112 
The Emu. 
[Up to 27/2/00 I had seen only three specimens ; on 9/3/00 
they were plentiful.] 
48. Centropus PHASIANUS (Latham), Spur-footed Cuckoo 
(Coucal). 
Centropus phasianiis^ Gould, Birds Aust., fol., vol. iv., pi. 92 (1848) ; 
Shelley, Cat. Birds Brit, Mus., vol. xix., p. 340 (1891). 
One skin, immature male, 16/10 bi. 
[I was told by my companion, Mr. Douglas, of a set of eggs 
he found. He blew out the contents of all but one, which he 
had hurriedly to leave and put aside in wadding. This he 
forgot, and returning to the place in his tent some days hence 
he found the heat had artificially hatched a young cuckoo, so 
even and humid had been the atmosphere. It was dead.] 
My Tame Wild Birds. 
By (Mrs.) K. Langloh Parker, Walgett, N.S.W. 
Surely one of the most charming of holy men was the 
sublimely simple Saint Francis. According to legend, he 
preached to his " little sisters the birds," who, recognizing him 
as a brother, flew round him, remaining quiet until his sermon 
was finished, nor would they depart " until he had given them 
his blessing." The sermon, they listened so attentively to, was 
as follows : — 
My little sisters the birds, much bounden are ye unto God, 
your Creator, and always in every place ought ye to praise 
Him, for that He hath given you liberty to fly about everywhere, 
and hath also given you double and triple raiment ; moreover. 
He preserved your seed in the Ark of Noah, that your race 
might not perish out of the world ; still more are ye beholden 
to Him for the element of the air which he hath appointed for 
you. Beyond all this, ye sow not, neither do you reap ; and 
God feedeth you, and giveth you the streams and fountains 
for your drink ; the mountains and the valleys for your refuge, 
and the high trees whereon to make your nests ; and because 
ye know not how to spin or sew, God clotheth you, you and 
your children ; wherefore your Creator loveth you much, seeing 
that He hath bestowed on you so many benefits ; and, therefore, 
my little sisters, beware of the sin of ingratitude, and study 
always to give praises unto God." 
In " The Little Flowers of Saint Francis " it is further 
recorded : — When, as Saint Francis spake these words to them, 
those birds began, all of them, to open their beaks, and stretch 
their necks, and spread their wings, and reverently bend their 
heads down to the ground, and by their acts and by their songs 
to show that the holy father gave them joy exceeding great. 
