not much; but above all things let the arrangements be carried out with neatness and order; do not let the specimens be huddled together, but classified, and placed so that the hand may be laid upon any one which may be required. Duplicates for exchanging with other collectors, or replacing any which may be broken, may be put carefully in a drawer by themselves, their presence with the others will only cause unnecessary confusion and trouble.

Care should be taken not to name a specimen positively, if there is any doubt of its identity, it may be named with a query; and in the note-book, which every collector should keep, should be entered all the circumstances which weigh for or against the correctness of the designation given to it. This note-book ought to be a complete record of the time and place of acquisition of every specimen included in the collection, and of all that is curious or interesting connected with it. If nests as well as eggs are preserved, of course drawers with divisions are the very best receptacles; they occupy a great deal of space, and, except in some cases where the structure is peculiarly neat or curious, it is perhaps scarcely worth while to take and preserve them, especially as doing so often involves a cruel spoliation of the feathered architects, whose carefully chosen situations for building are well described by Dr. Bidlake, in his "Walks in a Forest."

FACTS AND ANECDOTES OF NESTS AND EGGS.

EASTER EGGS.

During the fifteen days after Easter, which constitute the Russian carnival, the people of that country supply themselves with eggs, variously coloured, which they send or give to one another as presents; and when they meet during this time they salute with the words, "Christ is risen;" to which the other having answered "He is certainly risen," they kiss one another. He that salutes first is obliged to present the other with an egg; no one, of whatever rank or sex, being allowed to refuse either the egg or the kiss. This custom prevails in many Catholic countries; the eggs, it appears, being considered as an emblem of the resurrection.

EGGS USED AS COIN.

The want of any copper coin in Peru has given rise to a curious practice of which Lieutenant Maw was informed at Truxillo. A person coming to the market of that city, and not wishing to spend a real upon every article, purchases a real's worth of eggs, with which he or she proceeds to market; buying an egg's worth of vegetables from one, and so on from others, till all that was wanted has been obtained. The eggs are taken as current payment, and finally purchased themselves by those who require them for use.

ILLUMINATED NESTS.

The birds that build hanging nests are at Cape Cormorin numerous. At night each of their little habitations is lighted up, as if to see company. The sagacious little bird fastens a bit of clay to the top of the nest, and then picks up a firefly, and sticks it on the clay to illuminate the dwelling, which consists of two rooms. Sometimes there are three or four fire-flies, and their blaze of light in the little cell dazzles the eyes of the bats, which often kill the young of these birds.—Dr. Buchanan.

AN EGG WITHIN AN EGG.

A few years since, M. Seguin submitted to the Academy of Sciences at Paris, a hen's egg of extraordinary size, in which was a second egg. Its dimensions were eighty-eight millimetres by fifty-nine, or nearly three inches and a half by two and a quarter. More recently, in 1855, there appeared in an English scientific journal, an account of a similar oological curiosity, produced in Scotland, in the case of a turkey's egg.

A BOY REPROVED BY A BIRD.

A correspondent of "The Youths' Instructor" relates the following anecdote, to which our young readers are earnestly requested to pay especial attention:—"When quite young, in my boyish days, I had watched some sparrows carrying materials to build their nests, (in the usual season,) under the eaves of a cottage adjoining our own; and although strict orders had been issued that none of us should climb up to the roofs of the houses, yet birds' eggs formed a temptation too powerful to be easily resisted, and self-gratification was considered rather than obedience. A favourable opportunity presenting itself, the roof of the house was ascended, and not only was the nest pillaged, but seized and carried away. It was soon stripped of all its unnecessary appendages, that it might appear as neat as possible. Amongst the externals thus removed, was a piece of paper, which had been a page of one of Dr. Watts's hymn-books; and which, thrown away, had been taken by the poor bird for the purpose of strengthening the nest, or increasing its warmth. A word or two caught my eye, and I unfolded the paper. Need I say that, boy as I was, I read these verses with, to say the least, curious feelings.

NESTS AND EGGS OF FAMILIAR BRITISH BIRDS.

SECOND SERIES.

CROSSBILL.
EUROPEAN OR COMMON CROSSBILL. SHELL OR SHIELD-APPLE.
FIGURE 1.

Of those curious birds called Crossbills, from the peculiar construction of the bills, the points of which cross each other, there are three species known in this country, but two of them, namely, the Parrot and White-winged Crossbills, are very rare, only a few specimens having been taken here. The more common kind is a migratory bird, coming in large flocks at very irregular intervals, and visiting more especially those parts of the country where there are woods and plantations of fir and pine, of the seeds of which they are very fond, extracting them with great dexterity from between the scales of the cones; for this operation, the projecting points of the bill appear to be well adapted, as well as for picking out the apple-pips, as they are