simple _P. humii_, is very careful indeed how it approaches
its nest when an enemy is near.

"The nest is placed in a hole under the roots of a large tree on some
steep bank-side. I found one in a decayed stump of a large fir-tree,
inside the rotten wood. It was placed on a level with the ground, and
could not be seen till I had broken away part of the outside of the
stump. It was composed of green moss and small dead leaves, a scanty
and loosely formed nest, and not domed. It was lined with fine grass
and a little wool, and also a very few hairs. There were five eggs.

"Another nest was also placed in a rotten stump, but under the roots.
A third nest was placed in a hole under the roots of a large living
pine, and in front of the hole grew a small rose-bush quite against
the tree-trunk. This nest was most carefully concealed, for the hole
behind the roots of the rose-bush was most difficult to find.

"The eggs, four or five in number, are of a rather longer form than
those of _P. humii_, and are pure white without any spots. They
average .65 by .5."

He added _in epist._:--"This is a much shier bird than _P. humii_. I
watched many a one without effect. The nest is a loose structure of
moss lined with a little wool, and would not retain its shape after
coming out of the hole. It is a most amusing bird, very noisy, with a
short poor song, and utters a variety of notes when you are near the
nest."

Certainly the nests he brought me are nothing but little pads of moss,
3 to 4 inches in diameter and perhaps an inch in thickness. There is
no pretence for a lining, but a certain amount of wool and excessively
fine moss-roots are incorporated in the body of the nest. _In situ_
they would appear to be sometimes more or less domed.

Captain Cock writes to me:--"I have taken numbers of nests of this
bird in Cashmere and in and about the hill-station of Murree. They
commence breeding in May and have finished by July. The nests are
placed under roots of trees, in crevices of trees, between large
stems, and a favourite locality is, where the road has a stone
embankment to support it, between the stones. The nest is globular,
made of moss, and the number of eggs is four. I have often caught the
old bird on the nest. The nests are easy to find, as the birds are
very noisy and demonstrative when any one is near their nests."

Colonel C.H.T. Marshall also very kindly gives me the following most
interesting note on the nidificat