WILSON ON SCEMMERBING'S PHEASANT. 173 



districts afford shelter for wild hogs, foxes, and raccoons (the 

 skins of which were seen), as well as for the pheasants; and 

 they all descend in turn to plunder the crops, or steal the 

 chickens in the valleys. During the first part of our staj- at 

 Sinioda the cultivated fields afforded no food for the pheasants; 

 The natives told us there were plenty in the hills ; but no one 

 was willing to undertake to show them, and several rambles 

 through the bushes where these birds were supposed to feed 

 ended in disappointment. Only once I had a glimpse of a 

 brood of young ones near a hut in the mountains, but they 

 immediately disappeared by running very rapidly. Perhaps 

 one reason of oar want of success is to be found in the fact 

 that the wheat was ripe, and partially harvested before we left 

 (June "iith), so that during the time of our efforts they were 

 enabled to fill their crops occasionally from the wheat-fields, 

 and lie very close in the hills during the day, without being' 

 under the necessity of wandering in search of food. 



" ' The note of one or the other of these species of 

 pheasants was heard frequently. On the top of a precipitous 

 hill, about a mile south of Simoda, covered by small pines and 

 a very thick growth of shrubbery, a pheasant (so we were 

 assured by the Japanese) passed the weary hours, while his 

 mate was on her nest, and very sensibly solaced himself and 

 her with such music as he was capable of making. It was, 

 however, anything but melodious, and may be represented as 

 a sort of compound of the fihng of a saw and the screech of a 

 peacock. There are two notes only, uttered in quick succes- 

 sion, and represented by the Japanese name of the bird — 

 Ki-ji ; but the second note is much longer, louder, and more 

 discordant, in fact has more of the saw-filing character — 

 Kee-jaeae. These two notes are uttered, and if the bird is 

 not disturbed they are repeated in about five minutes. A 

 good many attempts, perhaps twenty, to become better 

 acquainted with this individual all failed. It seemed impossible 

 to make him fly, though his covert was by no means 

 extensive.^ " 



