The White-throated Sxwft 
was easy. The lad had rigged up a step-ladder for examining some Cliff 
Swallow’s nests on a previous trip, by nailing cleats on a sycamore 
sapling; and this we found exactly suited our purpose. The new prospect 
was only some 15 feet above the main talus slope, and above this, in turn, 
was a 5-foot solid slope in which we carved steps. In one of these steps 
we planted the one-legged ladder and William mounted to begin the 
attack. Fortunately we knew exactly where the Swifts had entered the 
uppermost opening of a vague crevice in a sprung but still quite substan¬ 
tial sandstone shoulder. Will had to remove a cubic foot or so of super¬ 
imposed loose stuff and had only begun to hack at the face of the entrance 
itself when he glimpsed feathers. The bird dashed in at this juncture, 
ascended, and came back to a protected niche just over the visible 
entrance. Will poked in cotton, carefully, and his handkerchief after, 
and then worked away at the low-vaulted ceiling. He reported each step 
of progress breathlessly to a very expectant dad below, and was soon 
able to announce eggs—then the bird, hiding further back in the crevice. 
I claimed a peep and uncovered the eggs, four of them, but gave 
the boy the well-earned privilege of actually bringing them down. He 
found that although the nest rested on the floor of the cavity, it was 
more or less cemented also, especially on one side, and required to be 
cut away carefully. 
The male bird, meanwhile, was taking vigorous exercise by hurling 
himself at me from various angles in space, but he always brought the 
focus of his attention, much to my relief, some three feet away from my 
face. The female remained in the crevice till the last, and we left her 
in charge while the eggs were brought down in safety. “White-throated 
Swift 11/4”—a proud trophy, the result of the seventh attempt this 
season. 
These eggs, which seem to be typical enough, are of an elongate 
ovate shape, and of crystalline whiteness. In appearance they resemble 
those of the eastern Chimney Swift, although they are slightly longer. 
The nest is a shallow saucer four inches long and three and a half wide, 
composed of grasses and weed-stems, used sparingly, together with cotton 
from the black cottonwood, and copious feathers. These substances 
are gummed together basally, presumably by saliva. The surface is 
soft and fluffy; while a couple of quill feathers, picked up in some barnyard, 
are stuck in rakishly on one side. This domicile, otherwise charming, 
was alive with “varmints,” chief among which we noted bedbugs, pre¬ 
sumably Cimex hirundinis, such as infest the homes of the Cliff Swallows 
hard-by. The eggs were all lightly specked with blood which had 
exuded from the parental abdomen as a result of the bites of these 
creatures. 
968 
