On the Common Crossbill at Paxton,hj Mr. Muirhead. 107 



of perpendicular slabs, 22 inches. Like the preceding, this 

 cist was filled with fine sand, and had no slab for a base. 

 Mr. Scott Kerr has presented the remains of the urn to the 

 museum of the Tweeclside Physical and Antiquarian Society 

 in Kelso. 



In the " Proceedings of the Club," Vol. ii., pp. 74-5, I 

 described the discovery, in March, 1843, of a similar cist on 

 the banks of the Tweed, about 2^ miles below Kelso. In 

 this case there was a skeleton and an urn ; but the cist was 

 found at a depth of six feet below the surface, and excepting 

 in the urn itself, no earth was found in the interior. The 

 Sunlaws cists were so near to the surface that the effect of 

 rain during the many centuries they had there lain, would 

 gradually fill them with particles of sandy earth, which 

 would obtain easy admittance through the many crevices 

 between the slabs composing them. 



On the Appearance of the Common Crossbill at Paxton, in 

 the parish of Hutton. By George Muirhead. 



Amongst the various kinds of small birds, there are few 

 more interesting than the crossbill (Loxia Curvirostra). 

 Its peculiar call note while passing in flocks high overhead 

 in the air, its bright coloured plumage, and the singular 

 attitudes which it assumes while feeding, render it an object 

 of attraction to all those who attend to the habits and 

 appearance of the different sorts of birds. It is somewhat 

 larger than the greenfinch, to which it bears some re- 

 semblance. It feeds chiefly on the seeds of the larch and 

 spruce fir trees, the cones of which it sometimes cuts off 

 with its powerful beak and holds in its claws like a hawk. 

 It is very dexterous in extracting the seeds from the cones. 

 According to Selby, the crossbill is only occasionally seen 

 in Berwickshire. Several small straggling flocks of from 



o 



