Ring Money

Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)

a form of currency consisting of rings which seems to have originated with the Egyptians. It is still used in parts of Africa, and is manufactured in Birmingham for the use of African traders. A similar form of money was found by Cæsar among the Celts of Gaul, and appears also to have prevailed in Great Britain, as well as among the Scandinavian nations of northern Europe. RING OUZEL (Turdus torquatus, or Merula torquata), a species of thrush, rather larger than a blackbird. It is a native chiefly of the W. parts of Europe; it spends the winter in the S. of Europe, northern Africa, Syria, and Persia, and visits more northern regions in summer. It occurs frequently in many parts of the British Islands, where it breeds even in the Orkneys. It is seldom seen in the more cultivated and thickly peopled districts, preferring mountain' slopes, heaths, and their vicinity. The nest is made of coarse grass, within which is a thin shell of clay, and an inner lining of fine dry grass. The eggs are usually four; greenish blue in color, flecked and spotted with reddish brown; and not infrequently there is a second brood in July. The food consists of worms, slugs, insects, and moorland berries, and the bird often makes raids on fruit gardens, while in vine countries it feeds largely on grapes. In some parts of Scotland it is known as the moor blackbird. It is of a dark-brown, almost black, color; the feathers are edged with blackish gray, the wing feathers more conspicuously with gray, and there is a broad bro crescentic white gorget-whence the name. The legs and feet are brownish black. The female is lighter and browner, with a narrower and duller gorget. The song consists of a few loud, clear, and plaintive notes, but is somewhat monotonous. See OUZEL.