252 BIRDS. [Cuar. VIII. 
a clear and merry note; and the Indian weaver!, a 
still more ingenious artist, hangs its pendulous dwell- 
ing from a projecting bough; twisting it with grass into 
a form somewhat resembling a bottle with a prolonged 
neck, the entrance being inverted, so as to baffle the 
approaches of its enemies, the tree snakes and other 
reptiles. The natives assert that the male bird carries 
fire flies to the nest, and fastens them to its sides by a 
particle of soft mud;— Mr. Layard assures me that 
“CISSA PUELLA.” 
although he has never succeeded in finding the fire fly, 
the nest of the male bird (for the female occupies 
another during incubation) invariably contains a patch 
* Ploceus baya, Blyth.; P. Philippinus, Auct. 
