186 BIRDS AND MAN 



had come over his disposition. His confidence in 

 his human fellow- creatures was gone ; he now 

 regarded them all — even those of the house — with 

 suspicion, opening wide his eyes and drawing a 

 little back when any person approached him. Never 

 more did he alight on any person's shoulder, though 

 his evenings were spent as before in flying about 

 the village. Insensibly his range widened and he 

 became wilder. Human companionship, no longer 

 pleasant, ceased to be necessary ; and at length 

 he found a mate who was willing to overlook his 

 pauper past, and with her he went away to live 

 his wild life. 



