126 A CHAPTER OF ACCIDENTS 



subflavus) were put into the cage, the inconstant little 

 husband at once appropriated one of them. His first 

 mate, however, refused to give him up, and the final 

 result was a manage a trois, which has already lasted 

 for a year, and has been productive of a nestful of 

 eggs in which all three partners showed equal interest, 

 though their joint efforts to hatch the eggs were not 

 successful. 



The survey as far as Bimlipatam was completed 

 by the end of March, and as there was still nearly a 

 month of fine weather in prospect before the approach 

 of the monsoon should put a stop to work, the Investi- 

 gator conveniently filled in the time with an examina- 

 tion of the Pulicat shoal some few miles north of 

 Madras, which was said to be extending seawards. 



On the way down we had several hauls of the 

 trawl, in depths ranging from 840 to 13 10 fathoms, 

 the result of which will be referred to in future 

 chapters. One very calm day the sea between Madras 

 and Pulicat was thickly covered, as far as the eye 

 could reach, with a sort of floury, yellow dust, each 

 speck of which, under the microscope, was found to 

 consist of from 50 to 60 tiny threads of Diatoms, 

 every thread being made up of about 100 individuals. 



After ascertaining that no material changes had 

 taken place in the Pulicat shoal, it was time to be 

 thinking of the return voyage to Bombay, in the 



