148 
British Birds. 
nest of four I haml-reared last year, aiifl liave been ilying loose in an 
out-door aviary all the winter. 1 selected one and she paired up at 
once with a cock I had, and lias since made and un-niade several nests 
and laid several eggs. The other two remaining hens were left 
together; one morning I was surpiised to see them both on a well- 
made nest of fir twigs they had made in a box tree, botli sitting at once 
with six eggs between theiu. I'hey sat so close that, tliough rather 
wild usually, they allowed u-e to approach close to them, only both 
opened their mouths at me. It was too dull to obtain a photo, but it 
was worth it, if I could have taken one, as a more ridiculous sight I've 
not seen, one hen sat on the other's back — there was no room for both 
on the eggs. The}' agreed perfectly. I obtained two cocks and now 
they are all in the aviary together. 
Mrs. E. W. VERNON. 
A Homing Greenfinch. 
The hallowing interesting nairative has been forwarded to me 
by our esteemed member Mr. H. Gourlay, the notes are from his 
daughter's pen. 
Perhaps the following short account of a wild bird showing 
that ' homing instinct " of which one hears so much in the animal 
world may interest your readers. A short time ago we found a Green- 
finch caught by the leg in a mouse-trap which had been set in the 
vinery. We noticed, on takmg the poor creature out, that he was 
blind in one eye, evidently an old injury, and one which may have 
caused him to blunder into the trap, for had he tried to eat the bait of 
cheese there certain death from the spring descending on his neck, 
would have been tlie residt. The injured leg was of course broken 
and quite useless so I placed him in a cage and kept him in the vinery 
for a week, feeding him chiefly on hemp seed, of which Greenfinches 
are passionately fond. He was able after a day or two to hop about on 
one leg, but as he continued wild and restless in the cage, I thought 
the kindest thing would be to release him. Thinking that a retired 
spot, where he would be in no danger from boys or cats, would be 
better than the garden, we carried him to Came Wood, a distance of 
fully two miles from here, and set him free near a quiet little stream, 
from whose waters there rose a wild duck disturbed by our footsteps. 
Two hours later my husband happened to look through the glass door 
into the vinery and was greatly surprised to eee that our little cripple 
had returned, and was sitting on liis cage trying to reach the hemp 
seed inside. We were so pleased and touched by his return that we 
have put down seed for him every day in the vinery, and he comes 
