1871.] LETTER FROM MR. E. Pi RAMSAY. 7 



hearing. These all pass and repass, hovering over the pedestrian's 

 head, screaming all the time as if highly incensed, and finally retire, 

 joining their voices in a sort of chorus, and waving their wings 

 upward in a very singular fashion ; but often, when they are 

 almost out of sight, they suddenly wheel about and hurry back with 

 fresh zeal to go through the whole annoying performance again. 

 Their flight being so serene at such times, it is very easy to shoot 

 them. Many persons, however, and particularly English residents, 

 have a squeamish repugnance against eating their flesh. But the 

 flavour of birds does not seem to depend altogether on their peculiar 

 food ; two species are sometimes equally good that feed very 

 differently. The Burrowing Parrot {('onurus patachonicus) is very 

 bitter in taste, and yet feeds on the same seeds as the Partridge and 

 wild Pigeon ; the Glossy Ibis eats the same food as the most 

 delicious-flavoured Snipes, and yet, when cooked, its fat emits a 

 sickening smell that renders it unfit for human food. Those who 

 have eaten this Gull have found it rich and fine-flavoured, without 

 any taint of rankness. 



" The Gulls seem everywhere preeminent among the feathered race 

 for the singular beauty of their flight. Our bird forms no exception, 

 but all its aerial movements are characterized with the same grace 

 and buoyancy that have been observed in the allied species in other 

 continents. On a still, hot day they love to soar to a vast height, 

 and at such times appear like diminutive white specks on the sky- 

 In fair weather their flight is always placid, a large bedy of them 

 seen at a distance appearing to travel with the serene motion of a 

 cloud. 



"When near, it is pleasing to see the wonderful precision with which 

 each bird keeps its relative place in the flock. But it is in a high 

 wind the Gull's flight is particularly interesting ; casually observed it 

 seems altogether wild and irregular. The bird toils onward, alter- 

 nately turning the upper and under surface of its wings, now struck 

 motionless in mid-air, and again sweeping onward with redoubled 

 velocity, now dropping downward until it nears the surface, and 

 soaring anon toward the sky, apparently without an effort of its 

 own, but borne aloft by the resistless violence of the wind." 



The Secretary read the following extracts from a letter addressed 

 to him by Mr. Edward P. Ramsav, dated Dobroyde, Nov. 4th 

 1870: — 



" The Ceratodus forsteri is found in the upper waters of the 

 Burnet, Burrum, and Mary rivers, also in the creeks running 

 into them as well as in the head-waters of the Fitzroy and 

 Dawson, and in the deep lagoons and water-holes in those neigh- 

 bourhoods. 



" On the Gutchey Run, about thirty miles from Maryborough, is a 

 water-hole, near the residence of Mr. Hilsham, in which these 

 fishes are very numerous, and might be taken at almost any time. 

 In the winter, however (from June to September), they go into a 



