NOTES AND QUERIES. 115 



12th. — Left Bellagio for St. Moritz via the Maloja Pass at 8.42 a.m., 

 and arrived at 7.55 p.m. The inscription on a house in Silva Plana 

 took my fancy greatly — " Ille terrarum mihi praeter omnes angulus 

 ridet." 



13th. — An almost unprecedented snowstorm, so that it was hope- 

 less to search for birds, as I had intended. The hotels were crowded, 

 and all the fires surrounded. 



14th. — Left to return to Thusis. The country covered with snow, 

 the mountains glorious, and the pines bending — some broken with the 

 weight of the snow. As we slid down cautiously for about 3500 ft. in 

 the wonderful Albula Railway, through avenues of pines, the sight was, 

 indeed, marvellous. Some Americans in our carriage were loud in 

 their admiration ; one said, " it was an experience never to be for- 

 gotten"; whilst the Germans kept up constant cries of "Schon! 

 Schon !" At Thusis we found shrubs, bushes, and part of the glass 

 roof of our hotel broken down, and the director said that never in his 

 experience had there been such a snowstorm in July before. 

 17th. — Crested Tits in the woods. 



18th. — Kestrels — called here " Wanderli " — plentiful at Tarn, 

 5000 ft. We saw one Alpine Swift flying with the Common Swifts, 

 and Herr Arpagaus pointed out to us a pair of Eavens in the field 

 below the Pension Heinzenberg. 



19th. — Heard notes which I could not for some time identify, but 

 found afterwards proceeded from Alpine Swifts, high in the air ; they 

 seemed to be nesting in the Crapteig, about 5000 ft. high. 



20th. — Rottanbrunnen. Sedge-Warblers singing, and Crag-Martins 

 around the great rock over the Rhine. 



21st. — Great fire on the Domeschleg nearly opposite ; the whole 

 village of Scheid destroyed save two houses. 



26th. — Five Tits in evidence not far from the hotel — Great, Coal, 

 Blue, Crested, Marsh. 



As we left on the 30th, I was unable to add to my list of sixty- 

 eight species on the whole tour to seventy-four in the year 1905. 



It is remarkable that the following common birds at home were 

 not observed : — Mistle-Thrush, Stonechat, Hedge- Sparrow, Sand- 

 Martin, and Willow-Warbler. This last bird is very rare in most 

 parts of Switzerland. — Charles W. Benson (Rectory, Balbriggan, 

 Co. Dublin). 



N.B. — Perhaps some of your readers could mention localities in 

 Switzerland where one would be pretty sure to observe the Alpine 

 Accentor. 



