unknown except by heresay. Only one or two remarked on its very red eye and none remarked on the rusty plumage of the back. From glimpses I caught of it myself, I believe it is P. tabuensis or closely allied but it appears to me to be darker, smaller, and shorter in the body than that bird. It favours the parts of the swamp which are in fallow, i.e., a dense 2-3 ft. growth of tussocky swamp grass with a cutting edged leaf (sword grass). I made very strenuous attempts to collect it and failed with dogs, snares and lines of native beaters, and beaters and dogs. Lanes were cut in swamps in places but the birds refused to cross even long after the lanes had been cut and birds had become used to them. Being very small birds they could easily hid in tussocks (a habit of P. tabuensis especially in event of fire) and be passed over. Had I had good dogs I would probably have been successful but the local dogs were useless mad headed brutes and by rushing ahead likely as not turned birds back past beaters. Had I been allowed to use fire in the swamp over a small safe area I might have been successful but the local natives would not agree to this even with twenty yards fire breaks out. They con- tended that this surface growth represented many tons of valuable rubbish for rotting in their cultivations elsewhere and if burnt would necessitate their carrying other material long distances and that meant too much WORK. The bird was often heard calling early and very late (almost dark) a thin weak little call and could be called closer and to within a few feet of the observer but never left the densest cover and was never actually seen at such times. I never once saw one fly or in an open place of any sort, the bird evi- dently prefering to keep some vegetation between it and the sky.