The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1881-03-19
III ellnet CreKts. =

The helmet crcsts arc very curious birds
anu are ut once known by the singular
pointed plume which crowns the TOD o
the head, and the long beard-like append
age 10 the chin. They all live at very
considerable elevation, inhabiting locali
ties OF such extreme inclemency that few
persons would think of looking for hum.
ming bird in such frozen regions. There
are several species of helmet crest, and
their habits are we'll described by Mr.. Lin.
den, the dlscovorcr of Lindcn's helmet
crest, IN letter written to Dir. Gould, and
published in his monograph of the humm,np
birds.
81 met with this species for the first time
IN August, 1912, while ascending the Sierra
Nevada dc Merida, the crests Of which are
tho most elevated of the eastern part of
the Cordilleras of Columbia. 1t inhabits
the regions Immediately beneath the line
OF perpetual congelation, at an elevation
f from 1000 to $4,000 feet above the
level Of the sea. Messrs Funck and Schlim
found it equally abundant in the Pa, amos,
near the Sierra Nevada, at the compare.
lively low level of 5000 feet. 1t appears
to be confined to the regions between the
eighth and ninth degrees of north lati-
tude.
''lt occasionally feeds upon the thlnly-
scattered shrubs of this icy region, such as
the hypericuA, myrtus daphne, aborcs-
cent cspclctias, and towards tho lower limit
on bejarias, but most frequently upon tho
projecting ledgcs Of rocks near to the snow.
Its flight is swift, but very short; when it
leaves the spot upon which it has perchcd,
1t launches itself obhQuely downward, ut.
terlng ut the same time piaintive whistling
sound, which is also occasionally utttrcu
while perched, as well az can recollect.
never heard 1t produce the hun,nlng sound
made ny several other members of the same
group, nor does it pnrtake Of their Joyous
spirit or perpetual activity. Neither myself
nor Nlcssrs. Funck or Schlim were able to
discover its nests, although we all made a
most diligent search.
'lts food appears principally to consist
Oh minute insects, all the specimens we
procured having their stomachs filled with
small flies"
The head and neck of the adult male are
black, line of white running along the
centre. The long plumcs of The throat are
White. Round the neck and the back of
the head runs a broad white band. The
upper surface of the body and the two CEN
tral tail feathers are bronzc-grcen, and the
other feathers are u warm, reddish bronze,
having the basal hulf of their shafts white.
The under surface is a DIM, brownish bronze.
The length of the male bird is about o.
inches. The female is coppcry brown up.
on the head and upper surface of body,
and there is no helmet-likc plume on the
head nor beard-like tuft on the chm. The
throat is coppery brown, covered with white
noltIings, und the t1anks arc coppery brown
washed with green. The length of tho fc-
"'"''-'" .i"''' ...,.A ,"nh inan ihon shat nf har
smuggling.
a remarkable case OF smuggling has re-
Gently come to light at Rome. For some
time past it had been observed that large
quantities Of goods, especially sugar, al
rived in Rome and were declared Gin
transit" thus beng free Of the octroi duties.
Goods thus declared arc warchouscd out
side the city walls, and thence arc either
carried to tho villages round Rome or
brought into the town in small quantities,
paying duty lis they come IN; 80 that there
would have been nothing remarkable .in
the business except the magnitude Of the
operations, and this excited suspicion. A
watch WAS set anu 1t was found that tho
goods were all stored in small warehouse
outside the Porta Angelica, tho gate under
the Vatican, and that thoy apparently
never came out again either Ill large or
small quantities. The sharpness of rev.
enue officer, or more probably a traitor in
the camp, suggested that there must be an
underground passage into the town, and
special watch was kept on the houses in
side the city walls. On December %,
thlrty-four casks OF sugar arrived as usual
I'm transit" and were taken to the sus-
pccted sto.c, and next morning before day
light two carts were observed TO enter tho
courtyard of a house just inside the walls
which was under surveillance. After set
ting watchers On the house outside the
police entered the one inside the walls,
and there found the thirty-four casks OF
sugar loaded on tho carts which had cn-
tered empty, and further search revealed
q hole in tho ground covered with boards
and loose earth. Entering this by short
ladder, the police found themselves in a
tunnel about six feet high and three feet
wide, running underneath tho town wall
and ditch straight to the warehouse out
side rails were laid down on the ground,
and IN tho warehouse was found q little
truck to run on them. The tunnel was
nearly 100 yards long, and somo notion
may be formed of how profitable bust
ness smuggling IL when successful, when
it is consldercd that it could pay those
who carried it on to construct a tunnel Of
..nl,< Il,