THE RAVEN 89 



that land was far off. Legend, indeed, has it that Iceland 

 owes its discovery to the Raven. 



The Raven was the sacred standard of the great Odin, 

 and was the inseparable companion of the devastating 

 progress of the Sea Kings. In the Sagas it is stated that 

 Odin possessed two Ravens which traversed great dis- 

 tances and, returning to their master, whispered in his 

 ear the information they had gained during their travels. 

 In this country the Raven was formerly put to a less 

 picturesque use, for in the old coaching days it was custo- 

 mary to keep a tame Raven at the posting houses, and 

 when any traveller drove up, the Corbie would generally 

 call for the hostler. 



The age to which the Raven lives is a matter of doubt, 

 but still he has the reputation of being a long-lived bird. A 

 Raven shot near Stockholm in 1839 had a plate on its beak 

 with the date 1770 engraved on it, so presumably the bird 

 had lived for 69 years after it had been branded. Though 

 in earlier days it was generally understood that the term 

 Corbie was applied to Ravens, and to Ravens alone, this 

 cannot always have been the case. An old rhyme has it : 



" D'ye ken the hoose o' Sir William Forbes, 

 Surrounded by trees a' black wi' Corbies, 

 Frae whence the Pentland Hills are seen, 

 Covered wi' sheep, for ever green." 



" Corbies " evidently here refers to the common Rook, but 

 still I think this must be rather an exceptional histance 

 of the use of the word. 



The Raven is one of the most widely distributed of 

 birds, being found throughout Europe, Asia, and North 

 America, but more numerously in the northern than in 

 the southern parts of these continents. It is found nest- 

 ing in Greenland, Iceland, and in the Faroes, while in 

 Scandinavia it is common. In the High North it is com- 



