NATURE NOTES. 
trees, and many more may have been in the neighbouring Champs Elysees. It 
would be interesting to know how many years such birds have been seen in 
I’aris. If longer than they have been in St. James’ Park, where I first saw them, 
we may be indebted to French emigrants for the pleasure we receive from their 
company, but if, as I think is the case, they appeared in Paris later than they 
• lid here, then it would seem as if the Paris birds were either emigrants from 
London, or that the wild pigeons, having discovered there was safety in a multi- 
tude of human beings, communicated the fact to their friends. 
H. B. Hyde. 
An Interesting Pig. — I enclose a little account of a peculiarly interesting 
little pig, whose intelligence and adaptability as a household companion make 
one wish he was not destined to the fate of all pigs ! He was one of nine ; the 
mother had only eight teats, and every pig from their birth keeps to the one he 
commences with ; the little ninth was therefore unprovided. The owner was a 
humane man, and it pained him to see it starve ; after a little thought he procured 
a milch goat, and the two agreed directly to be mother and child on the most 
affectionate terms, running about together and evidently enjoying their position. 
Sometimes, however, the goat did not lie down to be suckled, and the man to 
whom the pair belonged placed his hand at those times so as to enable piggy to 
put his fore paws on it, and so reach his adopted mother’s breast, which enabled 
him to vanquish the difficulty. At other times piggy would run into the master’s 
cottage and there romp to his heart’s content with a little dog, playing at 
hide and seek with it, and after a mock fight they would roll over and over 
together on the floor, and w ere the greatest of friends. This took place in the 
sight of my daughter, Madame Tommasi, when she was last at Cortona, where 
she has some property overlooking the Lake of Thtasimene. 
Florence. J. Baldelli. 
A Tern at Hampstead. — A very beautiful tern was brought me on 
November 7 ; so tame had it become from want of food, that it actually 
alighted close by the side of a man while he was digging for worms, near to the 
Highgate Pond, and not far from Parliament Hill, and commenced to peck up 
the worms as the man was digging them up, and suffered itself to be taken up in 
his hand. He thought that by bringing it to me its life might be spared, but it 
had gone too long without food and gradually sank, and was dead before I 
arrived home. I have no doubt that this was its first resting-place after having 
been blown out of its course by the sea-side by the recent heavy gales. 
James E. Whiting. 
Badgers raiding Wasps. — The following note appears in the Nfwcastle 
Chronicle of October 30: — “On Kingwood Farm, near Staward Pele, there 
. is quite a colony of badgers, which evidently have a great predilection for wasps’ 
nests. It has been noticed that several nests have been raided, and, from the 
feet marks, there is no doubt that the badgers have been waging successlul war 
on these terrors to nervous folk.” Is this an unusual instance? Hamilton 
Smith ^Naturalists’ Library, vol. xiii.), describes the common badger as “coming 
forth only in the night to feed on fruit and animal substances.” Goldsmith 
(Animated Kature\ says; “The badger, like the fo.x, is a carnivorous animal, and 
nothing that has life can come amiss to it,” but the editor adds in a footnote, 
“ The badger’s principal food is roots, fruits, snails and worms. It seems quite 
a mistake, their living on animal food.” W. 
A Late S'wallo'W. — On November 10, when we were walking along 
the East Cliff, we noticed a swallow flying about. It did not fly far out to sea, 
but kept fairly close to shore. Is it not rather late for the swallows to be still in 
England ? 
Bournemouth. A. M. Greenwood. 
Strange Behaviour of a Robin. — A new milestone was being put up in 
our village in Buckinghamshire, and the man who was painting it had a red hand- 
kerchief. A robin was seen hovering near, and at last it came up to the man, who 
was talking to our gardener, and tried to peck at the handkerchief. The robin 
