THE GAME BIRDS OF INDIA, BURMA AND CEYLON. 29 



■an elevatiou of some 10,000 i'eet over and against Namick, which is 

 celebrated for its salt springs." 



" We were following up a huge wounded Presbytis schistaceus 

 through a dense undergrowth of ringals, when a Woodcock rose 

 close to us, dropping again almost immediately, disappearing in the 

 cover. A diligent search revealed the long-looked-for prize, four 

 -eggs, which were deposited in a slight depression in the damp soil, 

 and embedded amongst a lot of wet leaves, the thin ends pointing 

 .inivards and downwards into the grounds." 



" The eggs found (I could see they were hard-set), I told Triphook 

 I had no intention of leaving the place without bagging the bird. 

 It was raining heavily and bitterly cold with the thermometer down 

 to 40° : but fortunately for us, before we had time to make our- 

 selves comfortable under an adjoining tree, the bird flew back in a 

 sort of semicircle, alighted, and ran on to her nest. No sooner down 

 than she was off again, frightened, as I subsequently learnt, by one of 

 ■ our dogs, but which at first thought alarmed me not a little as I 

 thought she was removing her eggs. After having satisfied myself 

 that my suspicions were unfounded, it was decided, as I had done my 

 duty in finding the nest, shooting the bird should devolve on Triphook, 

 and right well he did it, considering all the disadvantages 

 which militate against having a snap-shot in dense cover and a 

 thick mist. I never do anything but miss on such critical occa- 

 sions ; at any rate, I would rather some one else made a mull of it 

 than myself." 



" The eggs were a most beautiful set . . . they are far darker 

 .and redder than the usual run of Woodcocks' eggs, all four resembling 

 the second figure in Hewetson's work, and in the character of their 

 markings they are not unlike richly coloured specimens of some Terns' 

 eggs." 



Osmaston has an interesting account of the finding of a nest in the 

 Tons Valley, especially interesting as in the case there was no attempt 

 to carry off the young ; the mother, when disturbed, attempting to 

 divert attention by feigning being crippled. He says that after 

 finding the mother and tiny young, only a day or two old, the former 

 " all the time 1 had been inspecting her brood had been going- 

 through the strangest of antics with outspread wings aad tail, and 

 making a continual sort of grating, purring noise. She allowed me 



