HOODED CROW. 249 



Sike teeasty food ez ne'er war seen, 



Ah beg ya sup at bre'k o' day, 



An' deea mah bidding, this Ah pray I 



When cooked, the balls were laid over night on some midden, 

 or well-known feeding place generally resorted to by Crows, 

 and if consumed by the morning the charm had worked well, 

 and the wish would be duly granted. 



The vernacular names are many and varied, shewing the 

 peculiar ideas respecting its coimtry of origin. Hoodie, 

 Royston Crow, and Norway Crow are general terms, as also 

 are Grey Crow, Grey Back, or Grey-backed Crow ; in Craven 

 it is the Northern Crow, or Dun Crow ; the Blue-backed Crow 

 at Thirsk ; the Denmark Crow in the Humber district ; Garton 

 Greyback, or Wetwang Greyback, according to its haunts 

 in the Wold district ; Moor Crow in the Nidd Valley ; Dutch 

 Crow at Ackworth ; Coatham Crow, and Woodcock Crow at 

 Loftus and Staithes, and Black Neb in Teesdale. 



ROOK. 



Corvus fruffilegus (L). 



Resident, generally distributed and very abundant. In autumn 

 large numbers of immigrants arrive from the Continent. 



Probably the earliest mention of the Rook in connection 

 with Yorkshire dates back to about 1730, and relates to an 

 incident which occurred at Bilton near Knaresborough, 

 as mentioned in the life of John Metcalf, where it is recorded 

 that Metcalf [Blind Jack of Knaresborough] and a companion 

 robbed a Rookery at dead of night, bringing away seven 

 dozen and a half, excepting the heads which they left under 

 the trees. This so incensed the owner that he sent the bellman 

 round, offering a reward of two guineas for the detection 

 of the offenders. (Yorkshire Magazine, 15th April 1875, 

 iv., p. 71.) 



Thomas Allis, 1844, wrote : — 



Corvus frugilegus. — Rook — Common in most parts. R. Leyland 



