THE FALL OF THE ROOKERY. 
95 
was found sitting on a bundle of eggs, as if incubating them, and 
a queer little dark-brown crab-like spider is often brought under 
our notice from the neat little tents which it makes by pulling 
over and tying down the end of a gum leaf, and then lying 
snugly ensconced in the apex. 
October lo. — It is now real spring-time with us; the swamp 
tea tree {Melaleuca ericifolia) bears its brushes of very pale-yellow 
bloom ; the sundew (Drosera) sends up its single stem of small 
whitish pink-tinted flowers, large compared with the size of the 
plant. On the healthy plains many orchids may now be found 
in flower, such as the spider-orchid {Caladenia Patersomi), a 
bright blue one [Caladenia barbata), the helmet orchids [Pierostylis 
squamata and cucullata), and the dragon-orchid [Diuris sulphurea). 
Among the spring-birds, the smaller cuckoo [Citculus Jlabelli- 
formis) now utters its pleasant rippling note the livelong day, 
while its larger relative, the pallid cuckoo (C. pallidus) calls with 
increasing vehemence among the boughs of the peppermint 
gum which sprinkle the open plains. To-day the interesting 
discovery of a nest of the speckled ground-thrush was made 
'in the fork of a large dogwood tree, about ten feet from the 
ground. Until now I was under the impression that these large 
and rather shy birds always built on the ground. The nest 
is a large structure, beautifully round, and composed of fibres 
plucked from the stems of tree-ferns and mosses. It contains 
two rather large eggs, blotched all over with dark red. Some 
of the dusky robins [Petrceca vittata), also called “ native 
sparrows,” have already fledged young with them, showing that 
they must have begun nesting very early, indeed, before the 
commencement of spring. 
Table Cape. H. Stuart Dove. 
THE FALL OF THE ROOKERY. 
OR centuries the branching elm-tops had swung to and 
fro as the west winds swept down from the long line 
I of blue mountains that bounded the horizon of the 
setting sun. Spring after spring the passers-by, casual 
and regular, had looked up from the broad gravel walks below, 
and had noted with pleasure the cawing tumultuous throng ; and 
as the days grew warmer and the sun sank farther to the north, 
the young rooks had grown used to the chatter and laughter of 
the children that played under the shadow of the stately trees, 
running races across the sward, playing hide and seek round the 
huge trunks, or sitting in groups in the lush grass, threading 
daisy chains and chanting songs. 
There had been disasters at rare intervals. Now and again 
in the wild gales of March and autumn great limbs had been 
