66 HOMES WITHOUT HANDS. 



known by the quaint name of " Havildar-and-ten," because a dish 

 consists of eleven or twelve fishes. In the Indian army the Havil- 

 dar is equivalent to our sergeant, and has ten men under him, so 

 that a " Havildar-and-ten," signifies a sergeant and his guard, 

 making altogether eleven men. The external resemblance be- 

 tween the Bee-eater and the kingfisher is patent to all, in spite of 

 the short, clumsy-looking body, and stunted tail of the one, and 

 the slight, elegant form, and lengthened tail of the other ; and it 

 is sufficiently curious, that a light and airy bird, like the Bee-eater, 

 which feeds upon the most active insects, and catches them on 

 the wing, should invade the realms of the kingfisher, and procure 

 a meal from the water. 



Near the spot where the Bee-eater Lovers about in search of 

 its daOy food, the nest may be found. 



As the bird is generally as gregarious in its nesting as in its 

 flight, there is little difficulty in finding the locality in which it 

 has formed its temporary home. The Bee-eater is one of the 

 true burrowers, excavating a hole in some bank, and depositing 

 its eggs therein. The burrow is not a deep one, seldom exceed- 

 ing a foot in length, so that the sitting bird is plainly visible 

 from the exterior. The extremity of the hole is floored and par- 

 tially lined with moss, upon which are placed five or six eggs, of 

 pearly whiteness. Whenever the bank happens to be a con- 

 venient one, it is pierced with holes as numerous as those of the 

 sand martin of our own country ; and if the observer can manage 

 to conceal himself in close proximity to the nest, and will remain 

 perfectly quiet, he will witness a scene which is unsurpassable 

 for beauty. 



Although gifted with the rapid wing of the swift, the Bee-eater 

 does not possess the untiring flight of that bird, and, therefore, is 

 accustomed to repose at short intervals, whenever it has caught a 

 butterfly, or some large and active insect. Numbers of these 

 lovely birds may be seen perched in rows upon the branches of 

 neighbouring trees, exhibiting masses of colour that have a 

 peculiarly magnificent effect to the eye. Here they sit for the 

 purpose of eating the prey which they have captured, and the 

 ground beneath these favoured branches is thickly strewn with 

 wings of butterflies and other insects which they have devoured. 



I do not think that the Bee-eater ever makes its nest in 

 England, for it is only an occasional visitor, and is generally shot 



