on 
an octave flute.’ One of its notes, the low, plaintive one, is not unlike 
the word ‘ chee-too,’ the last syllable much lengthened out, which 
Horsfield gives as the note of its Malayan congener. It is said by 
the natives of the South of India to repeat the word ‘ shoubhiga, 
shoubhiga’ before rain.”—P. 102. 
“ The Indian Oriole (Oriolus kundoo).—I have seen the nest several 
times ; it is cup-shaped, slightly made with fine grass and roots, and 
suspended from a rather high branch by a few long fibres of grass; 
these do not surround the nest, but only support it on two sides. It 
contains three eggs, white-spotted chiefly at the large end, with a very 
few large dark purple blotches. I procured a nest at Saugor from a 
high branch of a banian tree in cantonment. It was situated between 
the forks of a branch, made of fine roots and grass, with some hair 
and a feather or two internally, and suspended by a long roll of cloth, 
about 3 inch wide, which it must have pilfered from the neighbouring 
verandah, where the tailor worked. This strip was wound round each 
fork, then passed round the nest beneath, fixed to the other fork and 
again brought round the nest to the opposite side ; there were four or 
five of these supports on each side. It was indeed a most curious nest, 
and so securely fixed that it could not have been removed till the sup- 
porting bands had been cut or rotted away. The eggs were, as before 
