THE OWL. 



NO one can mistake an owl. In every country 

 where owls are found (and they are found nearly 

 everywhere), their wise-looking, solemn faces are well 

 known. What is it that gives the owl this look, so 

 grave that we have the saying "wise as an owl ".? 



Look at the picture and notice that the eyes are 

 placed far forward, and that around each large eye is 

 a broad circle or disk of flat feathers. These circles 

 of feathers make the eyes seem even larger, and go 

 far toward giving the bird its solemn look. 



An owl's beak and claws are curved and strono-. 

 They resemble those of another family which includes 

 the Hawks and Eagles, w^io also live by violence. 



Hawks, if they are robbers, are at any rate like the 

 robber barons of old, dependent on their strength and 

 swiftness as much as on surprise. The owl is more 

 like a stealthy thief, and his success depends almost 

 wholly on silence and secrecy. Twilight is his favor- 

 ite time, or moonlight nights. His feathers, moreover, 

 are edged with such soft down that an owl might pass 

 directly over your head and you would hardly hear it. 



Think of the whistling of a pigeon's wings and you 

 will see how remarkable this silence is. Here is, 



