UNNATURAL NATURAL HISTORY 65 
but the real tail feathers he beneath, and act 
as a support to the longer train-feathers, 
more especially when the bird is indulging 
in its display. 
The wren has for long been associated with 
many curious beliefs, both by the ancient 
Greeks and Romans, as well as by more modern 
people. The country-folk in parts of Brittany 
believe that if their children touch the young 
birds in their nests they will be punished for 
so doing, and stricken with a malady known 
as “ the fire of St. Laurence,” which appears 
in the form of pimples on the face and legs. 
In other regions of France it is stated that if 
a person kills a wren, his fingers shrivel up and 
ultimately drop off, or, as an alternative, his 
house will be struck by lightning, or his cattle 
have sore feet. 
Mention must be made of the popular error 
that the land-tortoises, so frequently sold by 
hawkers, are useful for the purpose of ridding 
gardens of slugs, and kitchens of beetles, 
whereas they are entirely vegetarian in diet. 
The flat-shelled water-tortoises or terrapins 
are, however, carnivorous. 
Yet another common mistake is that a 
camel has two humps and a dromedary but 
one, and although this supposition is correct 
to a certain degree, it must be pointed out 
