In another paragraph in the same paper, is another extract. “A letter from Monghyr reports that, on the 26th ult. a smart shock of an earthquake was felt a little before nine o’clock; and that in the night of the following day a large flight of locusts passed over the station: the direction whence they came is not mentioned. We understand that a flight of locusts was seen at Jubalpore about a fortnight before.” CHAPTER XI. Sail for England—Crowned Pigeons—Straits of Dryan—Banca Straits—Zutphen Islands—Escape and re-capture of a crowned pigeon—Death of one of those birds—Dissection—Pass the Cape of Good Hope—Fine weather—The trumpet weed—Volcanic rocks—St. Helena—Buttermilk Point—James’s Town—Ficus Religiosa—Over-population of James’s Town—Visit to the late residence of Napoleon. On the 15th of December, I sailed from Singapore for England, having on board three of those magnificent birds, the Crowned or Dampier’s pigeons, the _Columba coronata_ of Linnæus, which I took under my care for my friend, T. Rawson, Esq., of Dulwich. The bird is nearly as large as a turkey; the body is of a leaden hue; scapulars ferruginous, with a white band on each wing: the head is adorned with a crest of delicate and beautiful feathers, expanded in a crescentic form, which, although always erect, the bird has the power of still further elevating and bringing down to the base of the bill: the irides are bright red; feet and legs speckled with black. These birds inhabit the Eastern Archipelago, and the present specimens had been brought from the island of Ternate. I saw at Batavia two living specimens, which had been just brought in a vessel from Amboyna; but they were regarded as a very delicate bird, and difficult to keep alive; yet I observed, in a newspaper, (April 15th, 1832,) that a pair of these birds had been landed in England from the _Kingsdown_: they had been brought from New Guinea. “It was the mournful notes of this bird,” as therein stated, “that greatly alarmed the crew of the _Bougainville_, on landing at some of the Molucca Islands, which they took to be the cries of distress of the human species.” It was further stated, that they had been presented to the _Surrey Zoological Gardens_, by Captain Underwood. “At Tomoguy,” says Captain Forrest, “I bought three of the large crowned pigeons, very well represented by Dampier. The Molucca people call them _Múlutu_, and the Papuas _Manipi_. My pigeons grew tame, and eat Indian corn called _Jaggon_. They strike hard with their wings, on which is a kind of horn. One of the three escaped at Dory Harbour; (New Guinea;) the other two I carried to Mindanao, where they died.”[79]