THE BATHING OF THE BIRDS 169 
these means he would contrive to splash over himself a 
considerable quantity of water. Next, the bird would 
fly to a tree near by, shake himself as a dog does, and 
then begin violently to preen his feathers, dressing in 
turn all parts of his plumage, twisting his wings about 
in the most wonderful manner, and undergoing all 
kinds of acrobatic contortions in his endeavours to 
make his beak reach the more inaccessible parts of his 
anatomy. Presently, the crow would fly back to the 
bath, again duck his head and neck, and then return 
to the tree to resume the preening of his feathers. 
Perhaps he would go back to the water a third, a 
fourth, or even a fifth time, evidently enjoying his bath 
so immensely that he found it difficult to tear himself 
away from the water. 
The mynas were more venturesome than the crows. 
They used to plunge into the water and disappear 
completely beneath the surface. But even they found 
that they had to summon all their courage before 
taking a dive. The bathing myna would perch on the 
edge of the bath and look for some time wistfully at 
the water, as much as to say, “Dare I?” just as a child 
will do before entering the sea. As a rule the complete 
immersion would be led up to by a number of half 
plunges. 
The myna would hop from side to side of the bath ; 
at the second or third hop he would allow the tip of his 
tail to. touch the water. Then, with each subsequent 
jump, more of the body would be immersed, until 
finally the bird would do a éou¢ a fait and disappear 
entirely. Having made this final effort the myna, look- 
