4442 - Tue ZooLtocist—May, 1875. 
as up-country. It resembles the paauw in its habits, but is not so 
gregarious, generally going in pairs. It lays two yellowish eggs, 
spotted with brown, in a hollow amongst the grass: the young, 
like chickens, leave the nest as soon as they are hatched. On the 
19th of December, 1871, we obtained two unfledged young ones, 
caught in this neighbourhood, and reared them on porridge and 
mince meat: one of them throve well for some time, but having an 
unfortunate propensity for swallowing anything which came in its 
way, died at last from the effects of eating a piece of glass. We 
have not had another opportunity since of raising them: there is 
no reason why they should not become in time a valuable addition 
to our domestic poultry. The upper parts of the koran are ofa 
dark brown, variegated with white: underneath, the male bird is 
jet-black, which distinguishes it from the female, whose breast is 
spotted. 
Baboons.— The chacma, or pigfaced baboon (Cynocephalus 
porcarius), is the only species found in South Africa; it inhabits 
the rocky parts of Natal: the “ gates,” or high precipices rising on 
either side of the Ifafa river, are favourite haunts of these animals: 
here they live in the holes and crevices, feeding upon roots and 
different kinds of berries which they obtain in the woods below. 
When these grow scarce they make raids to the nearest “ mealie 
garden,” or patch of maize, planted by the natives. They go about 
these excursions in a clever and systematic way: on arriving at 
their destination only part of the troop will enter the field, the 
older and more experienced baboons stationing themselves on 
points of observation around, where, on the first approach of 
danger, they raise the alarm. Not content with appeasing their 
appetites on the spot, we have actually seen them carry off bundles 
of mealie cobs under their arms to their retreats, and their route 
may be traced by the skins and pieces of cob scattered along the 
way: they steal pumpkins in the same way. In winter, after the 
corn has been reaped, they have been known to enter the “ crate,” 
or barn, and abstract the grain. 
Baboons grow to the size of a large mastiff, and if it were not 
for their timid disposition they would be very formidable brutes to 
meet with ; but as it is a small Kafir boy, or even a fire, is sufficient 
protection for the crops. We often see a lot of them in the distance, 
but they are very wary and difficult to approach within gunshot 
unobserved. Their cry is a loud bark, which when echoed by the 
