314 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. XI. 



that intention was it is hard to define. Hardly for concealment, for the size of 

 the flower made it more conspicuous ; besides it was night. If it was the lamp- 

 light it wanted to avoid, it is necessary to assume that, finding the light 

 too strong, it went back to get the flower. It could hardly be as food, for 

 scorpions are not known to live on vegetable substances; nor, as far as I 

 know, do they construct nests. I regret that I did not allow the creature 

 to reach its destination, and so ascertain its intention ; but, unfortunately, 

 I gave in to my first impulse and crushed it. My wife suggested that 

 perhaps it was going to a wedding, but this explanation is more poetical than 

 scientific. 



Some of your readers may be able to throw a little light on this curious 

 instance ; but Mr. Pocock of the British Museum, to whom I related the 

 shove, said he had never heard of a similar case. 



A. NEWNHAM, Captain. 



At)EN. 



[The above appeared in Nature]. 



No. VII —SOME NOTES ON CROWS, AND ON THE PROTECTIVE 

 POWER OP SCENT IN ANIMALS. 

 In No. 3 of Volume X of our Journal there is a short account of crows aid- 

 ing the sportsman apparently for pure love of mischief, and the case may be 

 strengthened by the following evidence. In December, 1896, 1 was extremely 

 interested in bagging a large male panther that was well known in the 

 neighbouring villages for his boldness and cunning, and, after discovering his 

 whereabouts approximately, my trackers persuaded him to kill a tied-up goat, 

 sending me word early next morning. On arrival at the spot, accompanied 

 by my wife, we found that the kill had been dragged about 100 yards into 

 tree forest, and that only the head and skin of the neck remained. As this, 

 however, had been concealed under dry leaves and grass, and as three or four 

 crows were in the vicinity and appeared to have some information, we 

 concluded it was good enough to put up a machan and therein to await 

 events for a couple of hours. The crows left the locality almost as soon as 

 the shikaries took their departure, and a few minutes later we could hear them 

 making a great commotion some half mile away. The noise drew nearer, and 

 presently, by the signs made by my companion, I became aware that the 

 panther was in sight, whilst, to judge by the excitement evinced by the crows, 

 he was coming steadily, though slowly, towards his kill. Of the panther I 

 could see nothing, as he was directly behind me and I dared not move. The 

 crows, however, pestering him with their noisy attentions, brought him up to 

 a tree some eight yards from the machan and, after wheeling round once or 

 twice as if to make sure that all was in order, departed not to reappear. The 

 panther lay down and seemed relieved ; he was not hungry, having some 15 

 or 20 lbs. of goat inside ; but he was drowsy, for, after 5 or 6 minutes, he 



