THE NATURALIST IN A RAILWAY 
TRAIN 
N most parts of India a kind of “general post” of 
Officials takes place at the commencement of 
every cold weather. The authorities seem sud- 
denly to discover that the majority of public 
servants are stationed at unsuitable places, and there- 
upon seek to remedy this state of affairs, to the great 
profit of the railway companies. Having been an active 
participator in the latest “general post,’.I have been 
afforded an excellent opportunity of studying nature 
from the interior of a railway carriage. It must, in 
truth, be admitted that there are many worse points of 
view, for one sees an astonishing amount of animal life 
from a moving train. 
The railway has now become quite an important 
factor in the life of many birds, chiefly owing to the 
fact that the iron road is accompanied by telegraph 
wires, When first erected, these caused the death of 
many an unsuspecting bird. The fowls of the air 
enjoy so vast a space, free from obstacles, in which to 
move about, that when flying they are not obliged to 
look very carefully where they are going. If a bird 
wishes to reach a certain place, it forthwith takes to its 
G 81 
