STOJ^IES ABOUT BIRDS. 



In the forests of Java the peacock wears a much longer crest than else- 

 where, and there is a curious fact to be told about him. There are beautiful 

 park-like scenes in the island, studded with great trees, and that look very 

 smiling. But a dangerous enemy is always lurking behind some bush or 

 fence. I mean the tiger — one of the great scourges of the island ; and the 

 traveller, as he crosses the plain, often feels his horse tremble and shake 

 beneath him. The animal knows by instinct that the tiger is close at hand. 

 And there are other parts of the country where villages are thinly scattered 

 amid the wilds, and where the native lives in a state of constant dread. 



The village is enclosed with strong fences, and fires are kept burning in 

 the night. Still the enemy is not driven away. And what is very curious, 

 the peacock and the tiger are often seen in each other's company. When the 

 streaks of light begin to gather round, the harsh, disagreeable note of the 

 peacock is heard, and then the villagers say that the tiger is setting out on 

 his excursions. 



The voice of the peacock is the worst part of him. It is so harsh and 

 discordant that there is scarcely anything like it in nature. And his 

 disposition is not at all pleasant. He is a most destructive bird, and kills all 

 the little chickens, and treads down all the flowers in the garden, and, unless 

 he has a very large range, is scarcely to be tolerated. But such a range is 

 usuall}^ provided him, and he roams about in extensive grounds and planta- 

 tions, and is considered highly ornamental. At night he will roost on the 

 highest branch of a tree, or even on the top of the house. 



The peacock was first brought to us from the East Indies, and flocks of 

 peacocks are still seen in the beautiful island of Ceylon. And its name is 

 mentioned in the earliest history. King Solomon had peacocks brought home 

 in his ships ; and in the old days of Greece a peacock and a pen-hen were 

 sold for as much as ^30 of our money. 



And during the time of Alexander the Great's expedition into India, he 

 was dazzled by the sight of flocks of peacocks flying wild on the banks of the 

 rivers. Their great beauty so charmed him, that he forbade any one to harm 

 them on pain of a very severe punishment. And when the peacock was first 

 brought to Greece, people were in raptures with it, and came from far and 

 near to behold it. 



Besides being admired for their beauty, peacocks were in those days 

 thought a delicacy for the table. At the old Roman banquets they were the 



