214 Habits of the Carrion Crow. 



I am confident she will teach them, by her own admirable 

 and secret process, how to elude the prying scrutiny of the 

 carrion crow. Should, however, the country squire, whose 

 eye is seldom quite closed to the advantages derived from a 

 well-stored autumnal larder ; should he, I say, not have suffi- 

 cient faith in the dame's protecting care, it will be some con- 

 solation to him to be informed that, when birds of the game 

 species lose their first eggs, they seldom fail to have a second 

 hatch, which will be sure to find ample security from its 

 enemies, in the abundant growth of summer grass and corn. 



The carrion crow is evidently gregarious at times, in the 

 autumnal and winter months : I have sometimes counted fifty 

 of them together. Unlike the rook, these birds never become 

 bare of feathers at the base of the bill. 



The vulgar remark, that a carrion crow can smell gun- 

 powder, ought to be received with explanation. The natural 

 wariness of this bird at most seasons of the year, and the per- 

 petual persecution it has to undergo from man, are the causes 

 of its keeping a very sharp look-out ; and it takes flight at 

 the earliest approach of the gunner : hence the surmise that 

 he smells the powder (which might certainly be smelled after 

 the discharge of the gun, provided the crow were to leeward); 

 but, then, the loud report would cause it to take instant 

 flight, and it would be far away long before the scent from 

 the burnt gunpowder could have any chance of reaching its 

 olfactory nerves, though they were (and, for aught I know, 

 they are) as sensible as those of the vulture. 



I turn loose on the public, from my park, about three- 

 score carrion crows per annum ; which, no doubt, are con- 

 sidered as a dangerous knot of rascals by the good folks of 

 this neighbourhood. 



I beg to say that I have written this paper expressly to 

 calm the fears of sportsmen, who may imagine that I do 

 an evil deed in befriending a tribe of birds hitherto con- 

 sidered, by common consent, in no other light than that of 

 plundering rogues and vagabonds. If they will do me the 

 honour to read this little history of my warrior bird, I 

 trust they will be satisfied that he is not such a desperate 

 thief as he is generally imagined to be ; and, furthermore, 

 upon due consideration, they will agree with me that, when 

 the keeper is abroad with his gun, his poison, and his traps, 

 their game may be said, with great truth, to be exposed to 

 much worse company than that of the carrion crow. 



I am, Sir, yours, &c. 



Charles Waterton. 

 Walton Hall, Jan. 17. 1833. 



