STRANGE BIRDS AND THEIR WAYS. 257 



offensive, perpetually calling out, " Let us pray ! " " Glory 

 be to God ! " " Amen ! " She was once lost, stayed out 

 over night, and grief and searches ruled the disconsolate 

 household. At daybreak, however, a workman, going to 

 his job, was hailed by Polly, from a pile of bricks, with 

 the call, " Take me home ! Take me home ! " Whether 

 the night-chilled bird did or did not attach meaning to the 

 words, it is certain that the workman did, and that he 

 made a good thing of bringing her home. I know of no 

 gray parrot that has excelled this. 



N. S. Dodge. 



THE APTERYX. 



1. One of the contributions which New Zealand has 

 made to the list of queer animal forms is that of the ap- 

 teryx. The name implies that it is a wingless bird, though 

 when stripped of its covering minute rudimentary wings 

 are discovered. This bird is another survival of the old 

 geologic forms, of which the southern hemisphere has fur- 

 nished so many specimens. In size the different species 

 vary from that of a moderately-sized hen to that of a large 

 turkey. It is covered with curious feathers, which are very 

 narrow, and taper to a point at their upper extremity, giving 

 to the bird the general appearance of a hedgehog. The 

 covering seems to be a cross between feathers, hair, and 

 hedgehog quills. 



2. The bill of the apteryx is long and slender, and the 

 legs are large and strong, each terminating in sharp and 

 formidable claws. It thus possesses the characteristic or- 

 gans of both scratching and wading' birds, but it is exclu- 

 sively a land bird, and uses its long beak to extract insects 

 and worms from the fallen leaves and decayed wood in the 

 forests. As it has no occasion to fly or to swim, its tail is 



