50 
The Emu. 
Blue-bellied, Musk, and Little Lorikeets were screeching while 
ravishing the blossom-laden branches of certain Mallee trees, 
some of the birds feeding so low that they might have easily 
been felled with a short stick. Other small birds were present, 
such as Chestnut-rumped Tits {Acanthha), Red-capped Robin, 
a nest of which was found empty, but the young ones were 
sitting close by. Passing through a patch of acacia scrub, 
where the scarce Scrub Robin has been known to dwell — a nest 
having been found the season before last — the ornithologists 
broke on to a long sandy rise covered with low bushes, white as 
if enveloped with snow, and shining in the morning sun. The 
bushes {LeptospenmiDi) were arrayed from top to bottom in a 
mass of flowers, perfumed like wild honey, and attracting 
insects humming in hundreds, and of course various birds. Here 
were heard the quaint notes of the wild Fulvous-fronted and the 
rarer White-fronted Honey-eaters, which are usually partial to 
such heath-like tracts, while near the ground were heard the 
lively trilling songs of a Malurus or Wren. Although difficult 
to get a sight of, a male was soon bagged, and proved to be the 
newly named Purple-backed Wren {^M. assimilis) — the inter- 
mediate species between M. laniberti on the east coast, and the 
M. pulcJierrivius in the south-west — the species which led to 
an interesting discussion at the gathering of ornithologists only 
two evenings previously at Mr. Mellor's. A female of the 
species was also secured for museum purposes. 
After breakfast the visitors found that Dr. Ryan had 
thoughtfully provided a buggy and pair of horses to send the 
visitors further afield into more virgin Mallee. Proceeding 
northward along the Netherby road, the party halted occasion- 
ally to explore the wayside scrub, where Chestnut-backed 
Ground Birds (Thrushes) and Ground Wrens (apparently Hyla- 
cola cauta) were disturbed, and where a solitary Mallee Hen was 
flushed. Two or three Wedge-tailed Eagles were seen circling 
on high, and on returning home one was observed near the road 
perched on a low tree. At about ten miles from Nhill the party 
turned to the left, and made for a clump of tall timber in a 
hollow near a farm-house, and halted, this time for luncheon. 
W^ith the usual bush hospitality the farmer invited the party to 
stable horses, while the good " missus " boiled the billy ; then, 
selecting a grassy glade 'neath a spreading gum, the ornith- 
ologists discussed, to their hearts' content, " billy" tea as well as 
the contents of a hamper which Miss Ryan had kindly provided. 
Amid such romantic surroundings it was indeed a delightful 
''spell." 
At 2 o'clock a start was made to explore the scrub. Leaving 
all behind except guns and collecting bags, the party beat the 
scrub in a northerly direction, at 4 o'clock making a right-about 
turn, and, after having traversed about ten miles, returning to 
within a quarter of a mile of its starting-place shortly after 
